Youth Charity Reduces Staff After Funding Loss

Employees of a charity focused on providing enterprise education to young individuals have faced redundancy following the organization’s inability to obtain funding from the Scottish government. Young Enterprise (YE) Scotland announced that 17 employees were made redundant; however, emergency financial support will prevent the organization from ceasing operations. For more than three decades, the charity has provided enterprise education, supported by funding from the Scottish government, as well as various trusts and foundations. Emma Soanes, the chief executive, commented that while the charity had been spared from closure, this would offer minimal comfort to the staff members who lost their employment just weeks prior to Christmas. She stated: “It is a huge relief that we have been able to avoid a complete closure of Young Enterprise Scotland and we are grateful to the Scottish government for providing us with emergency funding which prevented our worst case scenario becoming reality.“Losing our major income source has been an enormously unsettling and upsetting time for everyone involved, and while we try to remain positive there is no doubt there will be challenging times ahead as we refocus and prioritise what programmes we deliver within schools and colleges on such a reduced staff model.” In July, the charity received notification that the current grant application process would conclude and be substituted by a new competitive system, designed to distribute a total of £829,346 among seven selected organizations. Although the charity’s funding application was unsuccessful, it received emergency funding amounting to £285,000 to cover its current expenses for the present financial year. The charity also reported that the Scottish government grant experienced substantial delays during the financial years 2022/2023 and 2023/2024. During the most recent financial year, this delay led to the late submission of the charity’s audited financial statements, which directly hindered its capacity to seek further funding. In the previous year, YE Scotland provided support to more than 18,000 students in schools and colleges through its various enterprise initiatives. Over the last three years, over 1,000 students have achieved a YE Scotland enterprise qualification at SCQF Level 6, equipping them for employment and continued education. A spokesperson for the Scottish government commented: “This will obviously be a concerning time for all employees impacted and their families.” The spokesperson added: “The Scottish Government has engaged with Young Enterprise Scotland to try to mitigate the impact of their financial situation, including awarding £285,000 towards the two previously funded projects to ensure the organisation’s continued viability.”