Author: Anthony Irtelli

Congratulations to Horsham YMCA FC’s U23s who have clinched the the Southern Combination Football League (SCFL) U23 West Division Title.

The community club is very proud of this squad of local, mostly Horsham based, young men, as well as Dave Jeal, Dan Redman and Mark Pavolvic. The achievement is even more impressive when you remember that the core of the team is last year’s U21 squad, most of whom where eligible to play at U18 level at the time.

Those who had played at the U21 level won the first ever SCFL U21 Cup competition and finished runners-up in the SCFL U21 (West) division a year on. The team has now gone one better to win their division.

Many of the players in this squad now regularly feature in Horsham YMCA’s Senior Squad who are currently placed second in the SCFL Premier Division.

A club spokesman said: “This is a great story of young local, talent being nurtured and encouraged and represents the YMCA ethos in action!”.

At the end of last week, over 200 people took part in YMCA Sleep Easy, spending a night sleeping outside to help change the lives of homeless and vulnerable young people.

It was our most ambitious year yet, with events taking place in five of our locations. Over 200 people slept out in Crawley (in partnership with Crawley Open House), Brighton & Hove, Guildford, Eastbourne and Horsham. Groups from the University of Sussex Women’s Lacrosse team and St Margaret’s Church, Warnham also hosted their own events.

While there is recognition from the public that homelessness is going up, new research from YMCA has found that just one in four young people who are homeless (26%) believe the public care about youth homelessness.

Last year YMCA DownsLink Group provided a home for more than 900 young people across West Surrey and East and West Sussex who would otherwise have been homeless. Adequate funding is a constant challenge and Sleep Easy means that money is available to support these young people beyond the confines of statutory funding.

The total currently raised is £42,000 – can you help us get to £50,000?

Donate here for Brighton & Hove, Guildford, Eastbourne and Horsham 

Donate here for Crawley (money raised will be split jointly between Crawley Open House and YMCA Crawley)

The young people who work with us at YMCA Right Here recently worked on a project to explore and challenge ideas around male identity, body image, relationships, emotional wellbeing and health.

They are concerned about the focus on male toxicity, the high suicide rates among young men and their hesitancy in accessing mental health support. The team curated and hosted an exciting and interactive exhibition, FEAR//LESS, to showcase art, film, dance and spoken word at Whitehawk Football Club and The MET College.

The exhibition at Whitehawk FC was welcomed by Kevin Miller (Head of Commercial at Whitehawk FC) who said:

“The FEAR// LESS campaign is a superb and innovative direct-action initiative, that speaks to young men in a way that is easily accessible and understood, and we are delighted that YMCA Right Here are launching the campaign at Whitehawk FC.”

Over 500 people attended the exhibition at the Whitehawk Football Club. The follow-up exhibition at the MET College saw more than 140 people attending and reflected a very broad and diverse audience.

This exhibition hosted live spoken word and poetry from young people who have lost friends to suicide, struggled with mental health and supported their loved ones through difficult times. It was very moving and reminded us why it’s so important to have these fearless conversations and find ways to celebrate the different ways to ‘be a man’, whilst also challenging harmful and narrow stereotypes.

Jacob Bayliss, who led the project within YMCA Right Here, has reflected on the overwhelmingly positive feedback from both exhibitions, as demonstrated by some of their feedback:

‘The exhibition was great and creative, the paintings and photos help start a conversation. Everything was so inspiring and made me feel differently about man issues. It really touched home.’ Will, 14

‘It is so powerful to see such a diverse exploration of masculinity, and promising to see that calibre and tenderness of today’s young men.’ – Jude, 48

It can be difficult to engage young men, which is why this exhibition was so important. If you know any young men who would like to be involved in YMCA Right Here we are always encouraging and welcoming new young volunteers – they can email the team here.

Please visit our website to view our pocket guides around wellbeing, suicidal thoughts and self-harm prevention https://ymcarighthere.com/

For mental health services and support, visit Find Get Give https://findgetgive.com/