In 2023, the Francis Scott Trust celebrates 60 years of grant making
Over 60 years of grant-making, the Trust has distributed over £40m to support positive work with young people in our area.
To mark this special year, the Trust is bringing together grant-holders, Trustees past and present, and critical friends and other stakeholders at a celebration event that will reflect on 60 years of grant-making.
As well as retrospective, this event also stands as an opportunity to think about how we can continue to improve our offer.
The core youth work programme is an invite only programme for long standing grant holders delivering universal and targeted youth services in focussed geographical areas.
The programme aims to reduce lost time in unnecessary administration, creating instead a more focussed and developmental review process. The first three organisations joined the programme in March 2023 and it will be fully rolled out by March 2025.
Our second anniversary programme launch is the distribution of £60k of Francis Scott funds by and for local young people. Delivered in partnership by Cumbria Youth Alliance and Lancaster District CVS, the Breaking the Mould programme will see 20 local young people creating a unique grants programme, based entirely on their objectives and priorities. The group will then distribute £60k via existing youth groups for projects which meet these aims.
The programme is our first piece of work to directly involve young people in the distribution of our funds. The priorities set will feed into the Trust’s next strategic review, informing our own understanding of what is important to young people, and how we will incorporate youth involvement in the future.