By Eilidh Miller
Young People’s Forum: more info
Young people’s voices were once again at the heart of the conversation as the Athletics Trust Scotland Young People’s Forum gathered for their second meeting of the year at Grangemouth Stadium.
Bringing the group together again created another opportunity for the young athletes to connect, share ideas, and continue shaping the areas they feel matter most to their experiences in athletics.
A key highlight of the day was a creative leadership workshop delivered by Victoria from Active Advantage. The interactive session encouraged Forum members to explore new ways of expressing their ideas, while also helping them think differently about challenges that young athletes face.
Through a series of activities designed to mix the group into different teams, YPF members were able to get to know one another better while developing their creative thinking skills.
One activity invited the group to explore what they believed to be the headline challenges for young people in the sport, prompting thoughtful discussions around the issues young athletes experience and what might be their root causes.
The session also saw the group put their creativity to the test with some imaginative cereal box and tinfoil creations, setting the tone for a fun day and bringing plenty of energy to the room.
Importantly, the workshop helped spark some meaningful discussions.
Victoria’s creative approach helped inspire some innovative thinking, and the forum members produced a range of ideas around how young people’s voices can be amplified and how the sport can better support athletes to feel healthy, included, and motivated to stay involved.
In their first meeting, the Forum identified key areas to focus on and prioritise:
*Athlete health
*Inclusion
*Retaining young people in athletics
The group moved into sub-group work in the afternoon, exploring their chosen aims in more detail and beginning to develop ideas on how they can contribute to improving the experiences of young athletes in these aspects of the sport.
It is still early days for the group, but the enthusiasm and commitment shown by the forum members points to an exciting two years ahead as they continue their development.
The next meeting will take place in June, where the group will take part in an Officiating session delivered by Shona Malcolm-Martin. The forum will also receive a workshop with Alex Fraser and Eilidh Miller, combining athlete health and RED-S education with social media content creation.
The session will help equip the young people with the knowledge and tools to share their work and ideas online, raising awareness of athlete health and wellbeing for other young athletes across the sport.
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ATS Young People’s Forum, Grangemouth, Young People’s Forum