Youth Services Committee

Rotary Young Artist:  Theme. “Happiness in Nature”

Following last year’s success, when Breanne Loken was the National winner of the Senior category, young artists in Harrogate have achieved further success:

The winners of all our categories have all gone on to be District Winners:

Junior: Amita Varnana Grubilli,  Rossett Acre School

Intermediate: Frieha Warburton, Ashville

Senior.    Miuri Gamage. St John Fisher High School

All individual winners received £50 with their schools each receiving £100.

The competition was kindly sponsored by Phil & Carol White, with the presentations taking place at the Castle Fine Arts Gallery on James Street.

Rotary Young Photographer Competition: Theme “Happiness in Nature”

This competition was run for the first time this year and although entries were slow, nevertheless both our winners went on to District with our Junior Winner winning the District competition and going on to the national Finals.

Junior: Edward Rawlinson Rossett Acre Primary

Intermediate : Ava Drew. Ashville

As with the Young Artist, individual winners each received £50 and their school £100.

We are running both these competitions again, and Harrogate Secondary and Primary Schools have all received details. Find your art teachers if you want to enter!

This year’s theme:  “Friendship”

Young Chef Competition:

For the third year running we have run the Rotary Young Chef Competition, hosted by Jade Williams at Harrogate Grammar School. This was open to year 9 & 10 students, and the competition was judged by Callum Bowmer, Executive Chef at Rudding Park, and Clare Walsh, Friend of Harrogate Rotary. 

Callum said he had a hard job splitting the candidates, all of whom were of a very high standard. Callum reported that he was “impressed with the quality, technique and methodical working on show. He claimed that the passion shown in the room was great to see for the future of his industry. This year, the winner received an ice cream maker and the runner-up a stackable chopper, kindly donated by Richard Port.

Six of the seven secondary schools in Harrogate had entered, with the winner being Rosie Bakewell from Ashville College, and second place going to Lucy Proudfoot from Harrogate High School.

Prizes being presented by Rotarian Richard Port.

Young Citizen Award: 

Earlier this year secondary schools were invited to nominate students whom they considered to be Good Young Citizens, either in their school community or wider afield.

This year’s winners were Akshay Gurubilli, a year 10 student and Victoria Gamble, a year 8 student…both from Rossett School.

Akshay was described as a model student, whose work ethic and demeanour were commendable. He has delivered assemblies to the school on cutting carbon and is on the School council as well as being a member of the Red Kite Youth Board.

Victoria was nominated by a fellow student for her volunteer work in her village, where she cares for the environment by litter picking and running a market garden where she shares the vegetables with neighbours and homeless people.

Schools Consent Project : For the last three years Harrogate Rotary Youth Committee have funded workshops in the secondary Schools in Harrogate which send lawyers into schools to lead workshops on the meaning of consent, (both legal and non-legal), various sexual offences ( sexual assault, rape and sharing “nudes”), as well as a number of other issues faced by young people, including bystander intervention, the age of consent, responding to disclosures and ways to obtain help. We sincerely hope that these 50+ workshops, which have all been well received, will continue in the schools led by PHSE teachers.

Funding: We have responded to several funding requests from young people for help in their own fund raising towards activities such as World Challenge, World Scouting Jamborees, Project Trust , Ecological camp in Peru etc.

These young people have all promised to come to the club to tell us about their adventures!