A group of 15 and 16 year olds from Ross-on-Wye, Ledbury and Hereford organised a bake sale for Hope Support Services on Tuesday, July 26th, and raised £151.45.

The group of fundraisers have been participating in the National Citizen Service (NCS), a programme for young people, since the beginning of July.

The young people who have taken on the National Citizen Service?programme are led by mentors, Michael Sheppard and Jordan Creed. Michael told the Gazette that the NCS?is a government funded scheme, where teens aged 15 to 17 take part in a number of stages.

First, there is a residential trip, where the NCS?group take part in adventurous activities such as rock-climbing and canoeing. Then, they take part in a university-style stay away from home, where they can live independently, and learn to cook for themselves.

For the last stage, the young people have to organise a social action project within the community. The group have chosen to raise money for the Hope Support Services, a Ross-based charity which supports young people when a close family member is diagnosed with a life-threatening disease.

The team have organised a number of fundraising activities. The first official event was the bake sale, held outside The Venue, in Ross-on-Wye on Tuesday, July 26th, although some members of the group had been busking to raise funds beforehand.

Aaron, one of the members of the NCS?team said:?“I’ve found it really good, it’s amazing to see how much we can do in a short amount of time.”