ARRAN YOUTH FOUNDATION
Supporting the young people of Arran
Gill Sherry
Arran Youth Foundation was established in 2008 for much the same reason that most youth groups are set up: to get young people off the streets.
“My first task was to establish a Friday night youth club that had regular attendance and good engagement. The first night I was in the job, we went out to the streets of Brodick to speak to the kids.”
Graeme Johnston, full-time Youth Work Project Manager with AYF since 2010, asked them what they would like from a youth centre.
“At the time, it was X-Box and video games, so I went and got some funding and bought an X-Box and games. By the following Friday we had a warm space where they could come in and do something.”
The group quickly outgrew the small portacabin it was using and moved to a church hall in Brodick before transferring to a purpose built youth centre in Lamlash, situated on the High School campus.
“We’re open every weekday now,” Graeme confirms. “We have a full programme of activities and it changes over time depending what the young folk want. Obviously the young folk change as well, they may leave for university… so what we’ve had in the past doesn’t stay the same, it very much depends on what the current crop of young people on the island want and feel they need.”
Currently, the programme of activities looks like this:
Monday – cooking club/girls football
Tuesday – music group
Wednesday – art psychotherapy
Thursday – P7 club/girls football
Friday – club night
Graeme expands on the art psychotherapy: “In the past we’ve covered things like the cost of living crisis or the war in Ukraine… whatever might be on young people’s minds at the time. They go off and create some art and then come back together as a group to discuss what they’ve created and why. It’s an opportunity to discuss your feelings. Some of them may not sit and talk in the traditional way so art is a good way to get them talking.”
One-to-one art psychotherapy is also available to anyone who feels they may benefit from it. Similarly, AYF can fund counselling for young people.
“Our focus is on keeping the young folk safe, well and healthy, and ensuring they have someone to turn to.”
Age wise, the group is open to those from primary 7 upwards, but Graeme is keen to point out that they are there for all young people on the island.
“We’re an organisation for young people. We’ve worked with folk that are in their early 20s and we’ve supported young adults with addiction problems. If any young adult came to me and needed help, we would help them.”
As Graeme points out, the people of Arran face the same issues as those on the mainland.
“There are families who struggle on Arran. There’s a foodbank here, there has been for years now. We help lots of kids and families with drugs and alcohol and poverty.”
As a result of the poverty concerns, Graeme was able to secure funding to provide free food for the kids that attend AYF. Funding comes mostly through grant applications, the biggest funders currently being BBC Children in Need, The Robertson Trust, and The National Lottery Community Fund. And Graeme has also been raising funds himself.
“I recently ran around the entire island to raise funds for the group,” he tells me. “It’s something I did last year for the first time.”
In case you’re wondering, that’s 56 miles!
“Last year we raised over £5,000 and this year I raised over £3,000.”
That’s some achievement. But he’s obviously committed to AYF and to providing the young people of Arran with as many opportunities as possible. Take music, for example. In addition to being able to practice the instrument of their choice, music tuition is also offered courtesy of Steve Agnew, who, as well as teaching guitar, also teaches bass, drums, keyboard and ukulele.
“Every day the youth centre is open for lunchtime drop-in,” Graeme continues, “so during the school day they can come in. There’s a music room with all kinds of different instruments so some come in and practice guitar. And there are lots of games consoles… that’s popular. Little friendships form as well which is nice.”
Following a specific request, they also have football for girls twice a week. This is actually one of their most popular activities. Filmmaking has also proved popular, and cooking particularly so.
“The cooking club has been running for about 12 years now. We’ve done an annual restaurant night with them where they take over one of the restaurants at Auchrannie and do a three-course meal for the guests. They raise a lot of funding through that night.”
It’s good to know that the whole Arran community is supportive of what AYF is doing to help the island’s youth.
But it’s not just restricted to term time.
“In the school holidays we do a completely different programme of activities. We’ll take them to Alton Towers again this summer. We’ve been doing that for the best part of ten years, it’s an annual trip.”
Other activities include paintballing, go-karting, kayaking, abseiling and escape rooms. The only thing requiring monetary contribution is the trip to Alton Towers, everything else is funded by AYF.
“It just means that there’s no barriers to access. People have a perception that Arran is an idyllic holiday island, but the reality is a lot of the homes are second homes for people to have holidays. Actually, for our young people, when they grow up and leave school, the house prices on Arran don’t bear any relation to the wages the kids can make on the island.”
It’s a common problem within many island communities but AYF is determined to help the young people of Arran in as many ways as possible. It offers help with CVs for example and will advise on preparation for interviews. To this end, it has good links with the employability team at North Ayrshire Council.
Since it was first established by a team of volunteers in 2008, Arran Youth Foundation has grown to employ two full-time and two part-time members of staff, plus sessional staff as required. It’s a sign of the ongoing need and success of the organisation. In fact, some of the young people who attended AYF have gone on to become youth workers themselves, something that Graeme is particularly happy about. His main priority, though, remains with the current youngsters.
“We’re here for the young people on Arran. The charity is very young people led, so it’s all about what the young people on Arran feel they need. That’s what we’re here to support them with. Especially with things like their mental health and well-being. For me, the aim of the charity is to make sure the young people on Arran have the opportunity to have the things that they want and that they feel supported.”
You can find Arran Youth Foundation on Facebook.
