Meet our Involving Young People Collective

Hi, I'm Abi! I'm a facilitator, partnerships coordinator and social entrepreneur passionate about creating opportunities for young people. Alongside my studies, I co-founded Youth Consults, a youth-led consultancy working with charities, businesses, and public sector organisations to embed meaningful diverse voices into their work. I also support organisations to strengthen partnerships, develop inclusive programmes, and create better pathways into education, employment, and leadership for young people. Outside of work, you'll usually find me volunteering and mentoring young people.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

Throughout my work in the charity and social impact sector, I've seen first-hand how brilliant community organisations often spend more time chasing funding than delivering the work they exist to do. I've also seen how funding decisions can either empower communities or unintentionally reinforce existing inequalities.

What draws me to funding is the opportunity to shift that balance. I believe funding should be rooted in trust, lived experience, and long-term relationships. Joining this work allows me to contribute to a sector where resources are distributed more equitably and where communities have greater influence over the decisions that affect them. I'm particularly inspired by funding that supports innovation, centres underrepresented voices, and invests in organisations creating lasting systemic change.

I’m Sophia and I'm passionate about championing youth social action and co-producing projects that empower young people to influence change in their communities. As a mental health activist with Lived Experience, I’ve been involved in national youth panels, grassroots campaigns and co-designed policy consultations with local authorities. Outside of EF, I'm also a big fan of community art spaces and love attending workshops and going to gigs/the theatre.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

I was drawn to funding because I saw.how incredible projects were underfunded or entirely volunteer-led. I realised how transformative it could be if funders genuinely backed young people not just as beneficiaries, but as leaders, designers and decision-makers. I’m inspired by the potential of funding to shift power and enable young people to co-create solutions, especially those most impacted by injustice. I’m excited to gain an insight into the whole grant assessment process and to see the impact that funding can have.

I’m Joshua. Outside of my work with IYPC, I serve as an Advisor to Rastafari Movement UK Wellbeing CIC, where I support the strategic direction and development of our wellbeing and food services across the boroughs of Lewisham, Lambeth, and Southwark.

My broader work spans across research, education, and community development. I am a dedicated researcher with a strong interest in topics such as educational equity, youth violence, and sustainable development. These areas are at the heart of my mission to improve outcomes for young people and underserved communities.

In addition to my research, I am an experienced facilitator and have led workshops, training sessions, and community programs for a variety of organisations. I also work as an Educational Consultant and public speaker, engaging audiences on topics including Black empowerment, youth engagement, education reform, and community healing. I’m passionate about creating meaningful change and empowering others through knowledge, advocacy, and collaboration.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

What draws me to funding is witnessing the real, transformative impact it can have on communities - especially on young people. As a Youth Worker, I’ve seen firsthand how the availability (or absence) of funding directly shapes the scope, quality, and reach of our work. It determines whether vital programs run or are cut short, and whether young people get the support they deserve.

My inspiration for stepping into this space comes from wanting to shift the way we see funding. Too often, the grant writing and application process is viewed as overwhelming or out of reach - particularly for grassroots organisations and young changemakers. I want to change that narrative. I believe funding shouldn’t be a barrier, but a bridge - and I’m passionate about making the grantmaking process more accessible, transparent, and empowering for the next generation of leaders.

I am Louise! Outside of IYPC, I lead public involvement and engagement for a research study co-producing an online arts and culture platform that supports the mental health of underrepresented young people. I run an online platform that reaches millions of autistic people every month, where I campaign for a world that works for neurodivergent people, creating accessible neuro-affirming resources, amplifying lived experiences, and pushing for systemic change. I am based just outside of West London.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

I have seen the impact of youth-led projects and can see how important grant funding is in enabling change in communities. This has drawn me to feel passionately about directing resources to those driving change, to creating fairer funding models and ensuring that those with lived experience are at the centre of the process.

Hi, I'm Emily! Outside of the IYPC, I work as a Social Research Degree Apprentice, alongside a range of voluntary governance, advisory and panel roles across the charity sector. I enjoy working across different roles because each offers a different perspective on how change happens, from research and governance to funding, participation and lived experience.

Whether I'm conducting research, serving as a trustee, or advising organisations, I am always motivated by the same question: how can organisations make better decisions WITH the communities they serve? My experiences and my community have shaped my belief that expertise exists in many forms.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

My interest in funding began when I became a trustee in the community where I grew up. Seeing how funding decisions can shape the future of an organisation: whether that's enabling it to grow or forcing it to scale back its ambitions or, in some cases, struggle to survive. Those decisions don't just affect organisations; they ripple through the communities they exist to support. This sparked my curiosity about how funding decisions are made and how they can be as fair, informed and impactful as possible.

What inspires me most is the opportunity to build a strong foundation in philanthropy, governance and decision-making that I can continue to develop throughout my career. I hope that, over time, this understanding will enable me to support organisations and communities more effectively, contribute to fairer funding practices, and help make knowledge about funding more accessible to those who haven't traditionally had the opportunity to engage with it.

Hey! I’m Leon, a workshop facilitator, designer, project co-ordinator, and mentor. I work on the frontlines with young people in schools and sports academies, creating spaces for them to tackle VAWG and broader cultures of gender inequity.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

As a frontline worker, I am responsible for carrying out the work which funding for youth-related projects is designed for. I love the impact and being around young people, but the work feels latent and not systematically reproducible from a frontline POV. I got drawn to funding because I want to be part of the pipeline that translates young people’s lived experiences, including but not limited to my own, to deciding where funding goes. From carrying out and co-ordinating youth work projects, I also want to share what works, what doesn’t, and what I notice is missed out. Particularly by way of reaching organisations doing phenomenal work without having access or knowledge to impactful funding.

Hi, I am Fabjola. I’m a law student at Birkbeck, University of London, with a passion for human rights and social justice. Outside of the Involving Young People Collective, I volunteer with several organisations supporting refugees, asylum seekers, and young people, where I contribute to advocacy, legal awareness, and community projects. I also enjoy public speaking, meeting new people, attending events, and learning from different perspectives.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

What draws me to funding is knowing that behind every grant is the opportunity to change someone’s life. Through my volunteering with charities, I’ve seen how funding can turn ideas into real support, whether that’s creating safe spaces, running community projects, or giving young people opportunities they might not otherwise have. I joined this work because I believe the people closest to the challenges should have a voice in where funding goes. I’m inspired by the chance to help make funding more inclusive, fair, and community-led, so that organisations can continue making a meaningful difference in people’s lives.

Hello, I’m Floriana and I'm from the rural Highlands of Scotland. I grew up in a small and tightly knitted coastal community, surrounded by and connected to the environment and its culture, which deeply shaped my commitment to environmental and social justice and providing opportunities for younger people. After just completing my degree at the University of St Andrews in Sustainable Development, I am currently working at my local estate as well as continuing to volunteer around my local area, engaging in nature restoration, community outreach and youth engagement to help build connections to and understand our local environment and the threats it is facing.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

Throughout my degree, funding, and the inequalities surrounding access to it, was a recurring theme. This resonated strongly with my own lived experience of growing up in a small community where securing funding for local projects is a constant challenge, especially for the younger people. This led me to explore the topic further in my independent research, using participatory action research and community workshops and working alongside people with lived experience about the issues, my findings highlighted how funding can be a powerful enabler, but also a huge restriction due to lack of access, capacity, and what outcomes are expected by funders. Seeing how these barriers intersect with wider social inequalities motivated me to learn more about the funding sector and to be part of shaping a more equitable approach. I’m particularly driven by the belief that communities, especially young people and those with lived experience, should have a meaningful role in influencing how funding decisions are made, and I want to be a part of that change.

I’m Jayden. I am from Liverpool and currently studying BSc Archaeology at University College London. I’m passionate about tackling systemic barriers which young people face when it comes to accessing a quality education, fair treatment within healthcare, and long-term meaningful employment opportunities. I have developed these interests through being a member of various youth boards, such as the Fair Education Alliance’s Youth Steering Group, where we campaign for educational equity, and Youth Futures Foundation’s ‘Future Voices Group’ where we conducted research and worked with employers and local authorities to provide disadvantaged young people with fair access to employment opportunities.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

Having previously been a member of Youth Futures Foundation’s ‘Future Voices Group’, I worked closely with the organisation and their partners, which provided me with the opportunity to be a part of the funding process. I also took part in site visits where I got to see firsthand the impact the grants had on the communities accessing these facilities. This exposure to funding highlighted how much of an impact funders can have on the communities they are working with, and how the new opportunities they offer can empower young people.

Hi, I'm Abbey! I'm a Research and Youth Engagement Assistant based in Liverpool, where I work alongside young people to explore issues affecting their mental health, including education, crime and housing. My background is in Forensic Psychology and Criminal Justice and I recently completed an MSc in Forensic and Investigative Psychology. Outside of my work, I'm passionate about creating opportunities for young people to influence decisions that affect them. Whether that's through research, social action or youth leadership, I'm a strong advocate for making sure lived experience is valued alongside professional expertise.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

My interest in funding comes from seeing firsthand how much difference the right support can make. Throughout my work in education, youth engagement and research, I've met incredible young people and community organisations with innovative ideas but limited resources to bring them to life. I've also seen how funding decisions can shape which voices are heard and which opportunities become available. Joining this work gives me the chance to help bridge the gap between communities and decision-makers, ensuring that funding is informed by the people who are most affected by the issues it seeks to address. I'm particularly passionate about bringing youth voice into funding spaces and making sure young people are viewed as partners in change rather than simply beneficiaries.

I'm Melvin Riley, a Responsible technology and digital equity activist, founder of the National Youth Technology Council (NYTC), Churchill Fellow, GCYLP Fellow, Content Creator Simplifying Tech for Society, international keynote speaker and facilitator. I lead the NYTC , the UK’s first youth-led tech-for-good platform building real-world solutions that challenge how digital and emerging technologies are developed and governed .We put youth voices at the heart of conversations around AI ethics, digital regulation, and technology design.

I’m committed to making emerging technology understandable and accessible for everyone whether that’s through keynote speeches, workshops, or the content I create. With over a decade of experience as a campaigner and political and social activist, I’ve launched and contributed to numerous national and international organisations driving meaningful change. My mission is to design a future where technology works for everyone.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

What draws me to funding is the transformative power it has to unlock potential, especially for youth-led and youth-specific projects. As someone who leads a youth organisation myself, I’ve seen first-hand how access to funding can make or break innovative ideas that come from young people who often lack traditional access points.

My interest also comes from wanting to better understand how the funding and grant-making sector works, not just for the success of my own work but to improve how we resource youth-driven change more broadly.

I bring a 360-degree perspective to this space. I’ve experienced the highs of receiving grants, the frustrations of rejection, and the responsibility of being in positions where I help decide how funds are distributed. This holistic view gives me a deep respect for the process and a strong commitment to making it more accessible, transparent and equitable, which is why I'm excited to contribute to IYPC.

Hi, I’m Malcolm! I work as a Nurture Playworker at a charity in the East End of Glasgow, outside of EF/IYPC. This role aims to offer a nurturing childhood to a massive range of children and young people including those with additional needs and varying socioeconomic backgrounds. In this role I also have led a ‘mini board’ which seeks to put these young people into positions of empowering decision making. I am also a surf instructor in Dunbar, Scotland, my hometown, and have worked with the Wave Project, which offer surf therapy to children with additional physical/behavioural needs. Recently, I became a qualified volunteer for Childline and have been volunteering at the Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

My Nurture Playworker really opened my eyes to the difficulties and the importance that funding carries within the young people’s lives at RAPA. I got to witness and engage in constructing grant applications, then seeing the impact that successful bids would make directly on the support that the children receive. However, importantly I have also had an insight on the barriers that exist particularly in the current funding climate. I noticed that there are a lot of tick box funding transactions rather than actual relationships or fully needs assessed wherein young people's voices are heard, considered and impactful. I came to realise that this exists all over the charity sector. I am inspired that I (a young person) can act as a force to challenge existing systems, whilst holding that connection to the children I work with, amplifying their wants and needs.

Hi, I’m Ruth. I'm a graduate Illustrator, comic artist and facepainter from Chester. I’m also a volunteer youthworker working with a creative community CIC to engage and empower marginalised young people through art workshops. My work across both my art practice and youthwork focuses on mental health, neurodivergence, and LGBTQ+ rights. I’m super passionate about access to education and early career opportunities for marginalized young people.

What draws you to funding and what is your inspiration behind joining this work?

My home-education background has given me lived experience of lack of funding and the challenges of accessing effective and appropriate education - and the empowerment of creating solutions through self-led community groups. Following this, I first became more interested in funding through volunteer work with a CIC, where I found the asks and needs of the young people the CIC were trying to support didn’t necessarily align with what projects were able to gain funding. This experience got me really interested in how the funding sector works and what can be done to bridge the gaps between the people making decisions and the people receiving support.