There are also opportunities to live out your faith through community work, campaigning and activism. These pages include ways of being involved and getting in touch.
Young adult Quaker videos
Young adult Quakers talk about worship, faith and their spiritual journeys in this series of videos. (Pressing play on the video below will set a third-party cookie. Please see our cookies page to find out more.)
Young adult Quaker groups
Young Friends in Britain (YFiB) is a nationwide community of young adult Quakers in Britain. Previously known as Young Friends General Meeting (YFGM), this is a good way to make links with other Young Adult Quakers. We regularly meet up for worship and to share interests between gatherings and plan extra social weekends too. YFiB is open to everybody between the ages of 18 and 35, and although we're based in Britain we welcome visitors from overseas. Visit the website at https://yfgm.quaker.org.uk or email at clerks@youngfriends.org.uk.
There are groups of young adult Quakers who meet across the Scotland, England and Wales. They are happy to welcome new people – find meaning, friendship and fun by connecting with your local group.
Events and opportunities
Young adult Quakers are involved in many different events and activities, which may be small gatherings or large all-age events. Find out what opportunities there may be near you, what events BYM are running, what learning opportunities Woodbrooke, the Quaker learning and research centre offers.
Young Adult Representatives (YARs)
This role has been shaped and refined by young adults themselves, in response to the need for clearer support, recognition, and structures that enable a wide range of young adult groups to flourish while remaining safely connected to their Area Meeting.
At its heart, the YAR role offers a simple but important function:
- to act as a clear link between young adults and the Area Meeting
- to help ensure young adult Friends feel seen, heard, and valued
- to support communication with those who may not engage through established patterns such as Sunday morning worship, but remain an important part of our community
You can find below links to both a detailed role description and a short, accessible leaflet to help Area Meetings and young adults discern whether this might be right for them.
While this is not a compulsory role, we warmly encourage Area Meetings with the capacity and desire to deepen their relationship with young adult Friends to consider supporting a Young Adult Representative.
We are hoping to begin this initiative over summer 2026, with an initial small group of young adults taking up the opportunity across supportive Area Meetings.
To support those stepping into the role, we have also secured space at Glenthorne for a residential gathering (27–29 November), offered free of charge for up to 12 Young Adult Representatives.
How you can help
We would be grateful if you could:
- share this with anyone your think might be interested
- consider whether your Area Meeting might be open to supporting this role
- help identify or encourage young adults locally who may be interested
Any young adult wishing to explore the opportunity should be encouraged to get in touch at youngadults@quaker.org.uk and indicate their Area Meeting connection.
We hope this initiative offers a practical and hopeful way to strengthen relationships between Area Meetings and young adult Friends, and we would be glad to hear your thoughts.
Grants and funding
Britain Yearly Meeting offers grants for young adults Quakers to help access opportunities. You also may also be able to apply for other sources of funding. Find out more about the financial support available.
A brief history of young adult Quakers
Young adults have always been at the heart of Quakerism. In the 1650s, the 'Valiant Sixty', a network of Quakers who first spread the Quaker faith, were almost entirely in their 20s and 30s. George Fox, one of the founders of Quakerism, was only 21 when he left home to 'seek the Truth'.
From those early days onwards, young people have helped move the society forward at key moments in our history. They have also often been at the forefront of movements for social change. Bayard Rustin, a young black American Quaker who was deeply involved in the civil rights movement, was 25 when he first attended 15th Street Meeting in New York.
Find an inter-generational community through a local Quaker meeting, or to join a Young Adult group if there's one near you.
If you can't find what you're looking for contact:
supportmeetings@quaker.org.uk.