Farewell to 2012

Welcome to our final newsletter of the year. The launch of our Christmas Appeal signifies that 2012 is drawing to a close and as we look forward to a new year there is also much for Ypeople to look back on with pride during the last 12 months.

Once again the range of support our staff deliver across our network of services has played an important role in helping some of society’s most vulnerable people cope with and overcome the challenges they have faced. The way in which our service users respond to that support and represent Ypeople throughout the year is something which must also be applauded.

Our work with Glasgow’s asylum seeking community, which began in 2000, ended this year when the contract to provide accommodation and support services to asylum seekers in the city was transferred to Serco Civil Government. We, like many others, were disappointed by that decision as the quality of support which Ypeople delivered during those 12 years was well regarded and highly valued by the asylum seeking community.

However, it is the positives from that time we will remember. One such positive was our Ycommunity initiative, which provided asylum seekers with somewhere to socialise and access services such as healthcare, sports and the internet, receiving a Scottish Social Services Council Care Accolade.

Ypeople’s dedication and expertise in delivering support to vulnerable young people has received formal recognition on a number of other occasions this year.

Our Seaforth House supported accommodation service in Falkirk, which marked its 10th anniversary, also celebrated receiving full accreditation from the Tenant Participation Advisory Service (TPAS). That accolade was awarded in recognition of the way our team at Seaforth House has encouraged young people resident there to become actively involved in helping to run the service and support their peers.

Giving young people the confidence and a platform to have their opinions heard is particularly important to Ypeople. Whenever possible we strive to get our service users involved with our events and activities in order to provide the skills they’ll need to succeed in life after moving on from Ypeople.

That is why the Isra, Becci, Danielle, Sarah and Melissa  from Branston Court were involved with our annual Ladies Fashion Show at Glasgow’s Radisson Hotel in June.  It’s also why another service user, Scott, played such an important role in helping us to deliver our first and hugely successful golf day at Gleddoch House and two of our other young people, Garry and George, delivered a workshop at this year’s TPAS conference.

Every member of staff at Ypeople likes nothing more than to see the young people at our services go on to better things after receiving the support and advice needed to put previous difficulties behind them.

Your support throughout the year is vitally important in allowing us to continue our important work. The money raised by our Christmas Appeal will go directly towards funding our Starter Pack programme which provides young people moving into their own tenancies with the basics required to make a home.

On behalf of Ypeople I would like to thank everyone who supported our work in 2012 and wish you all a merry Christmas.

Ypeople celebrates fundraising wins

We are delighted to announce that we were recently awarded almost £7,000 in grant funding to develop Ypeople services in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

The Calm youth support service, based in the Pollok area of Glasgow received £4,345 from Cashback for Communities for an interactive drama initiative.

Our three supported accommodation services in Edinburgh also received £2,325 from the Edinburgh Airport Community Fund to renovate their gardens.

Calm was founded in 2002 to support young people in Glasgow’s Pollok area who have been affected by violence, violent crime, bereavement and loss. Its services include youth counselling and a befriending scheme.

Calm’s Youth Advisory Group, all of whom are former service users, recently received a grant of £4,345 from Cashback for Communities, the Scottish Government scheme that diverts the proceeds of crime into youth projects.

The funding was awarded to allow the Youth Advisory Group to establish a new drama scheme. The interactive theatre project, entitled “See Me! – I’m No Mental”, will tour local schools, colleges and theatre groups in order to encourage young people who are experiencing mental health problems to seek help.  It also aims to raise awareness of mental health issues and help promote a culture of care.

Over in the east of the country, we received £2,325 from the Edinburgh Airport Community Fund to refurbish the gardens at our Edinburgh services. The gardens at our supported accommodation services in West Pilton, Crewe Road and Broomhouse will all be involved, with staff, service users and local volunteers working together to build raised beds for the planting of vegetables and herbs.

The aim of this project is to create a sustainable garden that residents of the three services will benefit from for years to come. It will also enable us to introduce a cookery programme. By learning to use produce from the garden to create healthy meals such as soups and stews residents will gain vital skills for living independently.

Debbie Fraser, Head of Fundraising, Events and Marketing at Ypeople, said: “Whenever possible we involve service users in how we run and develop Ypeople in order to help them acquire the skills they will need to succeed later in life.

“All of the members of our Calm Youth Advisory Group are former users of the service. Their plans for a new interactive theatre workshop will not only help others struggling with mental health problems it will also teach them organisational skills that are transferrable to the workplace.

“Those who participate in our Edinburgh garden project will gain valuable knowledge of gardening and cooking, which will help them to live independently and could one day inspire their career choices.

“We are grateful to Cashback for Communities and the Edinburgh Airport Community Fund for their support and seeing the potential in the young people who use our services.”

Can you help make Sam’s Christmas a happier one?

At a time when many of us are looking forward to enjoying some Christmas cheer, it can often be easy to overlook those less fortunate in society.

That’s why we are asking as many of our supporters as possible to contribute to Ypeople’s 2012 Christmas Appeal.  All the money raised by the Appeal will go directly towards funding special Starter Packs which help young people who are moving on from our services to their own tenancies.

Made up of various household items such as toasters, crockery, pots and pans, curtains, bed linen and microwaves, the Packs provide young people with the things required to help make their new accommodation feel more like home.

In addition, we’re hoping to provide Christmas dinner packs to service users who have moved on and may be spending the festive period alone.

All donations, no matter how big or small, are greatly appreciated and more information on how to donate can be found on our special Just Giving page here.

Joe Connolly, chief executive of Ypeople, said: “For people not fortunate enough to have friends or family around them, Christmas can be a difficult time and that’s particularly true of service users who have moved into their own tenancies.

“By providing them with essential items which many of us take for granted, our Starter Packs can really make a difference to the lives of young people.

“As many of our supporters will know, the fundraising events we hold throughout the year help us to provide additional assistance over and above the support services and accommodation we already deliver.

“We shouldn’t underestimate what a difference even a modest donation can make to the lives of young people who have been affected by homelessness.

“That’s why I’d urge as many people as possible to do whatever they can to support our Appeal this Christmas."