Author: Debbie Watkins

Samantha Burton, West Sussex Chaplain, recently attended a spring concert put on by the Crawley Songbirds Choir who sang to raise funds for our Chaplaincy Service (and for Crawley Open House). She tells us more about it below:

One of our volunteer chaplains is a member of the Songbirds Choir in Crawley and they put our chaplaincy service forward to be one of the charities that they raise money for at their concerts. The committee chose us and Crawley Open House as their two charities to support for the year.

The choir held three concerts and I spoke briefly at the Christmas and Spring events to say in a nutshell what we do at YMCA DLG, and at Chaplaincy. I shared a story from one of the residents and I thanked everyone for their support and the Songbirds for choosing to support us this past concert year.

The concerts were great. The choir sing a mixture of contemporary “pop” and musical songs, as well as some more “retro” songs. They sing to live music – piano, drums, guitar and more, as appropriate, as well as some acapella singing which had a real spine-tingling effect!

The spring concert alone raised about £800 to be split between the 2 causes. We will have the final amount in the coming months and of course will let you all know.

Last week YMCA England & Wales launched their annual report into the funding of youth services in each local authority. It showed a 73% decline in spending on youth services in the last 11 years (read more here) and highlighted the need for projects such as our amazing YAC Food Market led by Joshana Pemberton who recently won a well deserved award.

We are really proud that at the recent national Room for Young People Awards, Joshana Pemberton (they/them) was the winner of the Innovative Action category for their amazing work with YMCA YAC Brighton Food Market. Well done Joshana! 

Joshana attended the awards ceremony earlier this month in Birmingham and tells us all about it below.

The Room for Young People Awards were set up to recognise examples of young people, practitioners and services using their strengths and talents to overcome barriers and challenges and look to the future as well as recognise, promote and celebrate their brilliant work.

It was amazing to be nominated by Hyde Housing for the Innovative Action Award and attend the awards ceremony. This particular award recognises individuals who have demonstrated creativity and forward thinking to involve young people, showcasing an exciting way for young people to express their power and voice, inspiring others through positive action.

The event was a great opportunity to meet young people, workers and learn about other services from all over the country, who show selfless determination to support their communities, the young people they work with, and inspirational young people who have overcome significant barriers throughout their lives and have achieved great things.

It was a humbling and enriching event enabling the sharing of ideas, positivity, and talent of young people from all over the country. The level of intersectionality in the room shows the progress organisations are making to create an equitable and welcoming space.

Winning the Innovative Action Award for setting up the YAC Food Market means a huge amount to me. I feel so proud of what the Food Market has achieved, the amount of young people we have been able to support, and the work myself and my team have put into it. Special shout out to Jo & Almu for their unwavering support, kindness, and work. Our greatest source of happiness is watching young people walk out the door with bags of shopping and seeing them come back week after week, sharing their experiences, and gratitude.

YAC Food Market is a Youth-Led sustainable social grocery store in Brighton and Hove, supporting young people in accessing healthy, low-cost foods and shopping products at a simple one-stop shop – an easy way for young people who struggle to afford the rising cost of goods in a modern and sustainable approach to food waste and food poverty. The Food Market is keen to empower young people throughout the project, seeking volunteers, feedback, and inspiration for how YAC Food Market can reflect the needs of our community.  We are not a foodbank; our ethos is to support young people with food for free / low-cost and in a positive and empowering way.

Finally, thank you to Connie from Hyde Housing, who nominated me for the award, for her support and recognition of the potential of the Food Market and for helping us to build it to the project it is today.

To find out more about the brilliant work of of our Brighton Youth Advice Centre, visit our web page here.

As YMCA England and Wales’s report, Generation Cut, reveals a 73% decline in spending by local authorities for youth services, due to pressures on their central budgets, we speak to two passionate youth workers who share their personal experiences of how youth workers changed and inspired their lives.

Eli Adie runs our Youth and Advice Service (YAC) in Crawley. She’s very open about the difficulties she faced in her childhood and adolescence. Youth workers changed her life and inspired her career:

“I was incredibly lucky to have access to a range of great youth work projects in my youth – all of which have contributed to making me the youth worker that I am today. In primary school I was an excitable bundle of energy, but really struggled to make friends easily and family life was complicated. By my early teenage years, I was really struggling with my mental health and didn’t want to be around anymore. It wasn’t until I moved away from home and got to university that I accessed formal mental health support. Throughout my early years, it was youth work that kept me going. I went to early morning club, after school club and Scouts – anything they could do to get me out of the house. Holiday clubs in the school breaks, sports clubs and arts projects – youth clubs were the one place I truly just got to be a kid and avoid what was going on at home.

I remember Alison from my after-school club, who would make me pancakes after school with cheap chocolate spread. And Mark, who taught me to ride a bike. And then a unicycle. I remember Saskia, who ignited my love for music with drums and guitars. I remember Skip, Jo, Ben and Andy, my Scout Leaders, who provided me with countless opportunities to have fun, build my skills, understand the true value of volunteering and become a young leader. I remember Dr. Durkin, the only teacher to pull me aside at school and ask me if I was okay, rather than tell me off for misbehaving.  I remember Ian, my band mentor at Rhythmix who gave me the space to play music with my friends, who encouraged us to take risks, push ourselves and experience the joy of performing. I remember Andre, my line manager in my first full-time job, who not only helped me progress into the professional I am today but supported me through a time when I was just learning how to manage my mental health as a working adult. Not all of these people would call themselves ‘youth workers’, but they all had an enormous impact on me before I turned 25 – and so I challenge anyone who works with young people to consider that they are a youth worker and they have an amazing opportunity to positively influence someone’s life.

I am the person and the youth worker I am today, because of all these people. Whilst the impact they had was great, their actions were simple. They built trusting relationships with me, saw me for who I truly was and encouraged me to be my true authentic self. This is the power of youth work – it’s a fundamental part of a healthy society – and a crucial safety net for so many young people. There will always be young people, so we will always need youth work. We can’t let it die out – so we have to address this funding crisis.”

We also heard from Gary Crowhurst who runs our youth clubs in Eastbourne. He explains how youth workers influenced his life, when he needed it:

“Growing up, I was no stranger to trouble. I was lost, and I didn’t know how to find my way. But then a youth worker stepped into my life, and everything changed. They believed in me, even when I didn’t believe in myself. They gave me a sense of purpose and direction, and they were always there to guide me back onto the right track. With their unwavering support and encouragement, I was able to reach my full potential and become the person I was always meant to be. I owe everything to that youth worker who changed my life forever.”

Eli also gathered some quotes from children and young people who are currently using our youth services.

My worker is incredibly important to me because I simply wouldn’t be able to function without her help. I’ve learned day to day skills that I can carry forward when I move on from YMCA housing and it’s been an incredible help to my self-confidence.

My worker makes me feel understood and listened to, and she does not talk down on me for not knowing certain things that other people might take for granted. Because of her, I have gained a lot of confidence in myself that I didn’t have when I started attending the YMCA.

Youth work is often misunderstood and undervalued. Youth work can happen anywhere and comes in lots of different guises, from after school clubs, sports activities and youth centres to specialist youth workers and advice services. In the past, these places have provided a much needed ‘safety net’ for children and young people and given them a safe and supportive space to connect with peers, engage in positive activities, and access support from trusted adults.

That is why we are so concerned about the figures that have been released by YMCA England and Wales. As an organisation we are only too aware of the lack of funding for these services. Although we’ve managed to maintain some essential youth services, such as our Youth Advice Centres in Brighton and Crawley, financial pressures have forced the scaling back or closure of some key projects tackling pressing issues, such as county lines drug dealing.  In our region, West Sussex, which includes Crawley and Horsham, is in the bottom 50% across England for spending on youth work, equating to a 68% real terms cut.

To read the full YMCA England & Wales report click here and to find out how youth services have been affected in your local authority use their interactive map.

This generation of young people has not had it easy. A global pandemic, a cost of living crisis and today, YMCA England and Wales launch their report, Generation Cut, which reveals the devastating cuts to vital youth services.

What is the issue?
Since 2010, there’s been a 73% overall decline in spending by local authorities on youth services (in our region, our worst impacted areas are Brighton and West Sussex with a 68% reduction in funding). This is a £1 billion real terms cut, resulting in the closure of thousands of youth clubs, support & advice centres, and the loss of crucial youth workers.

How has that affected young people?
Youth services provide a safe space for children and young people to go where they can connect with peers, engage in positive activities, and access support from trusted adults. Cutting funding has made it almost impossible for organisations, like YMCA, to provide these services. Youth Services are often a ‘safety net’ for young people and without them issues may go unaddressed leading to long-term consequences.

What are we doing? 
Despite the difficult funding conditions, we continue to work closely with our local authority partners and other funders to maintain our essential youth services, such as our Youth Advice Centres in Brighton and Crawley. However, securing ongoing funding is a constant challenge and sadly we’ve had to scale back or close some key projects, tackling pressing issues, such as knife crime and county lines drug dealing.

What do we want? 
Alongside other YMCAs we want the government to prioritise children and young people to safeguard their future and improve their life chances. We are calling for:

1. Sustained revenue for all young people all year round
2. A clearer statutory duty on local authorities to deliver youth services
3. A Strategic vision for young people

What can I do? 
Sign up for our newsletter / Share this article with friends or family to raise awareness / Write to your local MP / Stay up to date with our campaigns by following us on social media.

Personal stories

Our frontline staff are passionate about supporting young people and many have been inspired by their own experience of a youth worker who helped them when they needed it most. Click below to read the personal stories of two of our committed youth workers.

Eli and Gary’s stories: CLICK HERE

To read the full YMCA England & Wales report click here and to find out how youth services have been affected in your local authority use their interactive map.