Youth Club on Wheels provision in Speedwell

2023 marked Young Bristol’s 95th year of community youth work across the city. We positively and sustainably impact young people’s lives around five key pillars. We help young people aged 8-25 to feel confident, healthy, resilient, responsible, and successful. We believe every young person has the right to discover what they are capable of. 

Our Youth Club on Wheels (YCOW) takes high-quality, street-based youth work directly to areas where young people aged 8-19 have no local provision. We are the only provider of a mobile youth service of this kind in the South West of England. We target youth communities at risk of high Anti-social behaviour (ASB) and crime rates with a tailored approach that puts their perspective first, responding directly and dynamically to their needs. 

The YCOW is well-equipped to entertain and engage: with sports equipment, arts and crafts materials, on-board electronic entertainment, cookery equipment, and an awning and marquis ready to provide shelter in a wide-open space. We use these assets to engage young people in workshops, activities, and discussions to broaden their horizons and help them to develop positive decision-making skills.   

The YCOW also provides a safe, fair space for young people to relax, express themselves, socialise, and play. A stable environment, in which young people are invested and included as a community, establishes a foundation for their social and personal development. Nationally, three quarters (75%) of ASB cases are resolved at first intervention (Resolve UK, 2023): this environment functions as a key safety net for young people, ensuring they remain on a healthy path in life.   

Our ability to provide for young people is bound to the funding we are able to raise and sustain. We now need to secure funding in order to continue our delivery for young people in Speedwell who would otherwise be cut off from youth services.