2008 CHANGEit Performance Awards Finalists

Dynamic Recordingz

Who?   Hayden Kind (age 16)
Where?   Birmingham
What?   Hayden Kind, a 16-year-old from Birmingham, decided a year ago he wanted to support aspiring young musicians and work to change the stereotypes of young people who listen to or make R&B, rap and hip-hop music. He set up a recording studio in his bedroom and has since offered hundreds of young people the opportunity to try their hand at recording in a comfortable and relaxed environment, an opportunity most wouldn't otherwise have. Most recently, he and some of his artists wrote and recorded a song called "Hood Life" which aims to change the stereotype that young people in hoodies are anti-social. The theme: "Don't Live it...Wear it!"

Learn more about Dynamic Recordingz

Matts-Hideout

Who?   Matthew Alden-Farrow (age 18)
Where?   Milton Keynes
What?   At 10 years of age, Matthew Alden-Farrow was diagnosed with Dyspraxia, a neurological disorder which affects the messages sent from the brain to the body, causing clumsiness, hypersensitivity, speech problems and a host of other issues. By 11, he had created Matts-Hideout.co.uk, a website for him to talk about his frustrations with his disorder. He soon had a number of readers and the website expanded into a forum for young people from all over the UK and internationally to chat online about the issues they face with Dyspraxia. Now 18, Matt is continuing his campaign to raise awareness about Dyspraxia by giving talks and keeping connected to the more than 500 active users on his website.

Enter Matts-Hideout

Eco Schools / Eco Business

Who?   Jack Williams (age 16)
Where?   Dover
What?   Jack Williams, a 16-year-old from Dover, set up the Green Footprint Group (GFG), a committee consisting of students from six local schools, which focuses on taking steps to get each school to go green. But just getting schools green wasn't enough. Jack and the members of the GFG hosted an Eco Business day for more than 90 representatives from local business to convince them that going green isn't just nice for the planet, it makes good business sense. Since their first big event, they've hosted a primary schools day where 89 year five students learned about the environment, purchased a plastics recycling depot for the whole of Dover and have begun a petition on the 10 Downing street website to increase funding to support schools going green and educating young people about environmental issues.

Sign Jack’s e-petition for greener schools

SLH Junior Board

Who?   Chris Harris, Ryan Humphries, Kerrie Southern, Danielle Southern, Kayleigh Ennis, Amy Harris, Fawn Jones, Rebecca Owens, Jay Carr, Rachel Maylor, Melissa Waddington and Barbie Whittaker (aged 11-18)
Where?   South Liverpool
What?   Six years ago, a group of young people decided they wanted to do more and have a say in their community. They approached the South Liverpool Housing (SLH) group and have gone on to make a tremendous difference in the Speke and Garston communities since. The 12 members range in age from 11-21 and regularly conduct youth conferences, run a bursary programme that has allowed more than 150 young people to be able to enhance their training and skills, organise a youth squad which conducts regular clean-ups in the area, create DVDs about issues affecting young people in their community and regularly have a say in the big community decisions made by the SLH group. To date, they are the only junior board associated with a housing group in the whole of the UK.

Visit the SLH Junior Board website

Therapy Through Horses

Who?   Naomi Milligan (age 17)
Where?   Reading
What?   Seventeen-year-old Naomi Milligan has a passion for horses. At the age of 13 she came up with the idea to set up a programme for young people to be able to work with horses to work through issues they might be dealing with at home or at school. She teamed up with a local charity in Reading, and for the last four years has spent six days a week at the stables running sessions for young people where they muck stalls, feed and groom the horses and go out riding. Naomi finds that many young people open up around horses and have to deal with issues because the horses are very sensitive to body language. All the services are completely free and has offered a number of disadvantaged youths the opportunity to experience horse riding, something they wouldn't otherwise be able to enjoy.

Learn more about Therapy Through Horses

Just Smile!

Who?   Ellice Bush (age 16), Ria Bush (age 16), Neola Bush (age 13) and Harriet Gilford (age 14)
Where?   Norfolk
What?   Having experienced bullying themselves, Ria, Ellice, Neola and Harriet wanted to try and provide a support network for other young people and ways for schools to deal with bullying issues. They started a website, JustSmile.org.uk, and created "Smile Packs" for more than 300 schools including a DVD they created about bullying, leaflets with bullying statistics and information on how to set up a Smile Council in schools for young people to deal with bullying issues. In addition, they came up with the idea for Smile boxes which could be installed in schools as a way for young people to write down their concerns or issues and have the Smile council address them. The boxes are currently in production and will be provided for free to schools. They currently have requests from more than 40 schools and the requests continue to pour in.

Learn more about Just Smile!

One more way to be a bully

Who?   Peter Stamp, Jack Clements, Benn Phillips, Louise McKeen, Jacob Handley, Alan Stamp and Christpher Dow (aged 12-18)
Where?   Ashford, Kent
What?   When seven members of the Ashford Youth Forum realised cyber-bullying was on the rise, they decided to take action. They took it upon themselves to write, direct and star in a DVD for schools to help create discussion and raise awareness of cyber-bullying issues. The DVD wasn't just a scenario, it included a number of discussion questions so at each action interval, teachers could discuss what had just occurred. Initially the DVD was taken to some local schools by police officers, but soon the orders were rolling in and they have since distributed more than 750 copies in Southeast England. Many teachers have said they don't get past the first frame because it stimulates so much discussion. Not ones to rest, the group is now working on a card game that teachers can use to raise awareness of diversity and cultural differences.

Visit the Ashford Youth Forum

Romeo & Juliet, Rosemary & Julian

Who?   Simon Watts, Jay Bailey, Rebecca McGibbon, Kieran Brown, Dean Clayton, Claire Farrimond, Michelle Whittle, Celli Taylor, Nathan Conner and Amy Dawson (aged 15-18)
Where?   Wigan
What?   Homophobia is something that is faced by many young people every day and is something the 15-24 year olds in the B.yoU youth project in Wigan are very familiar with. To raise awareness about homophobia and lesbian, gay and bi-sexual (LGB) issues, they adapted the play Romeo & Juliet, to artistically express to people what it means to be LGB. The group has performed at hate crime conferences, local council conferences in Wigan, pride parades and local schools. At the end of each performance the group facilitates discussion with the audience getting feedback and answering questions. They've had a tremendous impact in Wigan, though many LGB youth still face harassment and bullying. To keep their campaign going, the group is now working on an adaptation of the classic, Oliver Twist, which they hope to begin performing in October 2008.

Learn more about the Wigan B.yoU project

Circle of Youth

Who?   Marley Sinclaire-Swift (age 13) , Georgina Lewis (age 16), Sian Williams (age 15) and Skyler Jones-Davies (age 13)
Where?   Tairgwaith, Wales
What?   Two years ago, Marley, Georgina, Sian and Skyler, a group of 13-16 year olds from a tiny mining community in Wales were looking for something interesting to do with their spare time. They came up with Circle of Youth and began producing regular newsletters to inform people about local activities and the history of their community. They have since produced 20 newsletters and are regularly stopped on the street by community members wanting to chat about their articles. In addition, they produced a DVD on the history of Tairgwaith and got community members involved in creating a garden for their local community as before, there was no place for people to enjoy nice weather. Having inspired many elderly residents to come forward with their stories about Tairgwaith, the group is planning another more comprehensive DVD on their community and continues to write newsletters.

Visit the Circle of Youth