Youth Workers Report
Barns Green Youth Club AGM 2009 Barns Green Youth Club is a successful village Youth Club held in the local village hall on a Thursday evening from 7pm till 9pm. The club is run for young people between the ages of 11 and 16 years. At the present time there are no young people aged 15 or over, regularly attending. The average age of attendance is 13 years. 44 different young people have attended during 2008 with a regular evening attendance from September to December averaging 23 young people. The young people are in the main residents of Itchingfield Parish. They represent a good cross section of young people from Itchingfield and Barns Green coming from various social backgrounds and each presents different educational and emotional needs. From September 2008 the Club has been staffed on a part-time basis by Anne Hodgson a qualified teacher and youth worker employed by West Sussex County Council and Ellie Healy who is helping during her gap year and is employed by Barns Green Youth Club. For every evening of opening there are a number of adult volunteers who attend on a rota basis. These volunteers are instrumental in allowing the Club to offer a constructive and achievable programme of activities, along with keeping the Club open and running well in the earlier part of the year. The club runs a generic club evening with a specific additional activity being offered each evening of opening. From September to December all these specific activities were very well received by attendees and the majority of young people participated fully in all of them. These ranged from a table tennis tournament to an extremely successful drama evening put together by members of the Barns Green players, all young people took part and the anticipated hours activity took all evening with just a short break for refreshments. The photo shoot and Christmas card making evenings also proved very popular. A very good turn out for the Christmas party gave further opportunity to encourage the members to integrate and support each other through a variety of games followed by eating and music, dancing, karaoke. The programme for 2009 has been put together by Anne Hodgson and Ellie Healy following a questionnaire and discussions with members on its content. It is planned during the year to offer 3 trips the first in the spring half term for ice skating, the second during the Easter break to include low and high ropes at Lodge Hill Centre in Pulborough; for younger members the high ropes to be replaced with sand carting. The third trip being looked at is for a residential during the school summer holidays to an activity camp. All will be checked thoroughly to ensure that instructors have the correct qualifications for any activities undertaken, and that Centre’s are recognised as acceptable and have the relevant insurances etc. in place. Another trip that members have shown an interest in is to watch England play football at Wembley, this is currently being looked into, but for group bookings it is necessary to enter into a draw and attendance will be based on a successful request for tickets. A group of six young men have been entered in the Sussex Clubs for young people five-a side competition to be held on the 28th February 2009 at Sussex University. Throughout 2008 Barns Green youth club has received excellent local support through volunteers and financial support from the local Parish, it is to be hoped that this will continue in 2009 providing another year of opportunity for the young people of Barns Green and Itchingfield. Report prepared on January 9th 2009 by Anne Hodgson ( Part-time Youth Worker West Sussex County Council)
