The three-week NCS, which was launched in a blaze of publicity last year with actor Michael Caine, includes two weeks away from home, first on an outdoor activity course and then volunteering in a neighbourhood, and a third week designing a community project. Some 11,000 16-year-olds were due to take part in pilot schemes this year after their GCSEs, and next year that number will increase to 30,000. But Cameron now wants to roll it out to all 600,000 of England's 16-year-olds.