Project Trust, Gap Years

Has anyone done a gap year with project trust before? Ive heard total gap year nightmares. Just want to make sure what I know wht Im getting into. Would yous recommend a whole year volunteering or a shorter amount of time, never done it b4

Reply 1

holland405123

I cannot comment on the company mentioned, however I done some volunteering through Plan My Gap Year and would 100% recommend them.

What are your plans for volunteering? Going abroad? A year is a very long time, and I would recommend varying it quite a bit so you don't get to bored - things quickly turn into everyday life!

Reply 2

fasteddy

Project Trust are a reputable organisation and have been offering placements for years. Maybe check their Facebook page for reviews and experiences to see if it is right for you. There are also lots of other gap year companies if you are still researching options with different programs and destinations.

Reply 3

Mohamed.Rashwan

Project Trust is unreliable, untrustworthy and have issues with transparency.My daughter decided to go abroad with Project Trust for her gap year. While she was abroad there was poor communication with staff and they were late paying her allowance consistently. She would message them and be ignored and would have to remind them that they were late in paying her allowance. An allowance, I would like to add, that she funded herself. The evacuation process due to the pandemic reflected this disorganisation and lack of communication. She did not feel like she was being taken care of whatsoever during her time abroad.To travel abroad she had to make £5,500. She did this through working full-time in retail believing that in the end it would be worth it as she would have an amazing experience abroad. I also funded the trip and a small amount was donated. Logically you would expect Project Trust to refund the money as the trip was cut short from 8 months to just 3 months and they would have spent this money on her regardless. Money that she made and trusted them to spend on her - for accommodation, flights, insurance etc. However they refused to refund the money, stating that their handbook says money cannot be refunded except under specific circumstances. They did refund money that came from her own pocket though before she travelled when a grant came through. They made a distinction between money made from her own hard work and money donated or fundraised and created ambiguity about refunds.It's a shame to see how volunteers can be taken advantage like this by a charity dedicated to the education of young people. If you are looking to travel abroad for your gap year I would advise you to steer clear of this organisation and find one that actually has you or your child's best interest at heart and actually cares about treating their volunteers fairly.