News

Press Release, December 2009

Musical Youth

Budding musicians can try out a wide variety of instruments and musical styles at a new music project.

New Parks Club for Young People launches the year-long project on Friday, and it will include African drumming and DJing.

Eight to 12-year-olds can visit the club in New Parks Boulevard, Leicester, between 1pm and 2.30pm and 13 to 16 year olds are welcome between 2.30pm and 4pm.

From Friday, February 26, the sessions will run from 4.30pm to 7.30pm. Call Alison Jolley on 0116 275 0489.

Press Release, May 2008

Leicestershire Clubs for Young Peoples ‘SHOTS’ Hits the Target Thanks to Football Funding

Young people in Leicester were celebrating today following a £181,389 grant awarded by the Football Foundation, the UK’s largest sports charity, towards the SHOTS project (Supporting Health Opportunities Training and Sports).

The cash bonanza will allow Leicestershire Clubs for Young People to provide quality multi sports coaching to young people in our affiliated clubs, around the city and county, over the next three years.

The Football Foundation is dedicated to revitalising the grass roots of football and supporting quality sporting opportunities as a force for social cohesion and as a vehicle for education in communities throughout the country. Funded by the Premier League, The Football Association, Sport England and the Government, the Football Foundation is the nation’s largest sports charity with a £45m budget going straight into the heart of football.

This project aims to provide sustainable support and quality sporting activities to 10 youth clubs across Leicestershire, enabling young people to develop healthier lifestyles and increase their weekly physical activity. It aligns to Clubs for Young People’s (CYP) ‘Do Somethin’ national campaign by delivering participation opportunities on a regional basis. The campaign’s key objectives are to encourage healthier lifestyles through sport and physical activity, engage rather than exclude young people in positive activities and offer young people the chance to make a contribution to their local community. It is a new initiative locally which uses sport as a vehicle to promote health and offer progression opportunities for young people. It also promotes and supports staff, volunteers, and young people through a process of learning new skills. The core delivery is essentially an eight-week programme, enabling the young people involved to develop healthier lifestyles through the following activities:

Exercise

Week One – fitness testing using bleep test and ‘get active’ packs to see measure initial fitness levels of young people.

Weeks Two to Seven – 90-minute group physical activity by the young people participating. Activities will vary and primarily include football, street sports and dance.

Week Eight – re-testing of young people to measure improvements in fitness levels.

Identified youth worker and volunteers will support coaches throughout the programme. These staff will then continue with the activity programme within their sessions until the project returns in the next cycle, meaning that the young people will be able to continue activity and learning beyond eight weeks.

Health awareness

Clubs will also be supported to deliver health-related workshops to compliment the programme, to cover issues like healthy eating (including keeping food and exercise diaries) mental and sexual health. The aim is to provide non-formal opportunities for young people to be aware of and interested in what they eat and its effects. The project has already piloted a project called ‘Challenge the tuck-shop’ which enables young people to take ownership of providing healthy food and drinks within their clubs. The health sessions will be attended by health workers from the PCT to provide advice and health checks in an environment where young people feel safe.

Progression and training opportunities

Coaches will identify young people, youth workers and volunteers on the programme who would like to attend accredited training. There are a number of training and accreditation opportunities on offer promoting peer education and life long participation, including an Open College Network (OCN) accredited ‘Healthy Eating’ module, FA coaching qualifications and the Keystone Awards (this is a young person’s nationally accredited volunteering award involving giving 100 volunteering hours and setting and achieving personal goals). Volunteering opportunities have been built into the project for young people to deliver courses they have gained accreditation in.

Paul Thorogood, Chief Executive of the Football Foundation said: “We warmly congratulate Leicestershire Clubs for Young People for their hard work and dedication in securing this award.

“Sport is playing a central role in helping people to stay fit, strengthen communities and promote responsibility amongst young people. I am delighted that Football Foundation investment is opening up access to sport in Leicestershire and we encourage other organisations in the region to apply to us.”

Alison Jolley, County Director at Leicestershire Clubs for Young People, said: “We are delighted to receive this substantial grant from the Football Foundation as this will enable us to extend our programme and provide young people with positive sporting opportunities for the next three years. Our thanks and appreciation goes to the Football Foundation and supporters who have made this possible.”

For more information call Rory Carroll on 0845 345 4555 ext 4280 or visit www.footballfoundation.org.uk.