Leeds Muslim Youth Forum (LMYF) has been supporting, encouraging and empowering young people in Leeds since 2005. Over the last 12 years we’re proud to have helped many of them become outstanding members of the Muslim community, as ambassadors and shining examples to their peers.
Who are we?
Leeds Muslim Youth Forum is an organisation that supports young people and helps them find the best solutions to the often-difficult issues that they have to deal with on a daily basis. LMYF was set up in the aftermath of the deadly suicide bombings in London on 7/7 to recognise the vital role and positive contribution young people make to society and to ensure that their voices were heard.
The Forum provides young Muslims with a range of support and development opportunities which enable them to become more active within their community, and have a positive influence on others.
What we do
We enrol, support and train young people from the local community. They are called our ambassadors. By lobbying, campaigning and making their views known with our strategic partners, policy making forums and decision-making arenas our goal is to bring about positive change for them, and other Muslims.
Our aims
- To promote, support and develop the needs of young people who live in the Leeds metropolitan district for all, or any purposes deemed to be charitable. These 18 to 25-year-olds are predominantly, but not exclusively, Muslim.
- To actively challenge inequality in service provision in all its guises, and prioritise working with young people whose opportunities may be limited by economic and social disadvantage.
- To strive towards building better relationships between young people from different backgrounds through the provision of information, leisure and recreational services alongside other support services.
- To empower young people to become actively involved in the community by providing training, capacity building and other support services.
- To provide services and facilities in a way that is culturally appropriate, and ensure that we are accessible to young people of all backgrounds.
Why We Do It
Many young Muslims worry they don’t have a voice, and that no one is listening to them. By empowering these young people with the tools and expertise to grow in confidence, and find their voice, they are able to make a stand, influence others and bring about positive change.
Ten years on from our launch in 2005, we began a series of workshops with young Muslims in Leeds to find out more about what they were thinking, their experiences and the challenges that they faced on a regular basis. The findings became the basis for the report, Muslim Youth Speak: 10 Years On which contained recommendations on what changes needed to be made within the communities where these young people live in order to make them a better, safer, more inclusive place for everyone. The report can be downloaded here (link on here).
Who We Work With
We work in partnership with local authorities, statutory agencies, voluntary organisations, and any other institution that is as committed as we are to eradicating discrimination, and making a positive impact within our community.
We are grateful for the support we receive from all our partners and for the in-kind support the government’s Building A Stronger Britain Together provides us with. Through this partnership we receive capacity-building support across a range of different areas including communications strategy and campaign development.
