Myself and 4 other members of DCYO are back this year raising funds by walking in the 2026 Dundee Kiltwalk.

Me, Meirion, Nathan, Thomas and Rael will be walking 21 miles from St Andrews to Dundee.

We are young people that are passionate about keeping our community orchestra alive. The orchestra supports people from 16 to 30 who have left school and want to continue playing their instruments after education. For many young people in Scotland, leaving school is the limit to their instrumental career but with DCYO, we put an end to that and keep the music flowing. DCYO is purely run on charity support and friends. All money we raise keeps us alive and playing, allowing us to participate in local concerts and have our instruments maintained and serviced to do so. After school all loaned instruments have to be returned so with DCYO's instrument amnesty we can loan instruments out once more so our players can keep playing.

DCYO has changed lives and developed friendships made to last, through hard times we support each other. we are a totally inclusive orchestra making all attempts to make people feel welcome without worrying about access. Many adaptations have been made over the years to allow members to keep playing and we would love for that to continue. For me DCYO has given me a place to be, whether im struggling physically or mentally, the orchestra has been by my side the whole way.

we appreciate times are hard but any donation to keep us going would be amazing, to keep us playing at local venues such as the McManus and local church services. Thank you for taking the time to support Dundee Community Youth Orchestra and we look forward to sharing our journey on the walk!