Young people shaping sport in Scotland.
Welcome to the Young people's sport panel page! We'll be using this space to share what we've been up to and what we've got planned as we look to influence and shape the future of sport in Scotland and raise the profile of sport in Scotland.
What is the Young people's sport panel?
The Young people's sport panel is a group of 16 young Scots that have been selected to give a voice of young people across Scotland, formed through a partnership between sportscotland and Young Scot. We will work together and on our own to achieve our two objectives: to influence and shape the future of sport in Scotland and raise the profile of sport in Scotland.
By having young people at the heart of decision making in sport, we hope to ensure that our views will be listened to and considered when decisions are made which affect young people. We will be key contributors to the Scottish Government's Youth Sport Strategy, which aims to make sport as accessible and enjoyable as possible in order to increase levels of physical activity among young people, and have also given our input into sportscotland's response to consultation on the Children and Young People's Bill.
By raising the profile of sport we hope to encourage more young people to participate in sport and physical activity. It's an exciting time for sport just now, with the Commonwealth Games and Ryder Cup coming to Scotland in 2014 and Glasgow bidding to host the Youth Olympic Games in 2018. We want to build on that by highlighting the opportunities to participate in sport and encourage young people of all ages and backgrounds to find a sport they'll love.
Who's on the Young people's sport panel?
The panel is made up of young people from around the country, and ranging in age from 15-24. All have a common love for sport, but come from a variety of backgrounds and experiences which will all contribute towards the work we do. The group also holds a wide variety of sporting interests, including snowboarding, bowls, swimming, athletics and rugby, as well as thousands of hours of volunteering experience.
The 16 young people to be selected were Colin Millar (Campbeltown), Kulbir Gabba (Barrhead), Katie Clucas (Bishopbriggs), Chris Sellar and Jodi McGinty (Edinburgh), John Robertson (East Kilbride), Nathan Arbuckle and Catriona Thomson (Glasgow), Adam Martin (East Lothian), Amy Harper (Shetland), Connor Hughes (Bothwell), Hannah Jolly and Matt McCormick (Bearsden), Meghan Plummer (Larbert), Sophie Gibson (Giffnock) and Morven Macgregor (Aberdeenshire).
What have we been up to?
Since the first get together in June 2012, we've been working hard on a number of projects around our key objectives.
2012 will be remembered for the success of the London Olympic and Paralympic Games, and the first task for the panel was to create individual online articles on the Games. We all came at it in our own way, and this is shown by the range of article topics and formats.
A few of the panel members were volunteering in London, so we have online blog updates from Jodi and Adam and a video diary from John on their experiences. Other panel members took in some of the action, and we have articles on the swimming, basketball and football events. We even have interviews with Team GB basketball star Kieron Achara and swimmer Craig Benson. Check out all of our work here:
London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games
Since then we've been involved in a number of activities around our two objectives, from meeting Shona Robison MSP, Minister for Commonwealth Games and Sport to discuss the Youth Sport Strategy, to helping at the Lead 2014 events around the country, a project aimed at harnessing the enthusiasm of young people to help create the next generation of sports leaders.
Check out our Prezi presentation below for a quick summary of what we've achieved in our first year as the Young people's sport panel.
We undertake regular projects across all aspects of the sporting landscape. Over the coming months expect to see changes to the content on sport sections of the Young Scot website as we step up our task of raising the profile of sport to other young people. Keep an eye on this page too, as we'll post regular updates to let everyone know what we're up to.
Our work will also be communicated through social media channels, so follow @YoungScot and @sportscotland on Twitter and check out the #sportpanel hashtag for all the latest sport panel news.
Our experience so far
Here's what some of the panel members had to say about their experience with the Young people's sport panel:
“Being in the sport panel has given me the chance to raise the profile of sport within my local community and meet like-minded people who have the same aims as me. I believe that Scotland’ young population has a huge reserve of sporting talent and ability, however it is essential that they receive the proper facilities, guidance and most importantly, inspiration, to reach their true potential.”
Katie Clucas
“Being in the sport panel has given me the chance to raise the profile of sport within my local community and meet like-minded people who have the same aims as me. I believe that Scotland’ young population has a huge reserve of sporting talent and ability, however it is essential that they receive the proper facilities, guidance and most importantly, inspiration, to reach their true potential.”
Kulbir Singh
"I believe that involvement in sport can make a huge difference to the lives of all young people. As part of the sport panel, I am really looking forward to helping to ensure that all young people in Scotland have an equal chance both to take part and to have their views represented in sport. It is an incredible opportunity for us, as young people, to influence and shape the future of Scottish sport."
Hannah Jolly
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