FOYER AWARDED NATIONAL LOTTERY FUNDING

The Foyer has received a National Lottery award from the Big Lottery Fund of £824,567 to deliver the project ‘Closing the Gap with Young People’ over 4 years in Aberdeen.

The Foyer will use the funding to support a collaborative partnership that focuses on improving health, learning, economic and social equality of young people who are not in school and currently falling through the gaps.  Young people need a system that equips them with the support they need to make informed decisions about their future including careers, health, relationships, housing and finances.

Ken Milroy, Foyer chief executive said, “We must do better for all young people. Growing up in Aberdeen can be a great experience, full of opportunity and a fantastic springboard to future success, a career and fulfilment. For some that transition through school, college or university to a job is daunting and scary within a system where you don’t feel you fit. That’s the challenge we’ve taken on with the support of the Big Lottery funding – how can we all do better by those for whom the current system is failing.”   

Aligning with Aberdeen City Council’s Integrated Children’s Services, the initiative will place young people’s voices, experience and ideas at the centre generating understanding around what can be done to improve outcomes for young people who currently have unmet needs, how resources can be moved towards more preventative responses and to implement change as agreed collectively.  

The key partners are Aberdeen City Council, North East Scotland College, Skills Development Scotland, Robert Gordon University, University of Aberdeen, NHS Grampian and DYW North East Scotland.  

Big Lottery Fund Scotland chairwoman Maureen McGinn said, “This early action approach aims to support people to overcome problems before they become harder to tackle.

Each of the initiatives receiving funding today brings together voluntary and public sector organisations to redesign and re-organise their services, placing the focus on more preventative work.

I am delighted that, thanks to National Lottery funding, this initiative will give a voice to children, young people and families and will involve them fully in shaping service delivery, now and in the future.”