Kintyre
Kintyre Youth Action Group
The Kintyre LiveArgyll Youth Work Service facilitates weekly meetings with the Kintyre Youth Action Group (based in Campbeltown and Tarbert). The Action Group carry out local community projects and regularly volunteer and represent young people’s views in the area by carrying out weekly meetings which involve regular focus groups and large scale youth consultations on a two yearly basis. The input from the Action Group ensures the local youth work service is entirely youth led by focussing on local youth views, issues and areas the young people would like to develop. The group also take part in an Argyll and Bute youth group exchange programme, go on trips, and do a variety of activities to help them gain a positive experience and develop their skills.
Community Learning Volunteer of the Year Award
HUGE CONGRATULATIONS to all Kintyre Youth Action Group members after the group were awarded the ‘Community Learning Volunteer of the Year’ award at the Argyll and Bute Third Sector Interface Volunteer of the Year Awards 2024!
The award recognises all of the hard work the group dedicates to their volunteering as part of their youth voice/action and community work. Members of the group were in attendance at the awards ceremony in Ardfern and received the award on behalf of the group.
A very well deserved honour for young people who set a fantastic example of the power of youth action, and who are a credit to their community.
‘GIVE’ Youth Volunteering Programme
Once or twice a year the Action Group leads on the development of a youth volunteering programme over the school holidays called ‘GIVE’ (Get Inspired through Volunteering and Engagement). The Action Group identifies and plans volunteering opportunities in their local community. Young people are then invited to complete these activities to support their community and demonstrate the power of ‘youth action’. Young people who complete the programme are then taken to Glasgow for a day trip of fun activities with the group to celebrate and reward their hard work.
Kintyre Youth Music Group
The Kintyre Youth Music Group is another youth led project which supports young people from the Kintyre area to learn about general musicianship, song-writing, music recording and production. The group learn about different genres of music and are given lessons on playing instruments including ukulele, guitar, keyboard and percussion instruments, as well as how to write and create their own musical pieces using music production software. The group also write their own collective pieces from scratch. The group successfully wrote and recorded their own piece together which has been released online as a charity single to raise money for the Mairi Semple Cancer Fund.
Friday Night ‘Street Sports’ Project
Following a successful trial in 2023, this annual 6 week programme provides a useful transitions project for P7 pupils about to move up to the Grammar by allowing them to engage in positive healthy mixed sports activities with S1 – S2 pupils and staff from various supporting organisations. Delivered in partnership with South Kintyre Active Schools, this programme is also supported by The Hub, CGS, KADAS, Police Scotland, and others who also provide delivery support and allow young people to engage with a number of services to make them more accessible and develop relationship building opportunities with young people in the local area. The young people take part in sports such as football, touch rugby, bowling, boccia, boxing, swimming, rounders, and other activities. Continued engagement in these positive behaviours is encouraged with young people who complete the programme earning themselves a day trip to Glasgow to take part in fun activities. The programme helps to embed positive behaviour habits at a critical stage of development for young people at a time when they are more vulnerable to engage in negative behaviours.
Kintyre Youth Creative Writing Group
The Kintyre Youth Writing group is a youth led writing group based in Campbeltown. The group are supported to learn about different writing styles and techniques and to create their own pieces of creative writing. They have created micro-fiction, poetry, and short stories in different genres since they began. Through this experience the group have noted improvements in their communication and team work skills, as well as feeling more confident. They feel creative expression has helped to support their mental wellbeing and intend to continue writing more frequently as they move forward.
Learning Support Employability Group
We also run an employability skills programme for learning support students in school in partnership with Skills Development Scotland. The programme takes a youth work approach to engaging young people in activities which identify their existing employability related skills to build their confidence and provide them with advice and direction in taking their next steps after school to enhance their opportunities. The participants complete Dynamic Youth Award’s for their work to accredit, enhance and recognise their wider learning achievements. All participants so far have noted improvements in their core skills, their employability skills, their confidence, motivation, understanding of what opportunities are available, and a stronger understanding of their current skills and qualities to build on for the future.
Kintyre Youth Inclusion Group
Another youth led project that has recently started is the Kintyre Youth Inclusion Group. This is a new forum for young people in S1 to S6, or aged 12 – 18 years old. The aim is for this to be a safe space where young people can be themselves, learn about and celebrate diversity and inclusion, whilst organising local projects and events to support young people in minority groups, make new friends, and have fun. The group help to support the planning and delivery of the new annual Rainbowfest events across Argyll and Bute.
MSYP Support
We are also pleased to be supporting our new Member of the Scottish Youth Parliament Alasdair Paisley who is based in the Kintyre area and who will be representing young people from across Argyll and Bute over the next two years, along with his two colleagues from Helensburgh and Bute. Alasdair is a true champion of youth voice and participation and we are enjoying supporting him in his role to ensure young people’s views are better represented at local and national levels.
Kintyre Youth Filmmaking Project
Another recently completed project is our Youth Filmmaking Project. Funded by the Campbeltown Community Windfarm Fund (CCWF), this project was delivered by experienced filmmaker Alasdair Satchel and taught young people how to come up with an idea for a short film, and then how to film it using their own mobile phone. Following the completion of the sessions, any short films the young people created will be shown on the ‘big screen’ at Campbeltown Picture House.
Other School Supports
We also provide support in local secondary schools for pupils who complete outdoor education programmes, accrediting and celebrating their learning by putting them through Dynamic Youth Awards.
We also run projects for young people who are currently unable to successfully access the mainstream education curriculum in school. This takes the form of learning activities which seek to engage young people in accessible forms of education, so that they can develop their skills, confidence, and gain accreditation.
Other Projects
Recent and/or Upcoming:
- Campbeltown Skatepark Project
- School Transitions Programmes
- Life Skills
- Weekend Intervention Programme
- Other projects – to be determined by the Action Group and other local young people in response to youth views and issues.
CASE STUDIES – KINTYRE YOUTH WORK
liveArgyll Youth Work and Active Schools – Kintyre Friday Night ‘Street Sports’ Project
The second annual Friday Night ‘Street Sports’ Project at the Aqualibrium All Weather Pitch in Campbeltown was completed in Spring 2024. With funding provided by the Campbeltown Community Windfarm Fund, this project provided a useful transitions project for P7 pupils about to move up to the Grammar by allowing them to engage in positive healthy mixed sports activities with S1 – S2 pupils and staff from various supporting organisations. Delivered in partnership between liveArgyll Youth Work and Active Schools, this programme was also supported by The Hub, Campbeltown Grammar School, KADAS, Police Scotland, and others who provided delivery support and allowed young people to engage with a number of services to make them more accessible and develop relationship building opportunities with young people in the local area. This year fifty young people took part in football, touch rugby, bowling, golf, boxing, swimming, rounders, and other activities. Continued engagement in these positive behaviours was encouraged with young people who completed the programme earning themselves a day trip to Glasgow to take part in fun activities such as trampolining and laser tag.
The vast majority of young people taking part said there were improvements in many areas, including their physical and mental health, confidence, social skills, as well as their ability to make positive choices. Young people taking part loved the variety of sports on offer, as well as the chance to get together with their friends at a later time of night in a safe and structured environment. All young people said they can’t wait to do it again next year.
liveArgyll Youth Work – Kintyre Youth Music Project
The Kintyre Youth Music project provides musical guidance and tuition to young people in Kintyre on all elements of music making, from instrument tuition, general musicianship skills, music theory, songwriting, recording and music production. This weekly group supports young people to take part and learn about these different elements, whilst encouraging and nurturing their own various abilities and interests. Young people are supported to come up with their own musical creations, whilst also bringing them together to work collectively on group pieces. One such piece was ‘Our Own Way’ which the group wrote, recorded, and then released as a charity single on YouTube, raising £155 for a local cancer charity. The song can be listened to here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjzabDfobAs. The group are now working on their next piece and exploring future performance opportunities.
All participants in the project have noted improvements to their confidence, core skills, their ability to make new friends, and the benefits of creative expression to their mental health and wellbeing, whilst also improving their musical skills and knowledge.
liveArgyll Youth Work – Kintyre Youth Film-Making Project
During the Spring of 2024, a group of young people in Kintyre took part in a film-making project to learn how to make films using their own smart phone devices. This ten week programme included sessions delivered by experienced film-maker Alasdair Satchel. Alasdair delivered sessions on film-making elements including film composition, continuity shots, editing, narrative development/story-telling, stop motion animation, conveying emotions, sensory exploration, and many others. Young people were then given time and supported to work together creating their own short films using the techniques they had learner about. These will be collated together and shown at an exclusive screening for the participants and their friends and family on the big screen at Campbeltown Picture House.
The young people had a lot of fun making and practicing their short films and came up with some great concepts. Participants noted improvements in their film-making knowledge and skills, their general confidence, core skills, ability to make new friends, their motivation, and many other areas. “Recording myself helped to boost my confidence and I made new friends as well.”
Adult Learning
Adult Learning in Kintyre provides a range of activities focused on wellbeing, and skills development for life and work, as well as accredited courses that provide formal recognition of learning achievement. We cater to the holistic needs of adults within our community to reduce unemployment, improve well-being, and promote lifelong learning.
