Iain is a youth worker and community development practitioner who is passionate about amplifying the voice of young people in processes, policy and decision making in which they are regularly overlooked. Iain’s academic background is in Performance and Community Theatre; he spent a number of years working in a wide range of community theatre settings before transitioning into more traditional youth-focussed and community development roles.
For the last few years Iain has worked at the University of Glasgow, most recently as a research assistant on the ESRC-funded Public Health, Youth and Violence Reduction (PHYVR) and previously as a coordinator with Children’s’ Neighbourhoods Scotland (CNS). Iain is also a Programme Outreach Lead at Neighbourly Lab, a UK-wide non-profit exploring social connection.
Iain is determined to utilise his own lived experience of antisocial behaviour, gang violence and conflict with the justice system to support young people in similar situations. This lived experience provides insight, compassion and empathy that informs Iain’s practice on a daily basis. Further to this, Iain has recently achieved CYCJ’s Post Graduate Certificate in Children and Young People in Conflict with the Law which gives him a sound academic foundation to complement and enhance his own personal experience and professional practice.
Iain’s role at CYCJ prioritises the inclusion and participation of children and young people across the wide range of practice development and research projects delivered by CYCJ and he passionately advocates for the upholding of children’s rights across all sectors.