It has been a busy two years for Orkney’s Youth Local Action Group since reconvening in November 2023. The group of seven, 17 – 30 year olds, known as the YLAG, have overseen a series of their own projects as well as provided funding to support other groups and organisations across the county. They also attended major national events, meeting young people from other areas in Scotland and raising awareness of the issues affecting young people from island and rural communities.
The YLAG is a subgroup of the Orkney Local Action Group (LAG), and its activities are funded by the Community Led Local Development (CLLD) and OIC Crown Estate Community Led Development (CECLD) funds.
Earlier this year members from the YLAG attended the Rural Youth Action Network event in Inverness. The event organised by a partnership between Scottish Rural Action and Youth Scotland, was an opportunity for rural and island youth groups to meet, collaborate and support each other. They were also joined by MSPs to discuss the issues causing young people to move away from island and rural communities.
On the 21- 23 October, members from the YLAG attended the sixth European Rural Parliament which for the first time included a Youth Parliament. One of the YLAG members, Iona Dundas (pictured in the middle) had been involved in shaping its youth programme as part of the European Rural Youth Parliament Advisory Board. Iona said:
I was keen to continue the discussions from the Rural Youth Action Network event and to continue having a positive impact for the rural areas of Scotland, so this felt like a great way to do it. It was also important to me that the event was accessible for people, and I joined the advisory board to make sure it would be a priority.
I really enjoyed being a part of the building of sessions. It has been really interesting to see what other people considered their biggest priority - some chose agriculture and housing while others chose mental health and education. I will be co-hosting a session on safety and youth friendly spaces in rural areas with one of the other advisory board members. I am very excited to see all the plans come into fruition and I am so grateful to be a part of this event.
Looking to the future, accessibility continues to be a focus for the YLAG. Having identified that many of the play parks in Orkney are not fully inclusive and accessible, they are looking to find another group or organisation for them to assist in the design and development of one. A YLAG member said:
There are many play parks where children in wheelchairs can go and watch other children play, but no equipment that they can play on themselves.
Through supporting projects that improve life for children and young people, the YLAG is passionate about creating change, bringing young voices to the forefront of local decision making and addressing the issues that discourage young people from returning home after study.
In the last two years they have supported a wide variety of local initiatives from an art club at Women’s Aid Orkney to a ‘warm spaces’ community café with the West Mainland Youth Achievement. From providing stationary to reduce the cost of the school day at Stromness Academy to awarding funding to the Youth Café to create a safe ‘cosy conversation’ space for young people to talk to one another. In a short space of time, the efforts of the young YLAG members have had a significant positive impact in the community.
The YLAG members are supported by OIC’s, Community Led Local Development team and Voluntary Action Orkney’s Youth Development Coordinator. For more information about the YLAG, you can find them on Facebook and Instagram, or you can email: eilidh.wilkinson@vaorkney.org.uk.
