Creating life-changing opportunities with the Youth Environmental Service
The Youth Environmental Service (YES) is a new programme for young people to spend a year doing paid work at environmental organisations, where they can build new skills, make new connections, and do impactful environmental work. In this blog, Jess Clynewood, Head of Delivery at the Youth Environmental Service, outlines the opportunities under their new regional programme.
We know that many young people are enthusiastic about working in green jobs, and yet are held back by a lack of awareness of the jobs available, lack of belief that they could do those jobs, and lack of opportunities to develop the practical skills needed. Young people from marginalised communities face additional barriers to accessing training and entry-level opportunities, and many struggle to see themselves represented in a sector where only 4.8% of environment professionals identify as Black, Asian or minority ethnic, compared with a 12.6% average across all professions.
That’s why YES wants every young person to have the chance to spend a year doing paid environmental work, offering life-changing experiences for young people who are disadvantaged in the labour market, whilst building capacity in the environmental sector, making it more inclusive and diverse.
In 2023, YES piloted their vision through New to Nature, partnering with Groundwork UK, Mission Diverse, and Disability Rights UK to support nearly 100 young people in securing their first roles in the nature sector. Independent impact assessment of the New to Nature programme found that over 85% of these young people were from marginalised groups, and nearly all (91%) of them left with the skills and confidence to pursue environmental careers.3 Alongside this, over two-thirds of host organisations made commitments to change their employment practices to become more inclusive.
Building on this success, YES is launching a new programme in Bristol and the West of England in 2025, creating up to 40 new paid placements for young people aged 18-25 to spend a year making a difference—whether it’s retrofitting homes, restoring natural habitats, installing green energy, or growing nature-friendly food.
Trainees and host organisations will receive extensive support before, during, and after placements. Organisations will benefit from fresh ideas and perspectives, and access to capacity-building resources, including expert training and connections with like-minded organisations, building knowledge and developing the tools needed to create a more inclusive, accessible, youth-forward organisation.
For young people, alongside on-the-job learning, they’ll have access to regular 1-2-1 sessions with a dedicated youth coach, a peer-support group of other trainees working in the region, and a participatory learning programme aimed at building the soft skills they’ll need to thrive, in their role and looking ahead to their careers.
If creating these opportunities sounds like something your organisation would be interested in supporting, YES are holding an online information session on Thursday 28 November, 2-3pm. You’ll hear from organisations who’ve hosted placements previously, as well as young people who’ve taken part, sharing what they did and the impact it had. You’ll also get to meet the YES team, who will explain the nuts and bolts of how the programme will work and what you need to do to sign up. For full details of the programme, including eligibility criteria, you can find more information on the YES website.
YES are now accepting Expressions of Interest from eligible organisations in Bristol and the West of England. If your organisation would like to host one or more trainees, please complete a short form here. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, and selected organisations will be invited to the second stage by the end of February.
Share to
