Fergus McMillan : Our work is about improving young lives

Published on Friday 17 April 2009 09:48

A RECENT Daily Mail article – Adoption-row council gives gay rights group £150,000 – missed the point about the work that LGBT Youth Scotland delivers in Edinburgh and across Scotland.

There is a proven need for the work which LGBT Youth Scotland does with lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) young people, many of whom still experience isolation and discrimination at school, at home and in their own communities.

LGBT Youth Scotland is grateful for support from Edinburgh City Council. The funding received from 2004-2009 has been used to run youth groups and provide advice and support to LGBT young people in Edinburgh. This has had a proven impact on young people's lives. A recent survey of around 200 young people who use our services found that they gained in confidence, made new friends and learned new skills.

LGBT Youth Scotland is not a lobbying organisation. Our work is based on young people's needs and it is our job to communicate young people's priorities to professionals who can make a difference. Our toolkit resource is not a "gay rights" lobbying tool. It is a resource for local authorities and teachers to help them make school a better experience for LGBT young people and a resource that teachers have called for themselves.

One young man who spoke powerfully at our Challenging Homophobia Together schools conference in February, told delegates that, "LGBT Youth Scotland is extremely important to me. The staff there have helped me no end, they've helped me to work out who I am. One of the most important things they did for me was to give me a safe environment where I could go to be myself and feel normal."

LGBT young people deserve inclusion and support rather than greater misunderstanding. Media coverage which stirs up needless controversy over work which improves young people's lives is simply misleading. But don't just take my word for it – visit www.lgbtyouth.org.uk for more information.

&#149 Fergus McMillan is chief executive of LGBT Youth Scotland