In recent years, there has been a significant rise in anti-social behaviour within communities across Edinburgh - in the South West of the city alone, 75% of calls to Police Scotland are youth-related.

To engage with young people on this issue, partners in Edinburgh, including Places for People Scotland, have teamed up with Sky’s Sky Up Academy, an immersive learning experience open to students, aged 8 to 18. Since 2012, the programme has reached around 350,000 young people across the UK.

Sky’s group head of youth and social impact, Nishy Lall, said: “We’re really excited about this partnership and want to make a real difference to the local community. We’ll be working with young people and teaching them about key issues in innovative ways. For example, they’ll have full access to our state-of-the-art broadcasting equipment to produce videos and news reports on subjects like underage drinking and antisocial behaviour. It’s all about creative thinking, teamwork and storytelling.”   

The videos produced by the students will go on to be used in schools, community centres, and social media campaigns, helping to spread powerful messages even further. The sessions began at the end of April and will continue throughout May.

This has been made possible through partnership working with Community Alcohol Partnership and Police Scotland, along with Places for People Scotland and Lothian Buses, who have both provided significant funding and travel for young people.

Kelly Brown, director for Places for People Scotland, said: “Underage drinking remains a critical issue affecting young people, their families, and our communities. Tackling this problem requires innovative approaches that educate, engage, and empower young people to make informed decisions about alcohol.

“At Places for People, we go Beyond Homes and proudly work with not just our customers, but with whole communities, to provide support where it is most needed. As a housing provider, with over 5,000 homes in Edinburgh, we care deeply about our young people and will continue to do all we can to support them and the rest of our communities.”

Community Policing Sergeant Mark Barry said: “We’re pleased to support this initiative which allows young people to learn about the dangers of alcohol abuse in an interactive, engaging setting.

“It’s a unique opportunity for school children to produce and present messaging about topics which could affect them in an immersive experience.

“We know the negative effects alcohol can have on our communities and engaging in prevention plays a vital role in warning over the dangers to health and associated criminality.

“By continuing to work with our partner agencies, we hope to offer this opportunity to more pupils in the area going forward.”

Kate Winstanley, director of CAP, said: “This partnership is a fantastic example of how working together can create tangible opportunities for young people. By providing access to initiatives like the Sky Academy we are offering them new and creative pathways for their development and engagement and educating them about the risks of underage drinking and related anti-social behaviour. We’re very grateful to all the partners and to Sky for giving young people this opportunity.”

Gaynor Marshall, communications director for Eve Coaches, added: “Eve Coaches is delighted to work in partnership with Police Scotland, Places for People and Community Alcohol Partnership in the provision of private hire travel to the Sky Up Academy Studios.

“We are wholly supportive of youth engagement initiatives and are delighted that our role as official transport partner supports such opportunity in the communities we serve.”