Join the Borders Youth Local Action Team!
Are you ready to make a difference?
What's Youth-LAG All About:
We are responsible for a funding pot that fuels the ambitions of young people like you, ones who want to create a real impact. Last year, we received 36 funding applications for a share of the £20,000 Borders Youth-LAG fund. It was tough to make the final decision, but we were able to fund a total of 21 amazing youth-led projects.
This year, our funding pot has increased and we are expanding our team to lead on the development of the 2023/24 project. The grant program opens for applications in December. You’ll decide priorities, make decisions, allocate funding, and turn young people’s ideas into action. This is your chance to make a big difference.
Why Join?
- Learn Skills: Develop valuable skills to support your career goals.
- Grow Networks: Build career pathways and gain recognition.
- Boost Confidence: Gain the confidence to lead and make a difference.
- Make Friends: Have fun and connect with like-minded peers.
- Share Ideas: Give voice to others and support your community.
Commitment and Responsibility:
From the end of September, Youth-LAG will meet face-to-face or online. This is usually for two hours on a fortnightly basis. There will also be opportunities to take part in trips.
Additional Support:
Apply Now and Let's Make a Difference!
Interested young people must live, work or study in the Scottish Borders and be aged between 14 and 25 years of age. Previous experience of volunteering or participation in leadership projects is not essential. What is most important is energy, drive, and enthusiasm to create change.
Places are limited and early statements of interest are encouraged.
The deadline is Monday 18 September 2023, so please get in touch as soon as possible.
For more information, please contact Carly McAllan, the YouthBorders Project and Partnership Coordinator, at carly@youthborders.org.uk or phone 07713 279341.
Who we've funded
We’re thrilled to report we received 36 funding applications for a share of the £20,000 for the 2022/23 Borders Youth-LAG fund.
The team gave each application a great deal of consideration.
We discovered that the young people of the Scottish Borders has an abundance of amazing ideas, and we wish we could have funded all of them.
It was tough to make the final decision, but we’re pleased to announce that we’ve funded a total of 21 individuals and groups.
These projects reflect incredible levels of youth innovation and talent, as well as an impressive sense of community.
The next Youth-LAG fund will be launched in December 2023, where we’re excited to discover even more of your great ideas.
Annabel will work with a group of young people in Rowlands to set up their own print shop called Printosauraus.
This will teach them business skills and how to work together as a team.
The group will design their own logo and personalise printed items such as key rings, pens, water bottles, bags and notepads for the community.
Funding: £1,149.74
Alexandra at Eat Sleep Ride will make their space more inviting for new attendees by making indoor workshop spaces comfier.
By providing riding hats and lockers, low-income families will have the chance to join in on activities and feel included and safe.
This funding will also allow the group to buy horse agility equipment to support young people when they visit the organisation through school, local council or self-referral.
Funding: £1,613.05
John will create a gaming group in Galashiels for people on the neuro-divergence spectrum from several communities across the Borders.
Neuro-divergent people will be able to come in and play on a variety of consoles in a bid to bring people together through the power of videogames.
This will be a safe space for support, camaraderie amongst peers and a place for them to be themselves and allow them to make new friends.
Funding: £610
Alexander will create a pop-up Eco Refill Station in Duns to help reduce waste and enable more people to access responsibly manufactured products.
This will address the amount of unnecessary plastic used in the Borders. Alexander will make environmentally friendly products more easily available to people at affordable prices.
He is excited to gain work experience and develop key skills in customer service, dealing with money, managing suppliers, managing stock, sales, and marketing.
Funding: £600.98
Esmé will set up a free Community Resource Exchange for transgender individuals or anyone who wants to use clothes and makeup to explore their personal expression.
Esmé will create a pop-up shop filled with clothes, makeup, and gender affirming products such as binders that trans people could access for free.
Funding: £472.85
At BANG (Borders Additional Needs Group), Jack and his group will work on a project making a sensory bag.
The group are learning about budget, profit, and loss and how to set up their own business.
Jack wants to take the sensory bag to pop-up shops and build a bigger business so that the bag can be bought by other companies around the Borders.
Funding: £900.72
Lucy is passionate about gaining experience to become a freelance journalist in the Scottish Borders.
This funding will allow her to record and produce news content worthy of being submitted to ITV Border, BBC Radio Scotland, and BBC’s Reporting Scotland, as well as publishing online.
As a result, publicity will be raised for issues facing those across the Scottish Borders region.
Funding: £750
Ben wants to take his art business to the next level by learning and practicing different drawing techniques using unique art supplies.
This will enable him to provide higher quality drawings and a more professional service for people in the Borders.
(Instagram: ben_herdman_art)
Funding: £668.96
Maggie, on behalf of pupils at Channelkirk Primary School, would like to develop life-long skills in cooking and baking.
This group are interested in cooking their own school lunch and selling their home baking to members of the community at school fayres and shows.
The group will use the profits of this enterprise to buy woodwork equipment to build birdhouses for their playground.
Funding: £1,433.25
Ross has recently started his own business as a barber working out of “The Barbers on Bridge street”.
He started his business in 2021 and is passionate about cutting hair.
Ross’s next step is to expand his business and client base and offer a more professional service to clients which will help contribute to customer loyalty.
@mcinteebarbering on Instagram or Facebook
Funding: £631.39
Dylan from Beyond Earlston, alongside a group of young people will hold the first young person’s summer fair market, where all products are made and sold by young people.
As a group, they feel the benefit of learning new skills and being creative is something they’d like to share with others in their local community (and possibly wider).
They hope to get other volunteers, parents, and small businesses in to help them learn new skills.
Funding: £1,124.10
Dylan is a member of Jedburgh Grammar Campus Eco Committee and has recently noted the increase in bin overflow at the school.
The Committee are passionate about keeping their school clean and tidy as the environment is important to them.
They would like to make it more sustainable, as litter is one of their Green Flag Actions.
Funding: £1,063.44
Amelia, Layna and Toni live in the rural village of Newcastleton and would like more things to do at Innov8 (Newcastleton Youth Project).
With this funding, they will be able to add new activities to the group and will make their space more exciting for other young people to get involved.
Funding: £1,090
Alchemy Film & Arts is based in the Scottish Borders town of Hawick.
They work with communities and artists both locally and internationally, using film as a way to come together, have conversations and make positive change.
This funding will allow young people to take part in future sessions involving film screenings, talks from visiting artists, filmmaking, editing/projection workshops and more.
Funding: £1,105.00
Borders Youth Theatre is one of the few chances Dougal gets to meet up with his friends.
At Borders Youth Theatre, this funding will allow young people to make videos and sound clips which they can use in their upcoming shows and learn how to run the lighting and sound effectively.
Funding:£1,735.00
My name is Eve and I make hand crafted gifts covered from Harris Tweed such as gin bottle lamps with shades, key fobs, bookmarks, decorations and cards.
I make these myself using my sewing machine. This funding will allow me to purchase new materials and develop my business in the Borders.
Funding: £746
Miwa is setting up a locally sourced Vegetable Stall at Hawick’s Saturday market.
Her plan is to run a regular stall at the Saturday market with a “sell or swap” initiative to encourage local growers to get involved and potential for a guest spot for local artists/crafts people to sell their wares.
Funding: £783.66
Interest Link will develop a project on revolving unworn garments called “Free YOUR style – for free!”.
This will bring back the joy of textiles and shopping in people’s wardrobes.
Young people will be involved in cutting, tailoring, stitching, embroidery and “visible mending” garments to refresh styles without adding to landfill.
Funding: £575.35
Aileen-Marie and Greg from Brothers of Charity Scotland, based in Tweedbank, work in the community with people with additional support needs.
Their idea will use an allotment to help people with their mental health and wellbeing by gardening and growing flowers, fruit and vegetables.
They will also take on craft projects such as building planters and making spring wreaths together.
Funding: £870.50
Laura started her journey with Serendipity as a community member which led onto completing training to become a youth peer mentor.
Laura is passionate about performing arts and will create a community choir called Rewind.
She believes that providing creative outlets such as music therapy for individuals in recovery will be invaluable.
Funding: £1,007
Naomi and Evie are part of the Escape Kitchen Crew and attend on a Wednesday night at the youth café to bake and cook food to take home.
This funding will allow the group to learn life skills for the future and how to cook more healthy food for themselves and their friends and family.
Funding: £1,069
