Our new UK-wide project, Turning the Tide, is looking for a panel of LGBTQ+ young people aged 16-25 to guide the project and make sure it is truly youth-led. Joining the Youth Panel is a great opportunity to meet new people, learn new skills, develop your confidence and have a real impact on a major new project to improve the lives of LGBTQ+ young people across the UK. If you’d like to apply, please fill out the short form below by Sunday 21 September. For more information, read on!
What is the Turning the Tide project?
Turning the Tide is a new five-year project aiming to connect and empower LGBTQ+ young people and organisations across the UK, removing the barriers that prevent young people achieving their full potential. This will take place through a programme of work involving you – LGBTQ+ young people – professionals and volunteers. Turning the Tide is working to break down the systems that hold back our community, to make sure LGBTQ+ young people have the power to speak up, shape decisions, and influence the policies and people that affect their lives.
Turning the Tide is The Kite Trust’s first UK-wide project, bringing together LGBTQ+ youth and the organisations from all over the UK that support our community. It’s a space where LGBTQ+ young people, professionals and volunteers can learn from each other, share what works, and figure out how to make real change together.
Turning the Tide is funded by the National Lottery Community Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players, The Kite Trust has received £1.2 million from The National Lottery Community Fund, to remove barriers that prevent LGBTQ+ young people achieving their potential.
More information and latest news on Turning the Tide is on our main Turning the Tide webpage.
What is the Turning the Tide Youth Panel?
A youth panel is a group of young people who come together to lead, shape, and speak out on the issues that matter to them. It’s really important to us that Turning the Tide is youth-led, so as well as our project team, the project will be led by a group of young people called the Youth Panel. Our Turning the Tide Youth Panel will be made up of LGBTQ+ young people aged 16-25 from all over the UK. We’ll start with ten young people who will be on the panel for two years, and bring in more young people each year of the project, to grow and strengthen youth voice.
As part of the Youth Panel, you’ll have real influence over how the project grows, what actions we take, and how we communicate our messages.
What is involved in being a Youth Panel member?
If you’re selected for the first Turning the Tide Youth Panel, you’ll be asked to take part in monthly online meetings. These will be in the evenings and will each be two hours long, so we hope they will fit around school/college/university/work/training commitments.
You’ll sometimes be asked to review materials or do some planning outside the meetings, to make sure these sessions are as useful as possible. All meetings will be online to make them as accessible as possible, but if Youth Panel members would like to meet in person sometimes then we can also make this happen.
You’ll also be invited to help plan, and attend, the first ‘Making Waves’ event as part of Turning the Tide. Making Waves will be an event held each year in a different part of the UK, bringing together LGBTQ+ young people and professionals working in the LGBTQ+ youth sector to meet, learn from each other and have fun.
Throughout your time as a Youth Panel member, you’ll have opportunities to:
- Plan creative campaigns about issues that are important to you;
- Give feedback on resources, and develop new ones, to try and help professionals to work more inclusively with LGBTQ+ young people;
- Run workshops or discussions for Youth Panel members and others;
- Represent Turning the Tide at events;
- Share your story and inspire others (only if you want to!);
- Have your voice heard in important spaces ;
- Meet people who have the power to make change for LGBTQ+ young people, and get them to listen to what matters to you;
- Teach and learn from each other, and help train professionals
…and lots more!
The Youth Panel can be whatever you want it to be, and will shape the whole Turning the Tide project to make sure it’s truly youth led.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who can join the Turning the Tide Youth Panel?
Applications are open to anyone living in the UK who is aged 16-25 and is LGBTQ+. You don’t have to be a member of The Kite Trust or any other LGBTQ+ youth group to apply, and we are really keen to hear from you whether you have lots of experience of similar projects or you haven’t done anything like this before! If you’re 16-25 now but will be 26 or 27 by the end of the two years then you’re still welcome to apply and you would still stay on the panel for the full two years.
How do I apply to be part of the Youth Panel?
To apply to join the Youth Panel for the 2025-2027 cohort, please fill in this short form by Sunday 21 September. The form asks you a few questions about who you are, any relevant experience you might have, and why you would like to join the Youth Panel. If you would prefer, you can submit your answers by email, or in a doc., audio or video file – please send this to the Turning the Tide team at turningthetide@thekitetrust.org.uk. If none of these are accessible to you then please get in touch and we’ll work out a more accessible way for you to apply. You are welcome to get a youth worker or anyone else to help with your application but please make sure it is in your own words.
What if I can’t commit for the full two years?
We understand that sometimes circumstances change and you may need to leave the panel before the two years are up. However, please only apply if you are willing to try your best to commit to the full two years. If you would prefer to be involved in Turning the Tide in other ways that don’t involve this sort of commitment, please contact us at turningthetide@thekitetrust.org.uk to express an interest or find out more.
I don’t have any experience of the kind of activities you’re talking about, can I still apply for the Youth Panel?
Yes – please do! We would love the Youth Panel to have people with all sorts of different skills and experience, and there’s no expectation that you will have done this sort of thing before. Youth Panel members will be given training to make sure you have the knowledge and confidence to take part in Youth Panel activities, and it will be a space where you can all learn from each other and develop your skills.
What will I be gain from being on the Turning the Tide Youth Panel?
Lots! The panel can be what you want it to be, and the activities we focus on will be driven by where you all want to focus your time and energy. Here are just some of the things you’ll gain from being on the Youth Panel:
- You’ll get a chance to shape Turning the Tide, a major project to improve the lives of LGBTQ+ young people across the UK. Your input will help make sure Turning the Tide is truly youth-led, and that it focuses on the issues that really matter to LGBTQ+ young people.
- You’ll meet other amazing LGBTQ+ young people, work together, learn from each other and maybe make new friends.
- You’ll help plan and deliver our first ‘Making Waves’ event, an annual event that will bring together LGBTQ+ young people and professionals working in the LGBTQ+ youth sector to meet, learn from each other and have fun. All your expenses will be paid for attending the event, including travel, accommodation and food.
- You’ll have opportunities to shape new resources, training and campaigns aimed at improving the lives of LGBTQ+ young people.
- You’ll get to have your voice heard by people who have power to improve LGBTQ+ young people’s lives.
- You’ll gain important experience that you can add to your CV. We can also support you knowing how to talk about your experience on the Youth Panel when applying for jobs or other opportunities in future.
- You’ll have access to training and development in areas that are important to you, that will help develop your skills and confidence for whatever you want to do in the future.
When we have in-person events, your travel expenses will be paid and we’ll make sure there’s food there for everyone too!
Are there other ways to get involved in Turning the Tide?
Yes! If you don’t get accepted onto the Youth Panel this year, you can apply again in any of the remaining four years of the Turning the Tide project. You can also sign up to be kept on our mailing list, where we’ll send out other opportunities to get involved in Turning the Tide on a more casual basis. These casual opportunities might involve things like coming to events, reviewing new materials, sharing campaign content, piloting new training, advising on research, telling us your views on a topic, writing content for our campaigns or socials, taking part in research, and lots of other things too!
I still have questions! What should I do?
You can ask questions on your application form, or you can contact us by email with any questions about Turning the Tide or the Youth Panel: turningthetide@thekitetrust.org.uk. We’d love to hear from you!