Youth Work and Youth Spaces

Cork City Centre Youth Service

Highlights from Oct 2019 - Oct 2020

Developed online presence with new Instagram page. We now have 200 followers and in the last week we reached 184 accounts with our instagram posts and stories.

During Lockdown 1 we hosted Insta Lives three times a week to engage with GF young people -discussing the positives and negatives of lockdown and identifying coping strategies. We engaged with up to 20 young people viewing these Insta Lives over a 2 month period.

Over the summer we worked with the Cork Community Art Link project on their Rebel Streets Art project. A group of 7 young people, divided into small groups worked on a mural on the theme of Resilience over 3 months.

Completed the Leaders in Training Programme - QQI Level 5 module in Working with Young People over 3 months on zoom, 9 young people took part and 6 completed the programme.

Started working with a new group of 10 young people in mid Oct to complete the Leaders in Training Programme over zoom which will be completed by end of February 2021.

Since Oct 20 providing 3 further zoom sessions on Digital Creativity and Mentoring, a virtual hang out and chat space and Zoom verses for rappers to freestyle, share ideas and create together.

Providing consistent over the phone support to up to 40 young people. Support includes help with setting up home studios, mixing music, support with mental health and coping skills and with school/college/CVs and job hunting.

2 students completed their college placements with us from the UCC Degree in Youth and Community Work course and the Postgrad Diploma in Youth Work, we currently have 2 more students on work placement.

Collaborating with the Cork Sexual Health Centre to create a Sexual Health Hub in GF. They will provide information, resources and training to us in Dec so that we can deliver the hub.

Collaborating with Cork Youth Information Centre to create a weekly information hub for GF young people - this has now started online every Wednesday

Collaborating with the Everyman's Education and Community Programme to organise a showcase event on 31st Jan for young people from GF to showcase their talent. This partnership will extend to having access to rehearsal space in the Everyman, tours of the building, discounted tickets for young people to shows and creative projects which can be shown on the Everyman stage. We are also collaborating with the Cork Migrant Centre and their youth group will be involved in this event.

Challenges from Oct 2019 - Oct 2020

Engaging and maintaining contact with young people online and over the phone has been quite challenging, particularly as restrictions are continuing and ongoing.

The informal drop in culture of GF with large numbers of young people hanging out in a small space, recording music and hosting gigs is not Covid friendly. We are innovating but it is a challenge to bring young people with us as it is so different to what they have been used to. To not be able to meet together in large groups in person, to have to meet online at set times or meet in person socially distanced and pre booked in is a huge cultural shift for the project.

New Horizons 2021

Planning for a showcase event of GF talent at end of January in The Everyman theatre

New GSA (Gay/Straight) Alliance Group to start following on from our campaign for Stand Up Awareness Week 16th - 20th Nov to highlight the impacts of homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying, how to be an ally and what supports are available for the community.

Collaborate with Cork Sports Partnership to introduce more sports and physical activity to GF

Develop a new homework and social support club to young people

Expand networks and connections with schools, youthreaches, school completion projects etc. to offer afterschool workshops in Digital Creativity and Music to increase the numbers of young people in the 15-19 category.

Start one to one mentoring and using the NYCI Skills Summary programme for young people living in Direct Provision aged 20-24

Concrete Measurements

Measure of the Outputs (participants, sessions, events and other outputs)

40 young people engaging regularly on a one to one basis online and over the phone

Reaching up to 180 Insta accounts on a weekly basis with posts and stories and engaging with up to 20 young people on Insta Lives in April and May.

6 young people completed 3 month twice a week Leaders in Training programme and 10 young people currently participating in twice a week new Leaders in Training programme

7 young people participated in 3 month once a week art project with Cork Community Art Link

8-10 young people taking part in weekly creative workshops in either Digital Creativity/Music

User Perspective

“The overall experience of being part of this Leaders in Training group was very positive. I felt welcomed and it was a lovely group to be a part of. I grew from coming out of my comfort zone and learning new stuff every week. Having the check ins was helpful as things kept coming up throughout it and I felt supported and it made up for the lack of socialising due to lockdown. I am so glad I got to do this, it was a really good influence on me and I feel more confident going forward with what I learned. I also made friends!” - Jane

“During a practice facilitation in our smaller groups I was told I took on a natural leadership role. This came as a surprise to me as I had never been considered a leader, always a follower. I reflected on this and realised that I have characteristics that are often seen in leadership roles but because of my timid nature in groups this has never shone through. I would like to develop this skill more by building on my confidence and self esteem. This course helped me with both of those...Having this course ongoing during the pandemic helped me a lot. It gave me something to look forward to each week and a routine. Eventually I would like to return to college and become a qualified youth worker and eventually a therapist.” - Mary

Personally, I have been attending ground floor for about 5 years and it’s been nothing but great to me. I can honestly say I would not be the person I am today without Groundfloor. There was a time in my life a couple after I joined Groundfloor where I was going through a rough time mentally to the point where I lost my mind for several years. Everybody I knew gave up on me but the staff in Groundfloor never gave up on me even when I gave up on myself, they were always in my ear reminding me of my potential and if I ever needed them they were always there for me. Reflecting on it today I do not know what I would have done without them. They taught me how to believe in myself again. It made me realize the importance of youth workers not just in the community but to the individual and that inspired me to pursue a career in youth work as a way to giving back to youth workers that helped me. I also started that journey in Groundfloor with LIT and now I am currently studying youth work in Cork College of Commerce and it’s all thanks to Groundfloor.

YMCA Portadown Youth Work

Highlights from Oct 2019 - Oct 2020

YMCA Portadown Choir Performances
A highlight of 2019 has to be Portadown YMCA choir. Originally formed to perform at YMCA Portadown official opening ceremony in September. Was then invited In November to perform at YMCA Ireland AGM. Which required 15 young people and 2 staff to take the trip down to Newcastle to perform in front of members of national YMCAs. In December we were invited to three performances locally in Portadown which were YMCA Carol service, Christmas tree switch on and ASDA carols raising a joint £300 towards GSL project and choir resources. From January 2020 to March we continued face to face programme. Where the young people had planned and organized a spring concert for friends and family in the YMCA building.

FUSE Newcomer Support
Fuse homework club from October 2019 to March 2020 engaged with 52 registered young people delivered 27 different sessions. Including weekly homework support and mental health workshops in both local primary and secondary schools. This was working with specifically newcomer young people in the local community where English was their second language.

One to One Zoom Support Calls (April 2020- July 2020 )

The Great Escape (17th August - 21st August)
With a change lockdown measures, we were able to offer a week-long summer scheme for the young people of Portadown. This includes 5 separate day trips following all COIVD guidelines and forming day trip bubbles. As the online engagement was low during the second half of lockdown. It was great to engage with young people again face to face. This lifted staff morale as well as young peoples.

Drop-in Provision
October 2019 - October 2020
Junior youth club registered 119 young people over 17 sessions 1 night a week.
Junior youth club with an inclusive focus 143 young people over 21 sessions 1 night a week.
Senior youth club registered 180 young people over 39 sessions 2 nights a week.

Challenges from Oct 2019 - Oct 2020
Newcomer funding ending in March. Which meant there were no finances to support Newcomer Young people during the first lockdown.
Online youth work ( March -July) difficult to maintain and have group work sessions with junior/senior young people
Covid Restrictions impacted services for young people, moved online and this worked for a short time but in as the weeks and months went by maintaining engagement as and is very difficult.
Uncertainty for staff refunding, furlough and possible redundancy
Ability to fundraise and generate unrestricted income severely impacted.
Foodbank resources depleted by end of July

New Horizons 2021
Return of full time youth work provision for young people
Ability to fundraise and generate unrestricted income
New funding secured from EA offering security of provision and providing job security for staff.
Community events schedule planned to help restore much needed community contact and spirit

Carbery Youth Service (West Cork)

2020 was the year that West Cork’s Carbery Youth Service came fully into existence and now at the end of the year we take a look back at our journey so far. Beginning in October 2019 with youth meetings and pizza and board game nights at Richie’s Cafe Clonakilty, plans were put in place and the search began for a dedicated youth space in the town. Through brainstorming sessions and hangouts, ideas began to form about the type of space young people wanted to see in Clonakilty and the name ‘The Shack’ was chosen for the space. Word was spread in Clonakilty and Skibbereen through word of mouth, school visits, meetings with established community groups, posters and an article in The Southern Star. In these early months we ran an open mic night at An Teach Beag, another temporary location kindly offered to us by a local hotel O’ Donovans where young people sang songs, played music and read poetry. In Skibbereen we held regular youth space meetups at The Family Resource Centre, where young people took part in karaoke, badge making, improvised music workshops and worked on a wall of artwork and collage at the space. The young people in Skibbereen called this space ‘The Hive’. The Hive and The Shack came together in early 2020 to take part in a leadership course.

In the run up to Christmas 2019 the young people at The Shack decided to become involved in the local Christmas Express when they heard that the annual train trip around Clonakilty was on the cusp of being cancelled without a group of volunteers to take it on. Members of the Shack stepped in and organised a weekend for all of the children in Clonakilty. Local children took a trip around the town on the Christmas Express, visited the elves (members of the shack) and Miss Claus and were treated to a display of christmas lights and snow machines.

In early 2020 following an extensive search for a suitable location for our hub in Clonakilty we secured a rental space in the town, a former hair salon that bit by bit was converted into what is now a fully dedicated youth space with a music studio. The young people gave of their time to paint the space and made it their own.

Just when our space was ready to open its doors, news of Covid arrived and we, like the rest of society, had to rethink how we would continue to stay in contact with and support the young people in Clonakilty and Skibbereen. Throughout the first lockdown we ran a virtual youth space and quiz weekly evening, an online art sharing competition, a photo project, a life stories project where young people interviewed grandparents and older members of the community. A newsletter featuring short stories, poetry and news from The Shack was posted to all young people involved as were quiz prizes and disposable cameras. We ran a podcast over 10 weeks that featured music requests and audio messages from the young people and a weekly film and book club where we read everything from The Communist Manifesto toThe Perks of being a wallflower. As part of this virtual schedule we took part in four sessions of online yoga with teacher Mary Kelly.

As we speak we have over 40 young people engaging regularly with our services in Clonakilty and a further 10 young people engaged with our youth space in Skibbereen. We are also steadily making plans to extend our service to Dunmanway. As time has gone on we have identified more ways we can have a positive impact in West Cork through Carbery Youth Service. We have a number of young people taking part in one to one mentorship programmes and during lockdown 2 we have focused on supporting the young people with immediate need in the community, using a booking system for small numbers to use the space safely during level three.

The Shack is being utilised as a place for a student to attend virtual learning iscoil three days a week. We have also recently become a sexual health hub - a service that has up to now only been available in Cork City. We hope to be somewhere young people can ask for information and receive support. We look forward to 2021, officially launching our space building connections in the community and welcoming more young people to our youth spaces in Clonakilty, Skibbereen and Dunmanway.