Hear Me Out! Meet the young people making positive changes with £250
How would you make a positive change in your life with £250?
How would you make a positive change in your life with £250? Young people from across our network of Foyers have set out to answer that question with their applications to the Hear Me Out! fund.
The fund, part of the Power Up programme, gives young people the chance to apply for £250 investment in an idea that will build on their skills and talents, and help them to grow into their sustainable future. These skills and talents are just as unique as the young people themselves. Click to find out more about the Hear Me Out! fund, or read on to find out more about two of the young people who will be putting their ideas into action.
Charlie, Braintree Foyer
Charlie’s application for the £250 focused on building the skills she’ll need to achieve her aspiration of becoming a flight attendant. One of the requirements of the role is to be able to swim, so to help her on her journey, Charlie will spend the money on weekly lessons for herself and three other young people from her Foyer.
Charlie said, “I’m looking forward to learning how to swim! It’ll benefit me in my job in future as I want to become cabin crew. I have everything I need apart from this – swimming is the only thing left to go.
“A lot of people here can’t swim and one wants to be a lifeguard, so they’ll benefit from it too. This would improve the sense of community in the Foyer and also improve the physical and mental health of those who choose to take part.”
As well as the four people who will benefit from the initial investment, SAHA Braintree has committed to match funding the £250 to open up lessons to another four. Congratulations to Charlie, Braintree Foyer and the other young people who will learn this new skill!
Charlotte, On-Route Foyer
Charlotte proposed to use the £250 to start a crafts club in her Foyer. She will use her existing passion and creativty to develop other skills, like confidence and leadership, while sharing her talent with others and teaching them something new. In future, Charlotte hopes to set up a business selling handmade pieces and leading craft workshops. With the £250, she will purchase the materials needed for each session.
“A couple of years ago, I was suffering depression,” Charlotte said. “I looked on YouTube for ideas of things I could do. I put my mind to it and decided to try making some keyrings, then I tried some dummy clips, and it went from there. Crafts helped with my depression by resting my mind and making me focus on practical things. I thought if I kept going, maybe I could start a business.
“The craft club will give me more skill in teaching people and give me confidence in teaching people. It’ll also give other people confidence and show them what they can do.”
