Care-experienced young people from Paisley-based Kibble have been recognised on the national stage after winning a prestigious Crimestoppers award.
The group received the Youth Volunteer of the Year award at the national Crimestoppers Awards 2026, recognising their work in partnership with the charity and its youth service, Fearless.
The annual awards celebrate volunteers who have made an outstanding contribution to helping keep communities safe and supporting crime-prevention initiatives across the UK.
Fearless is the dedicated youth service of Crimestoppers, providing young people with a safe and anonymous way to share information about crime.
Young people from across Kibble’s education settings selected Fearless as the focus of their Youth Philanthropy Initiative (YPI) project. They developed and delivered a successful funding pitch which secured £3,000 for the charity.
Following the project, the young people worked closely with Crimestoppers and Fearless to help improve the Fearless website, ensuring it was more accessible, engaging and relevant for young people seeking information and support.
The funding was used to enhance the Fearless online crime reporting page, making it easier for young people across the UK to access information and report concerns anonymously.
Building on that work, the group also helped redesign the Fearless online reporting form, using their own experiences and insights to make it clearer, simpler and more accessible for young people.
One young person involved in the project said: “A lot of the issues we talked about through our work with YPI and Crimestoppers are things young people see or experience close to home, so it felt important that our voices were part of the website redesign.
“We wanted to create something that would actually work for young people trying to use it and know there’s somewhere they can turn if they need support or want to report something anonymously.
“It’s been really good knowing that something we worked on could help other young people across the country.”
The project was praised by judges, with the young people and staff recognised for their commitment to creating positive change and helping improve services for young people nationwide.
Mark Macmillan, Chief Executive of Kibble, said: “We are incredibly proud of the young people involved in this partnership. Many of them have overcome significant challenges in their lives, yet they continue to show resilience, compassion and a real determination to create positive change for others.
“This project gave young people the opportunity to use their experiences and insights in a meaningful way, and the impact they have had has been extraordinary.
“Seeing their ideas contribute to campaigns reaching millions of people across the UK has been hugely powerful and reinforces the importance of listening to and investing in young people’s voices.”
Lyndsay McDade, Fearless National Manager, said: “What stood out consistently was the belief, care and commitment shown by staff and young people alike. Kibble creates environments where young people are not only encouraged to engage but are empowered to lead.
“The young people we worked with across multiple projects and campuses were thoughtful, honest and deeply motivated to create positive change. They redesigned our reporting page at Fearless.org so that young people across the UK can feel able to speak up about crime 100% anonymously, helping to make lives and communities safer.
“Throughout the year, young people also developed campaign messaging that went on to reach millions of young people across Scotland.
“This partnership demonstrates the incredible impact that can happen when young people are given the opportunity, support and trust to shape outcomes that matter to them and their communities.
“I’m very proud of all the young people that we’ve had the privilege of working with. This recognition is incredibly well deserved.”
Headline photo: Kibble staff and partners celebrate after securing £3,000 in Youth Philanthropy Initiative funding for Fearless. Pictured (L-R) are Nairn Murray, Lyndsay McDade (Fearless), Lynn Raynal (YPI) and Lucy Farr