Stratford youth can meet in safe surroundings and share freedom together
WHAT a beautiful noise is now being heard in Stratford as the town celebrates its first established youth service after nearly ten years without one.
The Herald was invited to join the big Christmas party at Stratford Youth Hub as youngsters aged 8 to 19 enjoyed making gingerbread, playing table tennis and table football, hugging each other, laughing and sharing freedom in a safe and warm place off the streets and making new friends.
“It’s now about championing the voice of youth in a town where it can be hard for youngster to be heard,” said Sarah Cowley, youth work manager at the hub. “Warwickshire had one of the highest cuts in finance for youth services years ago, so we’ve had to work very hard as a youth collective of charities in the area to prove the invaluable role we play in the community. Once we got the necessary funding we could then provide a youth hub for youngsters Stratford, Kineton, Shipston, Wellesbourne and Southam. Once they finish their school day they can come here in a safe, warm place. We would never shut the door on anybody.”
The youth hub was temporarily based in the old H&M building in Stratford’s Bell Court but the ultimate goal was to find a permanent home and that became a reality in September this year – thanks to funding and donations from local organisations.
Now there is a thriving hub which encourages games, the arts, the opportunity to for youngsters to avoid street crime in a great location in the centre of town which is easily accessible and there are no hard and fast rules those that do attend are registered with parental consent and have the support of professional youth workers who encourage and guide activities or who are there for one to one mentoring and quiet time when required.
Sarah Cowley said: “It’s a safe space and we have lots of plans for the future. Our vision is to be open seven days a week. Looking back, Covid was very hard for so many teenagers and they missed out on growing their social and emotional skills with each other and were taught via the internet at home. Sadly, there mental health issues and youngsters have been left cold but now the youth have a voice once again in Stratford.”
Jess Parsons, aged 17, is a regular at the youth hub, in fact Jess thinks the hub is “so amazing” she’s become a youth trustee which means she and her fellow trustees hold meeting and cane recommend to the youth board on where money or other issues should be focussed to beuid for the future.
“I’ve made so many friends here. The staff are amazing. If anyone was thinking about joining us but wasn’t sure I’d say to them – come along we do a lot of things and there are lots of opportunities to enjoy. I personally like to sing but didn’t have the confidence to do it publicly but once I tried an open mic session it gave me confidence. I also love cooking at the hub and that too has given me the confidence to one day run my own catering business.”
It’s a groundbreaking collaboration between five prominent local organisations and Stratford Town Trust has given birth to an innovative new organisation, to be known as the Stratford Youth Collective.
Escape Arts, Lifespace Trust, New Meaning Learning, ILEAP, and Warwickshire Pride have joined forces in a strategic partnership aimed at safeguarding the future of youth work and support for young people in Stratford District. Stratford Town Trust have supported the collective with initial funding of £100,000.
Karen Williams, CEO of Escape Arts, said:
“One of the pivotal things about the Stratford Youth Collective is the engagement it fosters with young people. We have a steering group of young people, called Stratford Youth Together, who are decision makers on all aspects of the new charity. As well as this, up to 50 per cent of the charity’s trustee board will be made up of young people aged 16 to 25. Ensuring that this organisation is run in the interest of young people, by young people, with the support of experienced professionals.”
