Young people in Renfrewshire will head online to find out their funding fate

Excitement is building as young people and community groups wait to discover whether their projects to enhance the lives of 12-25-year olds in Renfrewshire have been successful.

An incredible 86 projects have been designed and submitted to the Celebrating Renfrewshire Fund and for the last month, thousands of young people have been casting their votes for their favourites.

A special online announcement event hosted by Renfrewshire Youth Voice at 6pm on Friday 13 November will unveil the winners who will take away a share of £150,000.

Applicants have been invited to attend the one-off event which is taking place online due to the current Coronavirus pandemic and will take a look back at the projects awarded funding in 2019, before this year’s winners are unveiled.

The event is open to the public and anyone wishing to attend must register online in advance.

Adrian McKechnie, Chair of Renfrewshire Youth Voice, said: “Young people in Renfrewshire for the past 4 weeks have been using their ballots to decide what projects they would like to see in their communities.

“Celebrating Renfrewshire is not just another funding pot, but rather it gives young people across Renfrewshire a real say in how public money is spent and provides an opportunity for young folk to directly give their backing to projects they see value in.

“I wish all the applicants good luck and look forward to hosting the event, albeit virtually, this Friday.”

Councillor Michelle Campbell, Renfrewshire Council’s Young Persons Champion, will open the event and is looking forward to finding out which projects have been successful.

She said: “This fund is a fantastic opportunity for young people to shape their own communities and create activities that they want to take part in, not what others believe they want.

“The projects which have been submitted are creative, well-thought-out and will make a real difference to life in Renfrewshire for young people – and I can’t wait to discover which ones will be taken forward.

“I’m looking forward to Friday’s event so join me and see some of the most inspiring young people in Renfrewshire discover if they’ve been successful in their applications.”

For more information, and to sign up for the event, visit www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/CelebratingRenfrewshire.