Case Study – Alice
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The Big Give
25 July 2023
We are participating in The Big Give this year to raise funds to support the survival of our youth clubs.
Our goal is to raise £5,000 during the week-long event.
We need your match funding pledges to get started!
We believe that the right start in life is crucial for a person’s long-term development.
Young people are increasingly reporting that they feel unsafe, stressed and worried about school and societal pressures.
Safe spaces for young people in the community have been reducing. Over the last 10 years 760 youth centres have closed and many towns no longer have a place where young people can have fun and enjoy being young.
We provide 12 youth clubs based in Street, Glastonbury, Shepton Mallet, Frome, Coleford and Yeovil. They are open for all young people in the community aged 10-19. Young people can access guidance and support, develop social skills, build connections, talk through key issues with trusted youth workers, and learn valuable like skills.
We need £1,250 worth of match funding pledges for our Christmas Challenge Campaign before the pledge deadline:
5pm on the 1st of September!
By becoming a Pledger you are committing to provide match funds. These funds will be used to double donations made to us during the campaign.
The Christmas Challenge Campaign runs from 12pm on the 28th of November until 12pm on the 5th of December. During this time we will try and gather as many donations as we can, which will be match-funded by YOUR pledges!
Case Study – Alice
Youth workers at YMCA Brunel Group have been providing Alice with one-to-one support over recent years both online and through walk-and-talk* sessions. Like most young people, Alice struggled with isolation over lockdown. We provided her with valuable support to help her get through those tough times. Since returning face-to-face sessions, we have continued to work with Alice around friendships, bullying, mental health and family issues.
As a child, Alice was witness to traumatic domestic violence towards her mother. This included a serious attack after which her father went to prison. Alice’s father is no longer in prison, but her relationship with him is very unpredictable and has a major impact on her mental and emotional wellbeing. When we first started working with Alice, she had trouble trusting adults and building relationships with other young people.
Alice receives support from our youth workers through weekly welfare checks and increased sessions both online and in person. Through youth activities and small group work, we have watched Alice make connections with other young people and strengthen her confidence and social skills. YMCA youth workers have worked closely with Alice to provide a safe space, guidance and support through the challenges she faces. We have worked hard to ensure she always has someone speak to in a safe and constructive way.
We are pleased to see that Alice now regularly attends our youth clubs twice a week and engages actively with other members of the club. We have watched her grow into a confident member of the community. It is truly rewarding for our staff to see a smile on her face!