Youth Work

Youth Work improves the life chances of children and young people In East Lothian. Through youth work, young people in East Lothian are safe, heard and included.

Youth !ork is about building trust between young people and supportive adults and creating safe spaces where young people feel heard, included, and supported. It helps them grow, learn, and feel like they belong - boosting confidence and resilience while reducing the risk of things like poor mental health or unemployment.

What young people tell us about youth work:

• “Youth Work is amazing! It brings so many kinds of people together and helps children and young people make friends, try new things and feel more involved in our community”
• “I like it when you come to youth club, you can come here for free. People can come here for without paying and there are lots of activities to do like loombands, dancing, learning to make music, D-J equipment, arts and crafts, toast”
• “Youth Work is different from school because there are less kids here, so you can build bonds with people from your school and also the youth workers”
• “At youth club - if you want to come you can come, you just sign up. It’s been really good as I’ve made new friends”
• “This group has given us a chance to listen to and share our views and experiences with other children and young people. Having opportunities to try and make things better in East Lothian, can only happen when young people have the change to come together to make a difference”  
• “It’s something to look forward to after school”

Find out about children and youth work happening in your local community centre: you can check online or pop into your local community centre in person.

Alternatively email us at connect-el@eastlothian.gov.uk