Young people help design world-class youth facilities
Minister for Children and Young people announces projects to receive share of £180 million
Beverley Hughes, Minister for Children and Young People, has announced the 41 successful myplace projects to be awarded a share of £180 million.
The youth-led launch event will be held at Hoxton Hall in Hackney, a youth arts centre and one of the successful projects. Beverley Hughes will meet the young people who decided where the funding would be awarded. The Minister will be shown plans for a number of exemplary future youth centres and discuss with young people the features that helped the young committee members decide who should get the investment.
These projects represent a new era in how youth facilities and activities for young people are developed. Young people have chosen the types of development they want and have played a central role in awarding the funding to those projects that they consider world-class and which will meet the needs of all young people, now and in the future. The new youth facilities will provide a safe place for young people to go to and they will also be available at the times that suit them, especially on Friday and Saturday nights.
Successful myplace projects are focused on reaching the most disadvantaged communities. The panel also considered the extent to which the bids have been driven by the active participation of young people, including:
• deciding what activities and services are on offer and at what times;
• working with architects to plan and design the new facilities;
• actively contributing to projects that will help the social regeneration of inner cities and deprived areas and stimulate local economies.
Beverley Hughes said:'It’s an exciting time to be growing up in this country – this unprecedented investment will fund a new generation of places for young people to go with exciting activities on offer, like film-making and music recording. We know that around 44% of young people feel that they don’t have enough say on the kinds of services and activities provided for them, myplace is only funding projects where young people, particularly disadvantaged young people, have been fully involved in the development, design and future running of the project. We have put young people at the forefront of the decisions on myplace because they are the best people to design and plan the places their generation and future generations will want to attend and enjoy after school and at weekends. I am especially pleased that the successful projects will be incorporating a range of new digital technologies, cultural, multi-media, performing arts and sporting activities. Gone are the days of youth clubs with dusty halls, where the only activities on offer were pool or table tennis. Our research tell us that 42% of young people do not think they are well respected in their communities so I hope that by offering a unique opportunity to showcase the creative talent of young people at the centre of their communities, this will change the public’s perception of them. This is the single largest ever capital investment in youth facilities and will deliver the most ambitious, ground breaking high quality projects for inner cities and local communities across the country.”
Luke Wilkins,16, from Derbyshire, on the awarding panel said: 'When I found out I was on the myplace committee I was over the moon - the thought of having an impact on how £270 million is spent is mind blowing. It was important that young people were involved in this process because we represented the views of all young people throughout the country and therefore knew the kinds of things they will and won’t enjoy. The fact that young people have been involved in the development of these facilities is extremely important and will hopefully show young people that they are being listened to. Knowing that the money we helped to spend will help effect young people’s goals in life and hopefully encourage them to become good citizens is great.'
View the full list of 41 successful projects
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