Year Two of Young Speakers

07/04/2009

  - Elizabeth Anderson

Last week in a regular catch-up meeting it was great to hear that We Are What We Do's second year of the Young Speakers Programme is set to be so exciting.  The project, funded by The Aldridge Foundation and by v, will see another 200 young people selected from schools around the country.  They will attend two-day residential programmes, where they will receive specialist training in public speaking, campaigning and new media, and then be given the tools they need to spread messages which should lead to development of stronger community relations.  A brand new digital platform will also enable them to create their own campaigns and develop new ideas for materials and methods.

In addition, 50 of those people who took part last year will be invited to become Ambassadors for the Programme, acting in an advisory capacity, creating content, and themselves giving training and helping with event organisation.

An independent evaluation of the scheme is under way, and is set to publish a report in April 2010, outlining the benefits of the scheme.  This will be two-fold, looking both at the young people who take part - whether the programme raises aspirations and develops key life-skills needed in the workplace and other areas of adult life - and also at those they present to and interact with - primary school pupils, friends, parents, teachers - working with two local communities to assess the impact of the presentations given.