Three young people in Ceredigion have been named as the beneficiaries for a 2024 bursary.

Katie Whiteway, 14, Esme Drakeley, 13 and Lleucu-Haf Thomas, 15, are this year's recipients of the Ceredigion Youth Bursary, a fund provided for the seventh year running by West Wales Holiday Cottages.

The initiative aims to aid youths between 11 and 25 in their future aspirations.

The bursary's purpose is to support areas varying from social enterprises to project ideas, community events and training requests.

Since its establishment, it has supported 18 young Ceredigion residents.

This year, out of the 33 applications received, Katie, Esme and Lleucu-Haf, promising aspirants in sport and music, were selected as beneficiaries.

The selection process was handled by the Ceredigion Youth Forum (Panel Dewis). During the summer holiday, members studied each application, spending hours in discussion and finally utilising a scoring matrix to decide the winners.

The innovative ideas and potential impact of the successful candidates on their communities led to the final decision.

Gwion Bowen, senior children and young people's participation officer at Ceredigion County Council, said: "We are very grateful to West Wales Holiday Cottages for allowing us this opportunity once again this year.

"It was brilliant to see the quality and quantity of the applications received."

At Arad Goch, Aberystwyth, on August 15, the successful candidates were awarded their cheques during a presentation evening.

Previous winners were also invited to celebrate the young recipients' achievements.

Lisa Stopher, managing director at West Wales Holiday Cottages, said: "West Wales Holiday Cottages is privileged to sponsor the Ceredigion Youth Bursary.

"The winners of the bursary represent the very best of Ceredigion's future, and their passion, resilience, and commitment are truly inspiring."

Ifan Meredith, the 2023 bursary winner, reflected on the positive impact the bursary made on his journalistic pursuits.

He said: "Winning this bursary [last year] has enabled me to continue developing my journalistic skills.

"The way I have been able to present professional stories is thanks to the Journalism and Media course I attended using money I received from the Ceredigion Young People's Bursary 2023."

Councillor Wyn Thomas, praised the young applicants and the bursary's role in their lives.

He said: "Congratulations to all the young people who submitted strong applications for this bursary.

"Good luck to all in the future."

Information regarding the next year's bursary will be available in 2025.