The Westminster Foundation Youth Panel has awarded a total of £30,000 to three charities - Youth Fed, Inspiring Your Future, and The Boaty Theatre Company, all supporting young people in Chester and Ellesmere Port. This marks the culmination of a eight‑month pilot project developed by the Westminster Foundation, that placed young people’s voices at the centre of grant‑making.
Delivered in partnership with charities operating locally; Leaders Unlocked and Cheshire Community Foundation, the Youth Panel brought together 14 young people aged 14 to 24 from Chester and Ellesmere Port to decide how funding should be allocated to organisations supporting young people in the communities they are a part of.
The panel worked collaboratively to design and deliver a grants programme, Our Voice, Our Community, rooted in the lived experience of the young people involved. Youth Panel members shaped the funding framework, developed grant criteria, reviewed applications and made final funding decisions, ensuring that both the process and outcomes were genuinely youth‑led and centred local needs.
The panel’s grant criteria focused on supporting organisations delivering activities that help to reduce anti‑social behaviour, improve wellbeing and enable positive change in the lives of children and young people.
Following a collaborative assessment process, the Youth Panel awarded grants of £10,000 each to support the following activities:
Youth Fed - Supporting a 12‑month programme of tailored youth workshops delivered fortnightly across Chester and Ellesmere Port. Sessions are co‑designed with young people and focus on confidence‑building, mental health, social skills, digital safeguarding and positive decision‑making, alongside opportunities for youth voice and social action.
“A huge thank you to the young people who have led on this process. The fact that our project and proposal was of interest to a youth panel has made it so much more meaningful, and it has been great to include 2 of our own young people in the project design and application.” – Mark Smith, Fundraising Officer, Youth Fed
Inspiring Your Future - Supporting an eight‑month mentoring and fitness programme combining boxing and gym sessions with one‑to‑one and small‑group mentoring. The programme offers regular physical activity alongside trauma‑informed support focused on wellbeing, confidence and positive life choices. Sessions are shaped by the needs and feedback of young people, with opportunities for co‑delivery, monitoring and social action.
“We always want to make sure that what we are doing is right for young people, works for them and most importantly has their views right at the centre of it.
To know that this project was funded because young people were involved in selecting projects they felt would benefit their peers adds even more value to it. “– Sara Ramsden, CEO & Director, Inspiring Your Future.
The Boaty Theatre Company - Supporting a programme of weekly youth theatre and creative sessions delivered over 12 months in Chester and Ellesmere Port. Building on the organisation’s existing work, sessions include theatre‑making, creative expression, music, and digital and technical activities in accessible community spaces. The project offers consistent, low‑cost or free sessions, with young people co‑designing themes, activities and creative focus.
“The Boaty Theatre Company has always co-created its work alongside young people from the very beginning. Youth voice and empowerment sit at the heart of everything we do, so having our project selected for funding by young people themselves is a powerful and meaningful endorsement of our approach.” – Teresa Netwon-Harris, Creative Director, The Boaty Theatre Company
The programme concluded with a celebration event at The Chester Bluecoat charity, bringing together Youth Panel members – and key stakeholders including the Westminster Foundation, the project’s delivery partners and representatives from the successful grantee organisations.
Reflecting on their experience at the event, Youth Panel members said:
"Before joining the Panel, I'd never been given the chance to learn how to manage money. I've now learnt skills and been given guidance on how to work with large amounts of money respectfully."
"Since being part of the Panel I've grown in confidence and met a lot of new people I didn't know before, it's been brilliant."
"I loved the debating part of our sessions, hearing other people's opinions and views. I felt really strongly about the three organisations we chose to give money to and I'm really glad I got to meet them here today."
"Overall, this experience has helped with my confidence when meeting a new group of people, not something that comes to me naturally. I've learnt teamwork skills and how to get my ideas and thoughts across."
Looking ahead, the Westminster Foundation remains committed to embedding Youth Voice across its funding and programme work. Learning from the Youth Panel pilot will inform the development of a scalable participatory framework that will shape the Foundation’s future funding, strategy and governance.
Stay up to date with our latest Youth Voice work via our social channels and Youth Voice webpage here.
