A Chance To Shine - The Road To Recovery

Nicky’s Workshop CIC is a ‘Not for Profit' Community Interest Company limited by Guarantee.

We are a British Gymnastic registered TeamGym & Mindfulness Club, formed as a simple gymnastics partnership in 2011 by the current directors Nicky and Carlton Webster.

We have a strong, family orientated ethos and base ourselves on an old skool moral vibe. This creates deep foundations in our students built from grassroots level and focusses on Respect, Resilience and Trust - the attributes essential to thrive in a team or work culture

Headed by Nicky Webster - An International Teamgym Judge with over 30 years coaching experience - and backed by her loyal and highly motivational coaches Carlton, Dan and Charlotte - Their Dream is to bring Elite coaching, Experience and Knowledge back to grassroots levels instilling confidence to1000s of kids around Sussex and give them a chance they might never have had.

All NW coaches are trained in all disciplines of gymnastics, yoga, mindfulness and martial arts and have worked in the system for a long time. They have been flown to Dundee and Edinburgh via Scottish Gymnastics pre pandemic to run their annual development summer camp and spread their Ethos, Energy and Motto - and they have also been invited to numerous international martial arts workshops to blend teaching methods and commumicate cross discipline techniques.

Nicky has been coaching in Crawley and surrounding areas for 34 years and is one of only 10 brevet international teamgym judges in Great Britain. She judged the televised European Championships in 2014 (iceland) and 2018 (portugal) . She was at the top end of her discipline pre pandemic and has recently taken a sabbatical in reflection of bad coaching practice highlighted from the Whyte review in the organisation.

She now wants to put her positive coaching, understanding and energy back into her first passion and take all this knowledge and experience  back to her roots at the early stage of development from the lowest income communities including those from any minority backgrounds. 

She has worked with most schools in Crawley throughout these years and been Involved in many local projects including moving barriers, sure start and diversity in Crawley. 

Her passion is to give all children a chance to experience the beauty and strength of gymnastics, movement, martial arts and mindfulness at it's best and adapt the sports to the individual. 

She wholeheartedly believes there is a pathway to everyone's learning journey and will adapt a programme to suit whomever she is teaching to achieve their specific goal.

Carlton is a highly motivational, passionate gymnastics coach and fully certified electrician. His sporting background comes from boxing, martial arts and kyokushinki karate. He is a Great British 3 X karate medallist and has also had experience in theatre, music, tv, and a colourful DJ career in the 80s and 90s. He still has many positive connections in the industry and has recently rekindled his flame as a videographer. His craft is the art of film making and story telling.

His maturity and reallife lived experiences makes him a great role model for any child or adult. Carlton's family was one of the first generation carribean families in Crawley back in the 60s. He understands completely how to grow up in an unfriendly world as a young black boy and has many experiences he can reflect on to help kids through difficult times. This old skool ethos and positive mindset to push through adversity is highly inspirational and definitely something kids need in their lives at the moment.
Carlton is also the leader of the competition pathway programme and can get the best out of anyone that stands in front of him.

Pre covid Carlton and Nicky just managed to coach their team to qualify for the British Championships for the first time at the end of their 5 year development plan with a group of school kids that didn't fit any box. 

They owned none of the equipment they were competing on and had to rent various Big gyms in  preparation. They were one of - if not the first - club to qualify without a dedicated facility or leisure centre facility. Definitely the first team to qualify without a vault. 

The whole world locked down the week afterwards and they haven't had a consistent enough period yet to compete again.

Carlton is also the Head coach for our unique discipline 'Gymshinkai' - Common Sense Self Defence -
This discipline is a mix of gymnastics and kyokoshinkai karate and teaches basic self defense techniques and conditioning exercises which we have found all kids need in this world right now.

The amount of children who are getting bullied in schools and on the streets right now is frightening and damaging. The self defence techniques displayed to students increase member's self esteem, inner confidence and gives them coping mechanisms to deal with potential confrontational situations as safely as possible.

Dan is our Special Needs Behaviour Solutions coach and our British Gymnastics Welfare Officer. He has been with the club since we started and is an integral part of the club.

We believe his effervescence and energy alongside his understanding and emphatic nature would be extremely beneficial to families in desperate need of guidance.

He has worked in a special support unit aswell as mainstream within the school structure for nearly 10 years and has multiple ideas, adaptations and techniques to bring gymnastics, wellbeing and mindfulness to this community. He has helped 100s of families across Crawley deal with all different conditions in his time and is an asset to any company.

Charlotte was our apprentice for 3+ years and has exceeded all of her targets and more. She has been trained to be our Develooment coach and is also our safety officer.

Charlotte only wanted to take one A level when she was 16 and the school wouldn't allow her to take just one unless she was working towards something else. She worked with us part time for 2 years whilst still attending school and she has passed her level 2 coaching award, meaning she can be in charge of a whole class on her own, plus she passed her A level history!
She is loyal, well organised and confident for such a young coach.
She also works with our preschool and home education programme and the kids absolutely adore her.

There are so many kids in who could benefit from an apprenticeship type opportunity like this. Not everyone is going to be an academic student and the more opportunities out there giving them a different perspective of life at work has got to be a bonus.

Nicky was also a British Gymnastics tutor so can run her own coaching and judging clinics as a mentor to any young person who is interested in pursuing a career.

What Nicky's WorkShop CIC Will Deliver:

The ‘Going Back to Sporting Basics’ approach employed by Nicky’s WorkShop allows Professional Senior Coaching to ANY child or adult member on a flexible and understanding payment method.

Teamgym, Zenastics and Gymshinkai have no age limit and create a family orientated, community culture - something that NW believes the community need right now.

It concentrates on empowering the gymnast to solve their own problems within a team network and creates a circle of truth within their ‘Warrior Team’. Within this team they will discover how to play to their strengths and accept their weaknesses as an individual and as a group with a common goal - Something they will need in their future Workforce.

Gymnasts will learn to tackle initial impossibilities with step by step breakdowns and a possible pathway to achieve their goal.

The world is a much faster place now and kids expect instant results.

Nicky’s Workshop’s main aims are:

•to teach patience and coping mechanisms
when faced with challenges in training and
in life.

•To see the bigger picture but concentrate
and relish in the small, measurable
achievements needed to reach this big
dream.

•To teach discipline and work ethic to
achieve their goals

•To trust in the NW Motto - Dream Believe
Achieve

• To accept mistakes as a lesson to
Prepare you for the next step.

• To accept Emotional reactions and find a positive way to channel them. There is always a way to push through to the next level.

 
Nicky’s WorkShop gives the community an opportunity that might never have been possible – to Keep Active and reach their Physical, Mental & Emotional potential by adapting the sport of gymnastics to each and every individual - according to their needs.

They want their door to be open and accessible to everyone... regardless of financial position.

Most professional coaching classes are priced between £9 and £10 per hour. If a family has two children this can be £160 per month. Big clubs usually ask for termly fees upfront so families are struggling to find roughly £3-400/ term for external sports clubs. 

What families can afford this right now when everyone is trying to recover? 

NW are trying to keep their prices as low as possible to reach lower income families and single/ struggling parents who still want to give their kids a chance to shine.  

Especially on the road to recovery. 

NW are currently trying to run at £6/hr on a monthly basis and offer catch up sessions for missed sessions so families always get what they paid for. They also offer 50% discount for Siblings as having 2 children themselves Nicky & Carlton understand how strong this rationship can be and how their workshops can help bond Siblings and give parents a complete rest or chance to breathe.

We also offer a pay as you go system as we understand that nor all families can committ to every session they are struggling to keep these  at £8/hr as rent and outgoing are constantly changing.

Nicky's WorkShop successful completed their first part of A Chance to Shine in September 2021- December 2021 in one of the most deprived areas of Crawley.

 This was a great success but heartbreaking when their funding ran out and they were forced to rehouse further away. 

Most of the children and families they were dealing with over the 8 week period did not have transport so couldn't travel to their new base. The Talent and fun they found on their project was just a small synopsis of what was happening across the country with grassroots sports, elite coaching and low income families. It was devastating. 

The council rents were too high to offer free classes without funding and we had to put our energies into making our new base in another completely new catchment area out of their usual district council fir the club to survive.  

Three months later we are again in need of more space, more time and have a waiting list for a variety of workshops. 

We are looking for funding to 

• Secure rent and increase days/ times allowing more variety and time to grow members while sustaining the road to recovery

• Secure fees at heavily reduced rates for low income families for A Chance to Shine 

• Secure transport and driver for struggling families to travel to our base 

• Secure fees at current rates for squad gymnasts that are financially comfortable 

• Restore, Fix, Rennovate, Replace equipment 

We are on the Road to Recovery but we need your help to continue. 

Any donations will be much appreciated and our Warrior family will forever be in your debt. 

Our Mission Statement:

‘To bring together the unique opportunity of Going Back to Sporting Basics. We will bring Gymnastics & Fitness workshops to young and old in a friendly, relaxed, highly motivational, stress- free environment.

We will commit to nurturing and developing our members’ entire potential and teaching skills for life - by adapting the sport to the individual.

The word Warrior does not define size, shape or wealth - It defines the inner motivational desire to become better than you are.

Dream Believe Achieve - Everyone and Anyone is welcome at Nicky's WorkShop’