We are delighted that a group of students from Northfield Academy have been awarded £3000 to grant directly to Choices Aberdeen following their successful involvement in the Youth and Philanthropy Initiative (YPI) at the end of 2013.
The year group at Northfield Academy worked in teams to research the needs of their local area and identify the charity they felt was best placed to support their community. The groups then researched their chosen charities in great detail and, following skills training in advocacy and public speaking, delivered innovative presentations focused on the impact their chosen charity is making locally, and the reasons their chosen charity is most deserving of support. The group judged to have made the most knowledgeable and impassioned presentation, in this case Choices Aberdeen, is awarded the £3,000 YPI Grant to forward to their charity of choice.
Joy Gillespie, the manager at Choices Aberdeen said, ‘We are grateful for all the hard work that the team put in to their research and presentation. I was so impressed with their passion and commitment to raise money and awareness of the services we provide. As a result the money raised will allow more young people in the city to access and be supported by our Youth Counselling Service.’
The Wood Family Trust is the principal funder and operational manager of YPI in Scotland. YPI continues to develop apace in Scotland, and this year they look forward to making grants totalling £330,000 to small, local, grassroots charities across the country. A spokesman for the Wood Group said, ‘We realise that without the ongoing support and input from local charities, it would be impossible to continue YPI.’
The £3000 grant will be released following the 2014 YPI National Event in June. This year YPI winning teams, teachers and charity representatives will be invited to the celebration event in Perth Concert.