NEWS RELEASE For Immediate Use 8 October 2009a BLAIRGOWRIE & PERTH VOLUNTEERS PRAISED IN PARLIAMENT Staff and volunteers of Blairgowrie Strathmore Centre for Youth Dialogue (SCYD) and the Perth YMCA were praised in the Scottish Parliament today (8 October) during a debate on volunteering in Scotland. During the debate, Mid-Scotland & Fife Conservative MSP Murdo Fraser praised the support that ProjectScotland has given to voluntary sector projects in Perth and Perthshire. However, the SNP Government has cut the funding for ProjectScotland and the number of volunteer placements in Perth & Kinross has been drastically reduced as a result. ProjectScotland was founded in May 2005 with the aim of revolutionising youth volunteering in Scotland. In the past four years, over 2900 young people have spent on average six months volunteering full time with over 300 charities and not-for-profit organisations all over Scotland. To date, over 130 young people in Perth and Kinross have benefited from a ProjectScotland placement. In the Chamber, Murdo spoke about the work of Kimby Tosh from Alyth, who volunteered at the Blairgowrie SCYD through ProjectScotland. Kimby Tosh has now brought a petition on behalf of ProjectScotland to the Scottish Parliament to try and reverse the funding cuts to volunteering. In the Chamber, Murdo said: “Over 130 young people in Perth & Kinross have benefited from a ProjectScotland placement. Earlier this year, staff and volunteers from the Strathmore Centre for Youth Development (SCYD) in Blairgowrie came to the Scottish Parliament to tell MSPs about the work that ProjectScotland gives to voluntary sector projects like SCYD. “At SCYD in Blairgowrie, Kimby Tosh has been a trainee Youth Worker at the centre since the end of 2008 as well as a role model to many youngsters in the area. Kimby lives in Alyth, in the same town as me, and I know what a difference ProjectScotland made to her life. “As Kimby explained to MSPs in Parliament earlier this year, ProjectScotland and the SCYD made a huge difference to her. At the age of 13, Kimby had started drinking alcohol on a daily basis and was getting into trouble and eventually expelled from school. After getting expelled, Kimby then got involved with the youth centre, where the staff at SCYD worked with her and were so impressed with her progress that they encouraged her to become a ProjectScotland volunteer at the service. “Kimby explained to MSPs and other volunteers that the ProjectScotland placement helped her grow in confidence and ability. Kimby now delivers local community based projects for young people in Blairgowrie and Eastern Perthshire. “Not only this, but Kimby is now a leading light in the campaign for ProjectScotland. She has lodged a petition which calls on the Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to keep youth volunteering high up the political agenda and to develop and implement a national youth volunteering policy for Scotland. “Kimby Tosh is an inspiration, and her example proves why volunteering is so important. Here is someone who wanted to turn her life around and volunteering has allowed that transformation to take place. “As a result in the cut in funding from the SNP Government to ProjectScotland, only 13 young people were able to carry out volunteer placements in Perth & Kinross in 2008/09 compared to 67 placements in 2007/08. Organisations such as Perth YMCA, who have had a number of excellent volunteers through the programme, are now missing out on having valuable young volunteers. This also means that young people in Perthshire are also missing out on gaining experience – and this is being duplicated across Scotland.” ENDS   back to top of page