Jill began her career in the Third Sector in 1994 where she managed a Social Enterprise Travel Agency in Glasgow whilst leading an ESF programme in HMP Barlinnie.
She has extensive experience in a variety of sectors encompassing addiction, disability, youth justice and employment.
Before joining the YMCA in 2006, Jill worked for The National Autistic Society where she established and managed a unique employment consultancy for individuals on the autism spectrum. As an accredited NAS trainer, she then delivered training to professionals in this model throughout the UK.
In 2011 Jill co- developed and secured the first Social Impact Bond in Scotland through The Department for Work and Pensions, Innovation Fund. She is keen to continue to explore innovative ways of securing long term funding for the third sector.
Jill is a trustee of YMCA Scotland, she sits on the YMCA International Committee and is part of the planning group of YMCA Unify Europe.
Passionate about supporting and empowering young people, she feels privileged to work alongside such a dedicated team of staff, volunteers and board members.
Franny has over 20 years experience of professional youth work, training and educational opportunities and has overseen church partnership developments for a decade, through this experience he has gained valuable insight into initiating, developing and sustaining youth opportunities in a variety of settings whilst ensuring all necessary resources are secured in the process. His extensive experience and enthusiasm drives our staff team towards success.
Barry started as the Prince’s Trust team leader in August 2012, having come from a background of teaching, voluntary youth development work and sports coaching.
As well as delivering the Prince’s Trust Team programme, he is also the manager of the Y-PAT and Y-Bounce social enterprises. Away from work, he’s involved in the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award scheme in Perthshire, works with the local Young Carers group and is coach for Perthshire Colts Rugby team.
He is married with three children and enjoys a wide range of outdoor sports and has a passion for cycling, kayaking, canoeing and hillwalking. Barry is inspired by helping people find the best in themselves.
Tony first got involved with our YMCA back in 2005. He started as a young volunteer and eventually moved on to study Youthwork whilst completing a 3 year work placement with YMCA Tayside. Since completing his degree, he has been working fulltime as a youth worker and has been involved in running many projects over his many years as a YMCA employee.
Originally from Swaziland in Southern Africa, He has been involved in the YMCA for almost as long as he has been in Scotland. Apart from adding to the international diversity of our team he also brings multimedia skills to our team with his knowledge in graphic design and film editing.
Matthew joined the YMCA as a volunteer at 15 years-old. After exploring different career options, Matthew found that the fun and rewarding work offered by the YMCA better suited his goals and he has been a dedicated member of staff ever since. Matthew was the 2011 Mentor of the Year through the Plusone Mentoring Service and is a current member of the YScotland Executive Committee.
Matthew was born in Swaziland, Africa and moved to Scotland when he was 13 years old. He loves road cycling, gaming, technology, and is AMAZING at badminton. He is passionate about seeing young people be all they can be and achieve the goals they set out for themselves.
Alyxs joined the staff team in July 2017. Alyxs has a degree in Psychology and is really passionate about life transformation, health and well-being. After spending a summer volunteering in Malawi with young people, and working as an Au Pair in Valencia in Spain she realised her passion for young people and helping them reach their potential.
The YMCA Body, Mind & Spirit ethos really grabbed her attention and she started volunteering as a Plus One mentor and is now a fully employed Youth Worker. She is responsible for our church partnership with Kinnoull Parish Church and she is also involved in various other projects at the Y such as Strengthening Families and Youthworks Mentoring.
I grew up in a little farming town in the South West of Scotland, before moving to Aberdeen for a few years for an attempt at university, and then to Perth for work.
Before working for the YMCA I worked in supported housing for people who were struggling with mental health problems. In my spare time, I played rugby for 10 years and did judo for around 12, as well as archery for a few. I volunteer at a kids club at my church too. I’m also a huge nerd, spending lots of time playing board games with friends and people at the local comic shop. I’m pretty technologically minded, so enjoy working with computers too.
At the YMCA I lead the partnership with Perth Baptist Church, and work on the Universal youth work we deliver from our premises in the city centre.
Jonathan started at the YMCA in October 2016 as a young person volunteering at YMedia. He helped with a variety of digital and media related tasks including aiding in building a new website for YMCA Tayside (formerly Perth and District YMCA). After a year of helping out in YMedia he gained his first ever job as an IT and Administration Assistant for YMCA Tayside.
This job was a contract through Community Jobs Scotland and Jonathan was performing many of the same duties as he was when volunteering, but with some additional responsibilities such as: managing IT, carrying out administration, and running Coding Club sessions for young people. Even after the initial CJS contract expired YMCA Tayside was keen to keep Jonathan onboard as a full employee.
Layla has been involved with the YMCA since 2014, with her journey beginning at one of our local church partnership youth groups when she was in P6. Layla progressed to the Youth Committee at the Junior youth club and then also attended the Teen Drop-In, securing a position on the Teen Committee.
Layla has always had a strong desire to pursue a career in Youthwork, based largely on her positive experience and her passion to help young people.
Liam started his role of trainee youth worker with YMCA Tayside on May 1st and is excited about what this job means for him and his interests. Originally from Aberfeldy, Liam now lives in Dundee. His main passions in life include ensuring he maintains a fit and healthy lifestyle and working alongside young people. He hopes to combine these two passions and inspire young people to stay healthy and active.
Matthew joined the YMCA in November 2021. Matthew is from Perth, Scotland and as a young person he attended multiple youth projects in Perth including a number of YMCA projects. He feels that attending these clubs helped him learn and grow and hopes to do the same for young people.
He is currently working in one of our Church Partnerships with Kinnoull Parish Church and involved in employability projects with the Y along with various other projects.