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Young people: searching for opportunities, you are?

A project run and owned by young people and designed to provide a central point for their peers to access opportunities and services across the north-east was launched today. (Wednesday, May 11)

The Youth Opportunities Database Aberdeenshire, or YODA for short, aims to promote local opportunities, support, training and employment.

It is also a chance for providers of these opportunities, such as private companies and voluntary organisations, to engage with local young people.

Placement of their opportunities on the YODA website is effectively free advertising, and could help fill any suitable vacancies they may have.

YODA is also intended to be an invaluable source of information for council staff and teachers in the area dealing with young people leaving school and in the following years.

Young people across Aberdeenshire have already been researching and collating information to upload to the website, and it is hoped they will continue to be involved in the site’s maintenance and running in the future.

The project has the support of Aberdeenshire Council’s web team and will be linked to the authority’s own web pages, making it easy to search other relevant information, such as bus timetables, leisure opportunities and health and finance resources.

The project has come about as a result of a Scottish Government initiative, through Skills Development Scotland, and around 20 young people helped set up the project, gaining qualifications in the process.

They are gathering portfolio evidence to be presented for SQA accreditation and using their volunteering hours to qualify for an award from Volunteer Centre Scotland.

Potential providers have been consulted on the proposals to find out what opportunities, such as work experience or jobs, are available, and their feedback has been incorporated into the database.

“YODA is an opportunity for young people to be proactive about their future, using a local, friendly resource which is designed by young people for young people,” said YODA coordinator Pamela Munro.

“We also hope it will raise awareness of opportunities and services for young people throughout the north-east, particularly services for young people who may need more choices and chances in life.”

A spokesman for Aberdeen Foyer, a local charity involved in the development of the project, said: “My Lifeskills group has really enjoyed their experience on the Yoda Project – they feel that this has not just been a classroom exercise, but a proper job.

“They realised this the day I took them to visit organisations in Banff to find out what services they had available for young people and their confidence has grown by working as part of a team and carrying out the tasks set for them each week.”

The young people have had the opportunity to enhance their CVs by working towards two SQA qualifications "Self and Work" and "Practical Abilities".

They are also entitled to an MV award for volunteering on this project, which has improved their IT and research skills, useful for when they go to college, or in the workplace.

They have had to make telephone calls to organisations to inform them about the project, improving their communication and information gathering skills, and have checked the quality of the data.

All of these skills are transferrable and will help them in the future workplace or college course.

Mrs Munro added: “The creation of this online interactive database offering support for young people has already had an impact in terms of them learning a whole set of new skills.

“For instance, they have gained experience of a complete research project from design through to product creation, increasing confidence, skills and preparing them for employment opportunities.

“We hope that young people in the wider community will also be able to reap the rewards of this work and increase their chances of a positive destination on leaving school.”

To view the YODA website, please see here: http://aberdeenshire.youthinfo.info/

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