Abdo’s journey began at 15. Fleeing with his mother, Abdo embarked on a perilous trek to escape the conflict in his country. Wearing ill-fitting shoes held together by string and paper, he overcame tremendous odds to make it to the UK – but tragically lost his mother along the way. Not only was Abdo now alone in a brand-new country, but he also couldn’t speak any English. Placed in foster care with a supportive, compassionate family, Abdo was supported in his growth, and encouraged to develop his skills and experience. A turning point for Abdo was when he was introduced to UK Youth’s ..read more

Loneliness is an experience that has left an indelible mark on me. As I gradually work to overcome feelings of isolation, I recognise that it has altered my very chemistry and has left a wound. Loneliness, for me, is akin to having a voice but feeling unheard, as if I’m trying to scream, yet no one seems to listen. It’s like the walls are closing in, suffocating me in a sense of isolation. My childhood was traumatic. I was in survival mode the whole time. I couldn’t do things that other young children were able to do. I had single parents and moved between them both, and both had low incom ..read more

From Monday 22nd – Friday 24th November, the #iwillmovement – powered by UK Youth and Volunteering Matters – marked its tenth anniversary during #iwill week. #iwill week is our annual celebration of the social action work young people, Ambassadors, Champions, and partners, are leading up and down the UK. This year, we celebrated a decade of youth social action, and encouraged everyone to a be part of the movement that is shaping the next 10 years of youth-led change. The theme of this year’s #iwill week was ‘What is the next big thing in youth social action?’. Events of the week were ..read more

UK Youth are delighted to have been selected as the delivery partner for the second phase of the Adventures Away from Home Fund (AAfH), 2023/24. In partnership with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the new £1.5 million fund aims to provide 8,500 disadvantaged young people, aged 11-18, or up to 25 for those with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), with bursaries to take part in outdoor learning. The fund will allow underrepresented young people to take part in outdoor learning experiences that support their personal development through connections with other young p ..read more

Support our Big Give Christmas Challenge 28th Nov – 5th Dec Now is the best time to help our young people to have access to the life-changing value of youth work. During our Big Give Christmas Challenge running from Tuesday 29th November to Tuesday 5th December, your donation will be doubled, and make even more of a difference to young people around the UK. Make your pledge today   More than ever, young people like Molly are feeling isolated from their communities and it is having a devastating impact on their mental health and self-esteem – especially on young people from marginalised ..read more

On Monday (9th October) UK Youth welcomed Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal, the charity’s Patron, to Avon Tyrrell, the outdoor centre it runs in the New Forest, as the charity launched its new capital appeal to restore and expand the site. HRH The Princess Royal joined UK Youth’s President, Nigel Mansell CBE, Chair of Trustees, David Thomlinson, and the charity’s CEO, Ndidi Okezie OBE, on a tour of the site, meeting participating schools* and UK Youth’s Outdoor Learning Team based at Avon Tyrrell.  As part of the visit, they watched young people take part in a number of act ..read more

Tuesday 10th October is World Mental Health Day 2023, where organisations across the globe come together to raise awareness of mental health issues and advocate for positive changes in mental health care. Alarming statistics from 2022 reveal that 18.0% of children aged 7 to 16 years and 22.0% of young people aged 17 to 24 years had a probable mental disorder. These rates have remained stable since 2020 according to data from NHS Digital, 2022 Last year, The Julia and Hans Rausing Trust in collaboration with Westminster Foundation generously awarded £11 million to UK Youth. This investment ..read more

We are delighted to have launched our Outdoor Learning Policy Report today at the Conservative Party Conference with a panel event involving young people, MPs and key stakeholders working in the youth sector and outdoor learning sector. This report is the culmination of an in depth review process of the evidence around the benefits of outdoor learning, and the barriers to access that we know a lot of young people face. We spoke to different youth organisations to help develop our key findings and produce 10 recommendations for Government on how to improve access to outdoor learning for young ..read more

This is our regular policy and public affairs round up blog, covering what the team have been up to here at UK Youth, what young people have been saying, and what is coming up in the next couple of months. We would love to hear from you so please get in touch if you have any questions, thoughts or ideas to share with the team! What have we been up to? On Wednesday the 30th of August Secretary of State Lucy Frazer MP visited North Paddington Youth Club to announce the launch of a new sports strategy, Get Active, that sets national participation targets of an additional 2.5m adults and 1m chi ..read more

We are delighted to have launched our Outdoor Learning Policy Report today at the Conservative Party Conference with a panel event involving young people, MPs and key stakeholders working in the youth sector and outdoor learning sector. This report is the culmination of an in depth review process of the evidence around the benefits of outdoor learning, and the barriers to access that we know a lot of young people face. We spoke to different youth organisations to help develop our key findings and produce 10 recommendations for Government on how to improve access to outdoor learning for young ..read more