FUELing the Future: Strengthening Youth-Led Social Change

We are thrilled to share the next steps for We Don’t Settle’s FUEL funding programme, made possible by a generous grant from Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.

If you haven’t heard about it, FUEL offers micro grants that young people can use to react to social issues that are important to them. A quick application process and 48 hour turnaround, with funding decisions made by a panel of young people, means young people can quickly mobilise resources to respond to issues and make a significant impact locally and nationally. 

We’ve run this programme for several years; in 2021-2022 alone, we funded over 50 action projects and saw the impact across the country. We’ve learned from feedback, and know that FUEL could have an even greater impact if the right structures are put in place. 

The new funding from Esmée Fairbairn Foundation supports a multi-year plan to not only enhance FUEL, but to influence the funding sector more broadly to give access to young people, particularly those who are minoritised. We strongly believe that giving young people autonomy and support to create their own social actions projects will create a positive ripple effect in society and we are delighted to see that Esmèe Fairbairn Foundation believes in our vision. 

The funding also allows us to pilot innovative ways of youth engagement in the funding sector, so we hope to start a journey of breaking down systems that are the hardest to change. Research into barriers in the funding sector will be led by young people, ensuring their needs are truly at the heart of the recommendations – and a new advocacy and influence network. This network will aim to strengthen the collective power of organisation to co-design models of change with funders, and will also be youth-led with the support of We Don’t Settle.

We look forward to working with a wide range of partners, both new and existing – if you want to become part of the new advocacy network, get in touch.

Our Three-Year Plan for FUEL

Year 1: Developing a New FUEL Strategy

We will leverage our extensive experience and the history of the FUEL Programme to collaborate with our network, young people, and new stakeholders to innovate and establish a new network of organisations and funders. 

Together, we will co-design a new approach that better meets the needs and interests of young people and aim to advocate and influence the funding sector to become more accessible for young people, particularly minoritised young people. 

Years 2 and 3: Rolling Out New Funding Opportunities

In the second and third years, we will implement the newly developed FUEL strategy, opening up applications for young people seeking funding to drive social action in their local and wider communities. We will also evaluate impact and develop a framework that could lead to a similar funding process for organisations across the U.K. 

In the coming years, we want to see:

• More minoritised young people using their creativity and power to test local ecosystems of change, that will inform a scalable model of practice.  
• More funding organisations increasing capacity to tackle injustice and inequity by increasing their youth engagement and involving minoritised young people in their decision-making processes. 

These years will also see us establishing the new advocacy and influence network to connect funders, organisations, and young people to make real change in the funding sector.

We are incredibly excited and grateful to receive this investment from Esmée Fairbairn Foundation to enhance and continue platforming and championing the voices of young people who are minoritised by systems and society.