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A youth worker, who helped local teens arrange a special meal bringing together the island’s old and young, is urging others to make the most of the funding opportunity that made it all possible.
The Lions Club’s Brown Bursary scheme, supported by Bailiwick Express, invites young islanders with an idea for a community project to apply for up to £9,000.
The Brown Bursary is a scheme for young people between Years 9-13 who are keen to help their local community. The funding, in memory of Robert E. Brown who left a substantial donation to the Lions Club in his will, is awarded in tranches of up to £1,000 for smaller projects and up to £9,000 for larger projects.
The bursary, named after the late Mr Brown, hopes to commemorate the businessman’s donation and memory by encouraging further community work in the island. Lion Paul Pearce, who will be chairing the panel that selects the winning application, explained more about the bursary scheme and what the judges will expect from this years' applications.
Pictured: Lion Paul Pearce will be chairing the panel of judges who select the winning grant applications.
Express spoke to last year’s winners, Le Squez Youth Project, who reflected on the impact the funding had on the young people who organised a three-course meal for local senior citizens...
The youth project was awarded £500 to fund their dinner which was prepared and budgeted for by the young members of the club last year.
Senior Youth Worker at Le Squez Florrie Copley said that the bursary allowed the young people to take the lead on a project they felt was important for their local community.
Pictured: Le Squez Youth Project after their 'Senior Supper' which was funded by the Brown Bursary scheme (Le Squez Youth Project).
“It’s all young person-led. I just printed out the forms and put it on the table… and then it was for them to decide what they wanted to do,” Florrie told Express.
When asked why the young people at Le Squez settled on hosting a three-course meal for senior citizens, Florrie said: “They thought it would be really nice for two generations to mix and they wanted to show off their youth project.
“...People walking past don’t see all the work that goes on inside so they’ve got loads of artwork up around the walls and… They could just show off their project and show people what they can achieve as young people.”
Pictured: The young people from Le Squez organised, budgeted and prepared the three-course meal for their elderly guests. (Le Squez Youth Project)
Florrie recounted how the young people who attend Le Squez personally invited guests to their dinner, including Paul Pearce from the Lions Club and St. Clement Constable Len Norman.
“The young people did everything - they budgeted, they did all their research, they planned, they practiced,” said Florrie, adding that on the menu was vegetable soup to start, a full roast dinner and pineapple upside-down cakes for dessert.
Florrie remarked that the way the young people went about organising the meal was heartening for those who work at the project: “It was really good for the staff here to see how young people can put into practice all the life skills that we try and put in place.”
Pictured: Lion Paul Pearce presenting the Youth Project with their bursary cheque for £500 to fund their senior citizens' dinner (Le Squez Youth Club).
Commenting on the importance of funding resources for youth projects like Le Squez, Florrie said: “There’s huge benefits. All the youth projects in Jersey are charities, so we don’t get any funding. So, all our art equipment, cooking ingredients, we have to fundraise for it all. The ability to apply for a project that’s maybe more than what we could afford or fundraise for in club – it’s amazing. We wouldn’t have been able to do that without the bursary scheme.”
After winning the Brown Bursary last year, the Youth Project are looking to make the 'Senior Supper' an annual event and are on the hunt for sponsors to keep the meal going.
The Lions Club is once again challenging young people to compete for grants by presenting them projects that would benefit the local community. Groups of up to six young people from school years 9 to year 13 can apply at any point between now and the end of June. Application forms can be found below.
Each group should belong to a school or other youth organisation, and give itself a name. They can apply for amounts up to £9,000.
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