18 November 2024
Since 2013, our Youth Advisory Group - formerly Youth Board - has played a vital role in making sure the diverse lived experiences, opinions, and ideas of all young people we support are at the heart of our decision-making.
This time last year (November 2023), the YAG, as it's affectionately known, underwent arguably the biggest refresh of its decade in existence, as a significant call for new members led to no fewer than nine young people and volunteers who sailed with us after cancer getting involved.
On 9 November, the YAG gathered in Oxford to play its latest part in helping further amplify the voices of young people in everything we do.
With work on our 2026-2030 strategy underway, the group were asked to considered how we might better address some of the challenges we have around attracting young people and the changing generational landscape of Generations Z and Alpha.
Changes in treatment post-COVID, where and how young people and families learn about us, and remaining relevant so young people continue to see the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust as being open, accessible and beneficial to them after treatment, were amongst the topics discussed at length.
The YAG's input and ideas will now be factored in alongside similar 'strategy planning sessions' we are also holding with the Board of Trustees, team, volunteers and skippers, hospital and charity partners and other young people and relevant stakeholders, to help shape our next four year Ambitions.
Since coming onboard last autumn, the current YAG have already been instrumental in helping shape our approaches to, amongst other things, young person phone use on trips, embracing TikTok, website user journeys for trip sign up and our anti-racism and identity discrimination and reporting process.
If you are aged 16+, have been or are currently being supported by the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust and are interested in finding our more about joining the Youth Advisory Group, please email [email protected]