Jobs and skills boost for young Scots as £925,000 backs local projects | The National Lottery Community Fund

A total of 11 organisations will share £926,258 to deliver hands-on-training, mentoring and employment opportunities at a time when youth unemployment in Scotland is estimated at 10.8% among 16 to 24-year-olds*.

Projects including Skills Exchange SCIO in East Kilbride, Murtle Market in Aberdeen and Friends of the Broadway Prestwick will use the funding to support young people to develop practical skills, gain work experience and access job opportunities across sectors ranging from estates management to theatre production.

Young Start is funded by the Dormant Assets Scheme, delivered by the National Lottery Community fund, with priorities set by the Scottish Government. It aims to help children and young people reach their potential.

One organisation benefiting from yesterday’s announcement is Skills Exchange SCIO, in East Kilbride, which has received £99,498 to deliver its ‘Let’s Grow’ project. It offers a 13-week programme that supports young people, like Callum, 19, to work with local community partners to gain an SQA qualification in Rural Skills: Estate Maintenance, while improving confidence and wellbeing in a supportive environment.

Before coming to the project, Callum faced significant challenges with confidence and anxiety about his future. Living with autism, he found new social environments particularly difficult and often struggled to engage with unfamiliar people and situations.

Callum said: “Before I joined Let’s Grow, I didn’t really have much confidence, and I found meeting new people and being in new places really hard because of my autism. I mostly kept to myself and didn’t really leave the house much because my anxiety was so bad. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do or where my life was going.

“The support from Skills Exchange honestly changed a lot for me. They helped me come out my comfort zone, build my confidence, and realise I’m capable of more than I thought. I’ve made new friends, learned loads of new skills, and now I’ve got a job doing something I actually enjoy. I genuinely think if I hadn’t joined the course, I’d probably still be stuck at home struggling and without a job. Now I feel like I’ve finally found direction in my life.”

After completing the programme, Callum gained his Estate Maintenance qualification and secured work as a Grounds Operative with South Lanarkshire Council.

Louise McNicol, Chief Officer at Skills Exchange SCIO, added: “This Young Start funding will be transformational for Skills Exchange SCIO and for the young people we support. We can create safe, welcoming spaces where young people can build confidence, develop practical skills, improve their wellbeing and feel genuinely connected to their community.

“Through growing activities, peer support and hands-on learning, we’ve seen young people who were previously isolated or struggling with confidence begin to thrive, take pride in their achievements feel heard, valued and empowered about their future.”

Announcing the funding, Kate Still, Scotland Chair, The National Lottery Community Fund, said: “This funding will support organisations across Scotland to deliver projects that help young people build confidence, develop skills and explore opportunities for their future.

“As part of a wider £5.6 million Young Start investment, these projects are creating opportunities for young people to gain experience, discover their strengths and take positive steps towards employment, education or training.”

Meanwhile, Murtle Market in Bieldside, Aberdeen receives £100,000 towards their sustainable, zero-waste shop and cafe run by young people with profound disabilities and complex additional support needs. The ‘Brighter Futures’ project offers employment and meaningful work opportunities through customer service and production roles to around 150 young people with special educational needs (SEN) from Camphill School in Aberdeen, like Leah, 20.

She said: “I have learned a lot, like working on the till, making coffees and speaking to customers. I feel a lot more comfortable doing this than I used to. I also like working here because it is fun. I get to have a laugh with Nico and Gwyn, plus I like getting to know the customers and their dogs.”

Gwyn McIntosh, Murtle Market’s Store Coordinator, added: “Over the past year and a half, since we first opened our doors at Murtle Market I have seen how the young people at Camphill have grown to feel comfortable in the store’s surroundings. In turn, their confidence has grown, whether it is in the direct work with customers or making handmade crafts to be sold at Murtle Market.

Friends of the Broadway Prestwick, in South Ayrshire receives £67,150 to support young people to learn analogue projection and film-making skills, while gaining transferable experience in hospitality budgeting and marketing. The project will support nearly 2,800 young people over the next two years.

Kyle Macfarlane, Young Start Co-Ordinator of Friends of the Broadway Prestwick, said: Our vision for the next two years is incredibly exciting, and with Young Start’s support the Broadway will be one of the nation’s leading training centres for analogue film projection and presentation.”