A CHARITY from Taunton is celebrating after receiving £294k of National Lottery funding to extend its Offer to support Young People to gain the skills to try and secure employment.

Young Somerset (formed as Somerset Rural Youth Project in 1997) supports approximately 5,000 young people in Somerset each year. 

The Taunton-based charity believes that putting young people first will make Somerset a better place. 

Since 2021, the charity has been developing its Bold and Brave shop and cafe in Taunton to offer Enterprise and Work Based learning for young people who may otherwise struggle to access employment opportunities.  

The new funding from The National Lottery Community Fund, which distributes money raised by National Lottery players for good causes and is the largest community funder in the UK, will see Young Somerset extend Bold and Brave into at least two other areas in Somerset, supporting over 200 young people into employment.

Charity gives 1,000 coffees and snacks at construction site: Read More.

Martin Kemp's dog features on calendar supporting Somerset charity: Read More.

National Lottery players raise over £30 million each week for good causes throughout the UK.

Since The National Lottery began in 1994, £49 billion has been raised and more than 690,000 individual grants have been made across the UK.

Young Somerset has sent their thanks to National Lottery players for helping to make this possible.  

Nik Harwood, Chief Executive, says: “We’re delighted that The National Lottery Community Fund has recognised our work in this way.

"Now, thanks to National Lottery players we will be able to support some of the more vulnerable young people in Somerset to gain the skills to enable them to secure employment in Somerset.

"This is important because it helps both young people and their parents to build relationships with others facing similar challenges and to create their own support networks."