New youth project comes to Oldham

New Youth Project comes to Oldham

The Co-operative College is delighted to announce the launch of a new youth project thanks to support from the Co-op Foundation’s ‘I-will fund’.

Beginning in Oldham this week and spreading to Bury, Plymouth, Hartlepool, Manchester and Rochdale later this year, Youth Co-operative Action will support 175 young people over the next two years, empowering them to make a difference in their own communities and tackle the issues that matter to them.

Deprivation is a problem right across Greater Manchester, with more than a twentieth of the borough made up of areas in the bottom 1% of deprived areas of England and a quarter of the area made up of places in the bottom 5% (OCSI 2016).

The project builds on success for the College’s previous scheme in Greater Manchester which saw young care leavers come together to tackle loneliness in their community through a unique theatre production.

By the end of the project all those involved will have gained new skills including podcasting, community reporting and filming whilst working together to address the stigma of loneliness as emphasised through #TogetherNotAlone.

Grants through the I-will Fund support projects that inspire young people to tackle loneliness through social action, shaped by co-operative values.

Simon Parkinson, Chief Executive and Principal, Co-operative College said, “We’re delighted to receive this funding that will enable us expand our Youth Co-operative Action project across England.

All those involved will build their confidence, gain new skills and work together to make a change in their communities.

We know the difference that youth social action can make in tackling loneliness and have seen first-hand the transformational impact that our original programme had across Greater Manchester.

By spreading the message of co-operation nationwide, we’re empowering a new generation to tackle the issues that matter to them."

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