SPARTANS ARE AMONG THE LOTTERY WINNERS
Dean & Cauvin Young People’s Trust has today (WEDNESDAY 13 MARCH) been awarded funding from the Young Start programme to continue delivering their vital support services to vulnerable young people in Edinburgh.
Funding of £99,347 was awarded to the 300-year-old charity as part of a total of more than £1.5 million awarded to 19 Scottish organisations supporting children, teenagers and young adults across the country.
Young Start, delivered by The National Lottery Community Fund, awards dormant bank account funding to projects that help young people reach their full potential.
Spartans Community Foundation also received funding of over £99,000. They will use their Young Start award to provide a three-year project to support 450 young people aged 10 to 18 through regular weekly clubs, workshops, day trips and residential trips.
The project, based at Ainslie Park in Pilton, will support children and young people from the immediate surrounding areas. The group will also support the young people in developing self-advocacy and communication skills. The project builds on the group’s experience of youth work in North Edinburgh and its partnership with other agencies.
Other Edinburgh-based projects to receive funding are:
The Venture Trust (£95,292)
This group will provide a two year project to support 110 young people aged 16 to 24. The group will support young people through intense complex challenges such as adverse childhood experiences, trauma, poverty, abuse and periods of homelessness and substance use issues.
The project aims to provide a preventative approach to these complex issues and avoid high-risk behaviours. The group will support young people from West Lothian, Midlothian, and Edinburgh.
U-Evolve (£91,505)
The group will provide a therapeutic programme of support to young people aged 11 to 18 in Edinburgh.
This programme has been developed by young people, and in response to challenges
young people face with their mental health and wellbeing. This project will benefit 300 young people and 36 volunteers over the course of three years.
Youth Theatre Arts Scotland (£67,386)
The group will provide disadvantaged young people aged 16 to 24, who want to work in youth theatre with opportunities to train in youth theatre leadership, gain work experience, obtain accredited qualifications in youth work, and develop their CVs and interview skills.
The two and a half year project will benefit 100 young people and 40 volunteers.
Dean & Cauvin Young People’s Trust provides a range of support to vulnerable young people including helping with addiction and homelessness, supporting young parents, and family breakdowns.
Jay, aged 20 from Edinburgh, accessed Dean & Cauvin’s residential services with the help of her social worker, when she was 19 years old and had just given birth to her baby boy, Bob.
Jay said: “I was quite ill after giving birth to Bob – I had a blood clot and a collapsed lung, so I had to spend quite a bit of time in hospital.
“When I was better, I had nowhere to stay. There was no space with any of my family members, and having a six-week-old baby made it so much more urgent that I found a home. My social worker managed to find me a space at Cauvin House.”
Dean & Cauvin’s residential service – Cauvin House – provides accommodation to young parents and their children, as well as ongoing parenting support and assessment, to help keep families together.
One year after Jay moved into the shared accommodation, an individual flat became available for her, which she was able to transition into.
Jay said: “It feels amazing to have our own space. Living with Bob in the shared accommodation was obviously so much better than the alternative – being homeless – but having got a wee flat for us is giving me so much independence.
“I still get a lot of help from the staff – I had a really bad period of mental illness a while back and began self-harming, and my support workers were always there for me and have helped me come back out of that and be mentally well again.”
Jay says thanks to the charity, she’s looking forward to the future and hopes to go back into education.
She explained: “I was studying childminding at college when I got pregnant, and now I feel like I’m in a good position I want to go back and finish it when Bob goes to nursery.
“I’m so thankful for everything the staff at Dean & Cauvin have done for me – they’re like a second family – they’ve been there through it all with us.”
Lianne Thomson, House and Community Service Manager at Dean & Cauvin Young People’s Trust said: “We are deeply grateful for the Young Start funding as it has enabled us to continue making a real difference to the lives of our young people.
“It has helped us to provide vital support and resources to empower and impact the lives of the families we work with. I am immensely proud of Jay’s progress and it has been a privilege to join her on her parenting journey.”
Announcing today’s funding, The National Lottery Community Fund, Scotland Chair, Kate Still, said: “Support services such as Dean & Cauvin are such important resources around the country for so many young people like Jay to help turn their lives around in moments of real difficulty.
“We are always keen to support projects that put Scotland’s young people at the heart of the development and running of services. If your group has an idea how you would make this happen, then we’d love to hear from you.”
Young Start helps young people aged eight to 24 become more confident and play an active part in realising their potential. Funding of up to £100,000 is available for youth led projects.
Groups can apply by emailing advicescotland@tnlcommunityfund.org.uk or calling 0300 123 7110.
Find out more at:
https://www.tnlcommunityfund.org.uk/funding/programmes/young-start
Ends
Young Start Table of Awards March 2024.pdf
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