Our Work Young People
Colours Youth Network Mission Statement
Colours Youth Network :
- Disrupts white-centered narratives
- Creates space for LGBTQ young people of colour to explore and love the fullness of who they are
- Believes in the importance of creating spaces where LGBTQ young people of colour’s racial, cultural, spiritual, and religious identities are centred.
- Supports and uplifts young people of colour who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer, intersex (QTIPOC/ LGBTQ POC) aged 16-25, to explore and celebrate who they are through meaningful connections to other young people and a team of experienced QTIPOC youth workers.
Working with LGBTQ young people of colour
Across the 8 years of Colours Youth Network, we worked with young people across the UK in a number of ways. As youth workers, we were each running local LGBTQ youth provision in London, Manchester, Bradford and later Sheffield and Birmingham. We started to pool our organisational resources together to collaborate on opportunities for young people to connect nationally. That work is documented below.
Colours Youth Residential
We held annual 3 day overnight stays, where young people from across the UK and from our partner youth groups, enjoyed outdoor activities, nature and workshops together, led by a team of QTIPOC youth workers. Residentials were a sacred time for young people to re-connect to nature, to take a break from their day-to-day lives, to explore and expand identities and to build friendships and community.
Colours Youth Festival
Colours Youth Festival was an annual day long event that invited up to 100 QTIPOC young people from across the UK to enjoy a day of workshops, talks and activities led by QTIPOC youth workers, artists and practitioners.
Workshops at Colours Youth Festivals were an extension of themes that came up in youth work with young people - workshops at the festivals were wide ranging, making space to explore decolonising desire, vogue basics, faith, QTIPOC activism, movement for well-being, grief, creative writing, make up explorations with LUSH, short film making, song writing, group singing and more.
We were joined by guests and guest speakers including Lady Phyll, Travis Alabanza, Dr Ronx, Jason Kwan and Eva Echo and a pop up hair cutting station from Open Barbers.
Colours Youth Meet Ups
We organised quarterly QTIPOC youth meet ups, taking young people to cities across the UK to attend local prides, young people led workshops and opportunities to explore local exhibitions and spaces.
Colours Youth Advisory Group
Youth Advisory Panel at UK Black Pride Community Stage 2023
The Colours Youth Advisory Group formed as an opportunity to for a group of 8 LGBTQ young people of colour from across the UK to help shape the direction of Colours work with young people. The group met monthly to input into Colours work, as well as inviting in a handful of guest speakers to share their knowledge, skills and experiences. One of the group highlights, pictured above, was leading a panel on LGBTQ PoC youth experiences at UK Black Pride.
Living & Thriving : A QTIPOC Youth Handbook
Living & Thriving: A QTIPOC Youth Handbook, is a resource co-created with an incredible group of young people who shaped its themes, content, and purpose. This resource is a collection of the groups' reflections on being LGBTQ young people of colour and on areas of life they want other LGBTQ young people of colour to feel affirmed in.
Inside, you’ll find sections on:
✨ Identity Intersections
✨ Religion & Spirituality
✨ Feeling Seen
✨ Belonging
✨ Community Care
This zine was beautifully designed by Soof - you can see more of their work here!