Creative Youth Facilitator Training: Foundations (CYFT) was a short training programme designed for creatives aged 16–25 with a dedicated artistic practice who were looking to develop their skills, knowledge, and confidence in facilitating workshops for other young people. Participants came with some prior experience in group or workshop facilitation and were eager to grow into roles as lead, co-, or support facilitators — whether with RISE or in other educational, training, or community settings.

The programme focused on using creative workshops as a tool for self-expression, in line with RISE’s ACTIVATE workshop model, while ensuring that the skills developed were widely transferable.

By the end of the programme, participants had strengthened their abilities in areas such as:

• Confidently leading workshop activities (both in-person and online)

• Designing engaging and accessible creative workshops for young people

• Structuring workshops with key components (introductions, icebreakers, creative tasks, closings)

• Understanding behaviour (their own and others’) and how it affects group dynamics

• Evaluating workshops through self-reflection, team debriefs, and participant feedback