Young people in a County Durham village have been broadening their horizons over the summer with the help of a local charity and backing from the Banks Community Fund.
Durham Area Youth has been running a series of weekly activity sessions during the school holidays which have given 11-16 year olds in West Rainton a range of chances to try new activities which might otherwise have been out of reach.
More than 20 young people have taken part in the sessions, which have included climbing, go karting, axe throwing and visits to the Moor House Adventure Centre near West Rainton.
A £1,920 grant from North East employer the Banks Group has helped the charity cover the costs of putting on the different activities, with many of the participants and their families already asking if the sessions can be repeated next summer.
Durham Area Youth provides a range of services through the year to young people aged 6-18 years in the areas of Pittington, Shadforth, Sherburn Hill, Sherburn Village, West Rainton, Great Lumley and Bournmoor, and works with around 300 young people every week.
It aims to encourage young people to develop social and lifelong skills, to take advantage of new opportunities and to participate in positive activities that will contribute to their personal, social and educational development, so that they’re able to develop to their full potential.
Hollie Jackson, lead youth worker at Durham Area Youth, says: “We saw a particular need to give young people in West Rainton the opportunity to benefit from trying something different this summer, rather than just leaving them to be bored with nowhere to go and nothing to do.
“Our aim was to enable them to access engaging and enriching activities and trips that would help them gain life skills while socialising with other people, and we’re really pleased with how it’s turned out, how engaged everyone has been and how different individuals have grown as the weeks have gone by.
“The activities we’ve put on have really pushed our young people out of their comfort zone while they were having fun with their friends and have helped them learn new skills which we hope they’re going to take forward with them.
“We’ve had lots of great feedback from our participants, as well as from their families, and there’s already a lot of interest in what activities might be available next summer.
“This programme isn’t something that we’d have been able to put on with the Banks Group’s support and it’s really helped us to achieve a great deal over the summer break.”
“With a lot of project different costs to cover, this programme isn’t something that we’d have been able to put on with the Banks Group’s support and it’s really helped us to achieve a great deal over the summer break.”
Banks Homes is currently building 150 high specification new homes at its Cathedral Meadows development on Station Road in West Rainton, a scheme which will also include a new play area, new landscaped areas and new areas of public open space.
Kate Culverhouse, community relations manager at the Banks Group, adds: “The commitment and creativity of Durham Area Youth makes such a positive difference to the well-being of local young people, with the opportunities they provide enabling each individual to grow and develop.
“Hearing how well this project has been received is extremely pleasing and we’re very glad to have played our part in making it happen.”
Anyone from a community close to a Banks Group project who is interested in applying for funding from the Banks Community Fund should contact the company via the enquiry form on its website (www.banksgroup.co.uk/contact-us/) to find out if their group or project is eligible.