By Mark Macaskill and Andrew Stone

The Sunday Times, 28th June 2009

Stevie Siegerson grew up on the mean streets of Glasgow.  Raised by a single mother in one of the city’s most dangerous and poverty-stricken council estates, he left school at 14 and a year later was a petty criminal and gang member.

But he was one of the lucky ones. An opportunity to travel to Africa, where he worked on community projects, gave him a sense of purpose and transformed his life.  His brother, who remained in Glasgow, was stabbed to death in his early twenties.

Now Siegerson, 45, dedicates his life to helping disadvantaged youngsters from backgrounds similar to his own, with Columba 1400, a charity that has proven that fostering leadership skills can help turn a young person’s life around.  Last week, the charity, based on the Isle of Skye, beat off competition from about 2,000 no-for-profit organisations to win the £500,000 prize at the inaugural Sunday Times Social Entrepreneur Awards.

The judges included Liam Black, a social entrepreneur who helped expand Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen restaurant, which employs youngsters from disadvantaged backgrounds, into a global brand.

The prize money will help Columba 1400 build a new leadership centre in Loch Lomond for young people in Scotland who have faced homelessness, addiction, poverty or grown up within the care system.

The charity runs programmes with schools where up to 15 pupils and staff work together to realise the youngsters’ leadership potential.  Three quarters of those who attend the centre’s leadership course move into higher education or work, compared with 39% of their peer group.

“This is about broadening our impact in Scotland, the UK and beyond.  It will transform our organisation, allowing us to take all our plans forward fast rather than doing it all incrementally,” said Anne Wexelstein, Columba 1400’s programme director. 

Siegerson said: “This award has empowered us to reach beyond the border and connect with similar organisations and transform the lives of more young folks.  It’s a dream to win the competition.”

The second prize of £100,000 was awarded to A Way Out, a charity based in Stockton-on-Tees which helps women and young people with substance abuse problems.

Jessie Joe Jacobs, the charity’s founder, said the money would help her expand her programme by franchising across the UK.  She founded the charity in 2002 while growing up in Stockton-on-Tees, where she witnessed the impact that drugs and poverty had on young people.

The competition, supported by The Sunday Times and sponsored by the Bank of Scotland, was launched to encourage social entrepreneurship.  The awards ceremony was held last week at Christ Church in Spitalfields.

Black said: “We were looking for organisations with a sustainable business model, entrepreneurial flair and the ability to diversify, and Columba 1400 ticked all those boxes.”

Columba 1400 was founded in 1997 by Norman Drummond, a former chairman of the Broadcasting Council for Scotland, to honour the 1400th anniversary of St Columba’s mission to Scotland.