Scottish youth charity awarded £500,000 to work with young Gypsies and Travellers

Article 12, a Scottish charity for and about young people, has been given £535,000 by the Big Lottery Fund to work with young Gypsy and Traveller people.

Article 12 say they will be able to use the money to “continue to work with young people from the Gypsy/Traveller community building the self-esteem and confidence they need to access further education, training or employment.”

They add that: “Traditional Gypsy/Traveller lifestyles often mean young people can stop their mainstream education as young as 12 years of age, which has a direct impact on their life choices as they get older.

“Article 12 will support young members of the Gypsy/Traveller community to move or remain in formal education or training. The project will also work with young Gypsy/Traveller men helping to break down any barriers and pre-conceptions that might prevent them from taking up any relevant training opportunities such as Modern Apprenticeships”.
 
Lynne Tammi, Director of Article 12, said: “This is very welcome news for both our organisation and the young people we work with. In the past, the Big Lottery Fund has helped us to move young people with little formal education to a position where they are working towards university level qualifications.”

“This award means we will be able to continue with this work and involve many more young people in our learning programmes. This funding from the Big Lottery Fund really does make a difference.“

Maureen McGinn, Chair of the Big Lottery Fund Scotland, said: “Our Big Lottery Fund support focuses on people and communities in greatest need. With today’s awards, six projects across the country will help people facing a variety of challenge move through tough times to a better future.”

“From connecting with hard to reach youngsters and giving them the skills and confidence to move onto training, to providing vital advice and support to tenants at risk of spiraling into debt, this life changing money will make a huge difference to thousands of people across the country.”

You can find out more about the work of Article 12 – including its research into the reporting of Gypsies and Travellers by the Scottish media – by following this link: http://www.article12.org/gypsytravellers/