OPEN’s story
There’s something special about walking into a room and knowing you belong. For many young people in Shetland, that feeling hasn’t always come easy, especially if you don’t fit the usual mould. But OPEN is changing that.
When SCT took a chance on OPEN, it wasn’t just funding a project, it was backing a vision: an independent, youth-led charity where young people call the shots, shape the strategy, and support each other to grow. That support meant OPEN could do things differently – creating a board of trustees made up of young people, who receive training, mentoring, and support to build a space where everyone’s voice matters.
With a strong foundation of core support from SCT and Esmée Fairbairn, OPEN can attract funding to support a wide range of activities from youth-led research to peer mentoring and workshops – each one a chance for young people to step up, learn, and lead.
And the results speak for themselves – hundreds of workshops, new volunteers, young people driving change, working groups with service providers, and invitations to share what they’re learning at conferences. But success is also in the moments: the first time someone speaks up in a meeting, the pride of writing a strategy together, the laughter at a residential, the quiet confidence that comes from being listened to. Young people aren’t just participants here, they’re the reason OPEN exists, and they’re shaping what comes next.
With so much already achieved, OPEN is dreaming big – helping new leaders step up, changing systems that need changing, and building a Shetland where every young person can thrive.
Young people on belonging and personal development
Generational Fairness • Individual Wellbeing • Community Wellbeing
