YouthStart

YouthStart is a regional youth employability project targeting economically inactive young people aged 16-30 years old. The Youth Start consortium is a partnership between 7 leading youth work organisations (Youth Action NI (Lead Partner), Include Youth, Springboard Opportunities, Kings Trust NI, Start360, NI Youth Forum and BYTES) in NI who use a youth work approach to build young people’s skills for life, learning and work.

The project is funded by The UK Government Through The Local Growth Fund.

The YouthStart project delivers employability and high-quality life skills to support and grow young people’s confidence and skills and improve their opportunities to enter, sustain and progress in the labour market, reflecting government priorities and plans to address economic inactivity. NIYF have supported over 150 young people to date during 2023-2026 to engage in job searching, participate in life skills and personal social development sessions, gain qualifications, support with job applications and cv writing and participate in work experience programmes.

Across the consortium 3693 economically inactive young people have been supported towards and into a range of outcomes far exceeding the target and proving that a bespoke youth work approach continues to help young people reach their full potential. It also demonstrates and highlights our position as a leading youth work organisation in helping to address unemployment among young people and enable them to develop and flourish and progress into education, employment or training.

NIYF are currently delivering YouthStart in the Belfast City Council area during 26-27.

Please contact Louisa Ward, Senior Youth Work Manager for more information – louisa.ward@niyf.org