“As a Glaswegian it is inspiring and humbling for our work to be recognised with the St Mungo Award. Everything I have achieved has been with and through an exceptional team of committed people. People make Glasgow and with more than 1,300 volunteers registered and 400 mentors, MCR Pathways is a fantastic example of this in action.”
From being announced in December, MCR Pathways* founder, Iain MacRitchie, was last night presented with the iconic St Mungo prize in Glasgow’s City Chambers.
In recognition of his commitment to improving the lives of young Glaswegians through his Young Glasgow Talent* mentoring programme, he joins esteemed company. Previous recipients of the award include Sir William Burrell, Sir Alexander Gibson, Lord MacFarlane of Bearsden and Sir John Arbuthnott.
“I am very motivated to fully represent the values and ethos of this award and our great city. Glasgow has world class opportunities and we are very determined to ensure that every disadvantaged young person has equal if not greater access to them to realise their potential.”
Our young people will be determined by their talents and never by their circumstances. MCR Mentors and Talent Taster experiences bridge talent with opportunity and transform outcomes.
Glasgow City Council’s commitment of 10% of the workforce to become MCR mentors* as part of the normal working week is pioneering and exceptional. I would urge every organisation to get involved* and benefit from helping reach every young person who needs the support to find, grow and use their talents.
Anyone can become an MCR mentor. All you need to do is build a positive relationship with a young person, we will take care of the rest. You will get as much if not more out of a deeply fulfilling and transforming experience”
The Lord Provost presented Iain with the award on 9th March: “ Dr MacRitchie is an inspirational individual committed to giving back to this city. His highly regarded mentoring programme MCR Pathways for young people has received many accolades and the city council is proud to be part of its success, raising the aspirations of all our care experienced and disadvantaged children.
He is living proof that people make Glasgow and really do make a difference every day. Everyone who has encountered Iain cannot fail to be impressed and humbled by his enthusiasm, positivity, practicality and bold ambition for our young people who are seeking guidance as they navigate a complicated adult world.
Glasgow is fortunate to have such a high achiever with such a caring and philanthropic attitude. I’m sure everyone will agree he is a deserving recipient of this honour.”
Paul Hearn, Head of Trustee Services at Glasgow’s Mazars accountancy company, overseeing the St Mungo Prize nomination process said: “My firm is extremely proud of its association, as secretaries, to the Trust and looks forward to continuing that collaboration as the prize goes from strength to strength in the years to come.”
Can you help? Our city’s young people desperately need a mentor to make a huge difference to their confidence, educational outcomes and future life chances. You’ll guide disadvantaged, but utterly deserving and ambitious, young people through their education. Find out more about Becoming A Mentor.
Can your organisation help? To become involved in our Talent Taster programme, alongside our partners such as Glasgow Life and The Herald, simply GET INVOLVED! We can’t wait to work with you to offer our city’s most disadvantaged a gateway to an expanding menu of opportunities and tasters of university, college and employment.
We’re always looking for new mentors to reach all the young people coming on board with the programme. Help us spread the word by letting your friends and family know how worthwhile mentoring can be using the ‘share’ buttons below!
