EAST Ayrshire Public Partnership Forum joined forces with local young people to make a special DVD.

The Cumnock youngsters, who attend the town's yipworld.com and are part of East Ayrshire Young People's Public Partnership Forum (PPF), were the stars of the DVD and also developed a rap as part of their performance before performing it live at the recent launch event.

PPF was first established in March 2007 and was the first of its type in Scotland.

Members of the group are invited to learn more about the way their local health services work and have the opportunity to shape NHS Ayrshire & Arran decisions.

To encourage more people to join, the talented youngsters developed the DVD explaining the Public Partnership Forum and how any member of the public or voluntary or community groups can become involved.

More than 60 people attended the launch event including Dr Wai-yin Hatton, NHS Ayrshire & Arran's chief executive, East Ayrshire Provost Councillor Stephanie Young and Janice Hendry, Development Director for yipworld.com.

Local amateur dramatic actor Roxanne McCutcheon helped the youths deliver polished performances in the DVD and the group have enjoyed the experience so much that yipworld.com will continue to offer youth drama lessons in the future.

Kenny Milne, East Ayrshire Public Partnership Forum co-ordinator, said: "I am overwhelmed by the enthusiasm of all these young people.

"They have worked on this DVD for more than five months but the end result is fantastic.

"They all give very powerful performances and should be congratulated on their commitment to this project." Dr Hatton invited East Ayrshire Provost, Councillor Stephanie Young to present each young person who took part in the DVD with a goody bag.

Roxanne McCutcheon was also presented with a special gift for her excellent drama coaching.

The DVD cover designer, Gregor Aitkin, had previously been awarded with a £25 gift voucher.

Dr Wai-yin Hatton added: "The response from the audience on the night was amazing.

"These young people have worked very hard and produced a high quality, informative DVD which they should feel very proud of.

"I am sure that East Ayrshire's Young People's PPF will continue to be a success in the future and make a real difference to health care services in the community."