Youth Training Programme: Highlights from the First Half of 2026
May was an exceptionally busy month for Energy Garden’s Youth Training Programme with 30 young people graduating from both the 3-month traineeship and the King’s Trust 2-week intensive traineeship ‘Get Ready for Careers in Sustainability’.
Energy Garden’s 18–24-year-old trainees started at the end of January and came ready to take on new challenges and step into the unknown. This became apparent in the first week when they remained upbeat and enthusiastic through pouring rain on the roof of Elmore House whilst learning about Energy Markets and community Energy on a Brixton Housing estate.
Taking on the opportunity to be part of our new partnership in Brent, they jumped into the physically taxing activity of planting climate resilient trees in Longstone Avenue. Trainees worked in groups to plant as many trees as possible whilst also networking with local councillors, community volunteers and Brent staff who were instrumental in supporting the project.
Friendships were created and new skills were learned with several taking the opportunity to volunteer at other projects in Brent planting SuDS (Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems). Some trainees also agreed to work with us on school planting days, future-proofing Kingsbury landscapes with drought resistant plants in Roe Green Park and rain gardens in Church path.
With many trainees motivated by their wish to be change makers in environmental and social justice, our discussions throughout the programme stretched the parameters of all our thinking – including myself! Whether it was the renewable energy, alternative business models, politics & policy or United Nations Sustainable Development goals, dialogue encompassed impact on not just local communities but also those most affected by the climate crisis such as the Global South. Strong bonds were created within this cohort allowing richer and deeper conversations to take place.
Trainees were able to take advantage of the rich range of ages and experiences within the cohort which contributed to insightful conversations regarding careers, soft skills and future goals which helped to boost everyone’s confidence. They were willing to fully engage with the wider range of facilitators they were exposed to this year, which also included Juan Pablo, one of our Community Engagement Officers, Silas our Community Trees Lead and our Partners Carbon3 Installers. This aided in the growth of their skills and knowledge, exposing many to knew experiences they’d never had before.
Cultivate Colindale became the learning space of choice for many of our sessions, including gardening, biodiversity surveying, air quality, horticulture & permaculture, solar panel making and solar install training. With the help of Carbon3, trainees successfully built a solar panel from scratch, learned how to mount donated solar panels and went up on the roof to learn how the panels were installed. Trainees worked hard throughout the day building on their team working and technical skills, culminating in a working solar panel able to charge a phone.
An underlying theme throughout the programme was politics & policy which trainees very quickly recognised was influential in all topics, from Energy prices to accessibility of green spaces to fuel poverty. Trainees were given valuable insight into the process of the UK democratic system whilst on a guided Tour of the Houses of Parliament. They also asked a range of rich questions to former Councillor Ryan Jude who spoke extensively on climate policies in Westminster in particular. We would like to thank Ryan Jude for speaking to all cohorts over the past year and offering a detailed breakdown of political processes in the UK and for tackling challenging questions head on. We would also like to thank Patagonia for continuing to fund the gardening components of our Youth Training Programme, allowing trainees to benefit from additional horticulture activities.
15 young people graduated at the end of day one of the King’s Trust programme allowing both groups to meet and share their experiences of the programme, a valuable activity that always sets the tone for the next cohort. As always it was heartwarming to listen to the reflections of the group during graduation and to see them reaffirm their commitment to making change whilst maintaining friendships they had made.
As one cohort finished, another slightly older and work ready group of young people from 18-30 began a 2 week journey with us. The King’s Trust cohort offered a wide variety of experience, ideas and insights that allowed many of them to see more clearly the variety of directions they could go into in the sustainability industry. With skills ranging from expertise in the energy industry to media and gardening, this career focused cohort maximised the learning opportunities available and developed new practical skills and knowledge in energy markets, EDI, biodiversity surveying, solar installation training, community engagement and solar panel making.
This year’s King’s Trust cohort were able to visit several gardens compared to last year’s group, including Brondesbury Park, Cultivate Colindale, Willesden Junction and Hampstead Heath. This provided important place-based learning that supported their work in the classroom and enhanced their understanding of key concepts.
Being exposed to industry experts was a highlight for many of the trainees who engaged in networking with Cabon3 engineers and a career morning that included two of Energy Garden’s Directors; Founding Director ofTriple Point Partners, Claire Ainsworth and Co-Founder of PeerCo, Elaine Trimble. In addition, Callum one of our Community Engagement Officers participated as well as Hannah van Rossum the Community Projects Manager at Clean Air Initiative. All of whom provided valuable advice for trainees wishing to progress into careers in sustainability and build resilient communities. We appreciate their efforts another year on and hope to continue working with them again in the future. We would also like to thank the King’s Trust’s Luke Joye for making the partnership between the King’s Trust and Energy Garden a success that we continue to move forward with in the future.
It was gratifying to hear the extensive reflections from trainees during graduation on what they had learned and how the facilitators had positively influenced their experiences. Some reflected on the inspiration gained from seeing in practice the work Energy Garden does to support local communities with gardening sessions and workshops whilst also providing education in sustainability practices to young people such as themselves and school children.
We are privileged to have spent the first half of 2026 facilitating two vibrant cohorts who have the potential to be changemakers in their chosen pathways. It’s been a pleasure to have met everyone, and I am excited to see what the future brings for these young people.
Our next cohorts will be running in September 2026 and January 2027 and we have a few more spaces left. Anyone interested should email their CV to leila@energygarden.org.uk