Celebrating Young Scot, our longest partnership!
“It makes me feel like my voice is being heard and that I’m making a change and doing things.”
CAITLIN, Young scot participant
It’s been 15 years since we started funding Young Scot, Scotland’s youth charity. During that time, we’ve supported what they do with over £730k of funding. This has helped them to continue to work with young people so that they can make a difference in their local communities, and across other areas of Scotland.
From funding projects around youth wellbeing to putting youth loneliness on the national agenda, they’ve been building future communities that focus on what matters most to young people. Their presence in Scotland, and their commitment to young people, has been critical in making the best possible use of our funds as we work to fund equitably across the four nations.
About Young Scot
“If Young Scot wasn’t here, I’m not sure what I’d do. I’d be a lot more reserved. I don’t know if I would have found my interest in mental health, isolation, psychology, that sort of stuff, so I don’t know if I’d be studying in university at the moment.”
Anna, Young Scot participant
Young Scot support young people from across Scotland to thrive and make the most of their lives as they grow up.
Young Scot Hive (#YSHive) also provides volunteering opportunities to empower young people to make change by sharing power with organisations and tackling society’s toughest challenges.
The volunteering opportunities that Young Scot provides gives young people the chance to create a fairer, more sustainable world for their friends and peers, and future generations.
Over the last 15 years, we’ve funded projects that have helped them to amplify the voices of young people. For example, in 2011 the Truth About Youth campaign created a cultural shift in the way that young people were viewed and treated in Scotland.
Young Scot has put young people at the heart of their work. They look for opportunities to collaborate with young people, encouraging them into leadership positions.
“It gives me the opportunity to be able to talk to other youth about their experiences and how we can share the experiences we’ve had and turn that around and make a difference.”
Esther, Young Scot participant
Our latest funding
Our latest funding (£105k) was awarded in 2023 and has allowed Young Scot to empower young people to tackle youth loneliness in Scotland. This has involved young people co-designing projects and speaking directly to government about the issues that matter most to them.
Working with the people who directly feel the impact of youth loneliness and want to make a difference has meant Young Scot has been able to develop projects that directly speak to and benefit young people.
Watch the video above to see what young people have to say about being a part of Young Scot in their own words.
Fifteen years of achievement
“I think it’s important for young people to be involved and co-create because it’s important to know that the people you’re targeting need what you’re offering them – and if you don’t ask young people, how are you going to know what we need?”
Caitlin, Young Scot participant
As our partnership with Young Scot comes to an end, we want to celebrate how our collaboration has helped amplify the voices of young people in Scotland. Through empowering young people who have most at stake in youth provision, they have co-created campaigns to build communities of the future together.
“The work that Young Scot have done over the last few years has meant that extensive resources on youth loneliness have been made available to the Youth Sector. This will make a real difference for youth workers across Scotland to support young people who are struggling with loneliness and isolation. In addition to this, many individual young people have had opportunities to advocate for the kind of service and support they would like to be available for them and their peers, into the long term.”
Ella Smyth, Funding and Partnerships Manager.