Isaac Nesbeth
Fundraising Member on Sculpt’s Youth Advisory Board
I joined Sculpt Youth Advisory Board in late June as the Fundraising Member. Having led several fundraisers at school, I wanted to continue to support charities, from a fundraising perspective, when I left school. Sculpt Youth Advisory Board allows me to do just that; I am a member of a team of six young people and together, amongst many things, we review fundraising bids and advise Sculpt when decisions require our input.
Since joining the Youth Advisory Board, I have met several of Sculpt UK’s staff and have participated in meetings with Sculpt’s Fundraising Manager and the Youth Advisory Board. Everybody has been so warm and welcoming and it has been great to learn more about Sculpt’s recent projects. Recently, I was privileged to participate in one their latest project, Bankside Futures, and witness first-hand the benefit of Sculpt’s work on the local community. The project focused on the Bankside Area in Southwark, and was targeted to 16-18 year old students/ residents. Each day offered a range of engaging activities; one example is the daily ‘careers spotlight’. The Sculpt staff liaised closely with local businesses to organise trips to their offices/workplaces. Prior to attending their workplace, the participants were provided with thorough CVs of a few of the business’ employees, so the participants could craft questions for them. It was really interesting to hear about the varied routes that employees took to get to their current position, especially at post-16 and post-18 level, because that was very relatable to decisions the participants would be making, whether it be attending sixth form or college; university or apprenticeship or straight into the workforce! Throughout the course of the programme, all the participants collaborated to create a social action project. We brainstormed ideas on the themes of ‘sustainability’ and ‘diversion, equity and inclusion’, and then participants selected a theme which incorporated aspects of both themes, to ensure that the social action project benefitted as many people as possible. The project was developed further during the two weeks, and then presented by participants at an awards ceremony attended by local businesses and members from Better Bankside.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my first few months of supporting Sculpt as Fundraising Member on the Youth Advisory Board. It has been incredibly useful to see the work that Sculpt does first-hand, and this experience will undoubtedly allow me to provide Sculpt with relatable advice during Board meetings! Most importantly, I believe that Bankside Futures enhanced my understanding of the workplace and the different routes into industry – all done in an engaging and fun way!
