International Youth Day 2025 | Introducing our new Youth Voice Advisors

At The National Lottery Community Fund, we believe that society can benefit by listening more to young people’s views. We also know from our own experience that they’re skilled and determined to make a real, positive difference to the world around them.

As a funder, we’re committed to making sure young people’s voices are included in all our work, whether that’s through the grants we make, the people we influence, or the things we learn.

Over the past five years, we’ve been on a real journey; we introduced our first Youth Voice team  back in 2020 and have since gone on to recruit a number of Youth Voice Advisors to help our funding teams design and shape the decisions that affect young people and their communities. 

This International Youth Day, we’re shining a spotlight on the newest of our Youth Voice Advisors who will be making a valued impact on work as a funder. Our latest cohort will be joined by Katie, Youth Voice Advisor in Northern Ireland, who has been with us for a year and will provide ongoing peer support, alongside funding staff. Find out more about our newest recruits below.

Fatemah (She/her), 21, Glasgow, Youth Voice Advisor

I have a diverse background in youth voice, with a strong passion for improving young people’s mental health and supporting the sustainability of the youth sector.

My journey began in 2021 as a Member of the Scottish Youth Parliament, representing young people locally and nationally. This role developed my skills in leadership, campaigning and influencing decision-makers, including speaking to senior civil servants to advocate for better mental health training and education. In 2022, I joined the UK Youth Parliament, where I attended national conferences and delivered a speech in the House of Commons on mental health and stigma.

I am also actively involved in youth-focused initiatives as a panel member with SAMH (Scottish Action for Mental Health), where I deliver presentations, attend conferences, engaging with MSPs and co-planning campaigns to improve mental health services and education. In 2024, I became a Youth Consultant with See Me Scotland, designing and delivering workshops on mental health stigma and helping to create youth-friendly resources.

Alongside these roles, I volunteer as a youth worker supporting underrepresented young people, including refugees and asylum seekers facing barriers to education, employment or housing.

Most recently, I became a Youth Voice Advisor with The National Lottery Community Fund, ensuring that young people are meaningfully represented in funding decisions. Outside of youth work, I am a call handler with NHS 24 and enjoy reading in my free time.

Ffion (She/Her), 18, Youth Voice Advisor

I’ve been a young carer since I was 4 years old, caring for my mum. Because of my caring role, life experiences and past experiences with things like mental health I began volunteering at a young age. I was 13 when I first started volunteering; First with my Young Carers organisation but now after many years I volunteer with so many unique projects. From grant panels, mental health projects, mentoring other young people and Being a Welsh Youth Parliament member; I like to take part in it all!

I know what it’s like to be a young person and feel invisible in a world full of adults and so I made it my aim to try and make the world a better, more inclusive space for young people! I think that we can always do better, it just takes effort and commitment! And so, it is very important to me to give volume to opinions that may not always be heard and even still, opinions that are already loud.

Although my journey as one of the new Youth Voice Advisors has only just started, I look forward to the opportunity of making a difference! It has already been invaluable meeting everyone, been full of new experiences and challenges and we have had amazing conversations, working together every step of the way. I also look forward to being a part of the application processes, giving insight and working with amazing projects and organisations. I love to learn, and it will be so much fun to learn about them. I honestly cannot wait to keep working with everyone and see what we can achieve together. We all have different experiences and opinions, but I think that’s what makes us so amazing and such a great team.

All of my spare time is usually spent volunteering or awareness raising, but I do love football and sports. And I absolutely love spending time with my family. Not to mention nothing can beat a good movie marathon or baking cookies and cupcakes!

Molly, 25, (she/her), Sussex, Youth Voice Advisor

My youth voice journey began in 2022 when I became an iwill Ambassador, recognised for my work tackling youth loneliness and promoting belonging. But I later realised it started much earlier.

As a child, I experienced abuse and went through family court without any say in decisions about my life, so my understanding of youth voice began long before I knew the term.

At age 10, I heard the stories of young asylum seekers. Though not a refugee myself, I felt a similar lack of safety and belonging. Their stories moved me to raise awareness and fundraise at school. Even then, I was taking action and connecting with others.

I now realise that my lived experience became a source of strength and enabled me to connect with others. At 21, a youth worker asked me about my story - an important moment that helped me realise the true power of my voice. Since then, I have fought for children’s rights, with a strong focus on ensuring young people are not only heard but meaningfully acted upon.

I work across sectors to challenge youth voice - engaging with government, shaping youth sector policy, and founding a newsletter that shares fair, accessible opportunities for young people. As a Youth Advisor to the EU, I help to reimagine connection and belonging for young people in a post-Brexit world.

As a Youth Voice Advisor, I look forward to engaging directly with young people and hearing their voices within the spaces that shape their lives.

And from September, I hope to make an even bigger impact by studying International Children’s Rights at King’s College London.