Rhondda Cynon Taf Youth Engagement & Participation Service

A group of year 11 pupils who had experience of mental health issues worked creatively with their youth worker to channel difficult emotions into a positive experience.

They developed a series of short stories about life as a young person, the challenges faced and tips on how to overcome such obstacles, before setting up an enterprise to turn these stories into Welsh Language books. These aim to provide support for other young people, as they realised there is a lack of Welsh-medium resources to help young people with mental health problems.

The series of books have been named 'Cyhoeddiadau Lemoned' following the saying 'When life gives you Lemons, make Lemonade!' and the project has been a huge hit, being distributed to primary schools across Rhondda Cynon Taf.

The judges were very impressed how the young people addressed a specific gap in the market for Welsh literature and noted that the project has plenty of potential to progress even more!