4 minute read

Wendover Youth Centre

from Wendover News July 2023

by Wendover News

from Wendover News July 2023, page 23

Local Faces:

Pete Swinford leaves firm foundations to build on

When Pete Swinford joined Wendover Youth Centre as its first full time Lead Youth Worker in January 2020, he couldn’t have anticipated events of just two months later. Covid lockdowns presented enormous challenges when meetings were banned, but Pete, the trustees and young centre members rose to the challenge, met on Zoom and started community outreach programmes such as pen pals with isolated older people and helping with the Chiltern Foodbank.

Now Pete is leaving to move with his family to the lovely seaside town of Looe in Cornwall. The Youth Centre’s trustees were interviewing candidates as Wendover News went to press, and hoped to appoint Pete’s replacement by the end of June.

The Youth Centre has been a community-owned charity since 2012. “Appointing and supporting a full-time youth worker was part of the trustees’ vision to attract more young people and to manage the centre with more continuity,” says Chris Heald, the trustees’ chair. “Now we are intending to build on this, and to attract new trustees who are strong on fund raising. We’d also like a second full-time youth leader.”

Pete studied Sport Science at university and then spent two years working in India on sports and social work. Returning to the UK, he worked in Coventry as a sports coach, and gained a qualification in youth working.

He was appointed as Wendover Youth Centre’s full-time lead in January 2020. Nobody knew what was about to happen two months later.

“Prior to Covid we generally got groups of about 50 young people, but lockdown meant that we couldn’t open the Centre,” says Pete. “The choice was to furlough me or keep going. So we kept going, via Zoom until we could meet up again, and decided on more social action.”

The Youth Centre continues to work with the Chiltern Foodbank and its other community supporters, and has sorted and stored 3.5 tonnes of food so far, with young people helping to collect it. “After Covid we looked at what was needed and set up more services, more focused,” Pete says. “We now have six clubs, and we see 140150 young people per week.”

Today the Centre in the Wharf Road campus is not only back to normal opening, but it’s attracting more young members and doing more than ever before. A typical half term will see 550 to 600 young people attending for various activities. Details are online at www.wendoveryouth. co.uk

Meanwhile, the countdown has started to the Youth Centre Fest in Ashbrook park on Tuesday 18 July (details on opposite page). It's the day that John Colet Academy breaks up for the holidays, so students can go in the afternoon. “There will be activities, inflatables, food and drink and local organisations with stalls. Entry will be £5 for four or five hours of fun,” says Pete. “The target age group is 9-16, but anyone can come as this is a family friendly event.”

The Centre is also hired by other organisations, which helps to bring in funds. "For schools we also deliver well-being and mental awareness activities,” says Pete. “We also offer a one-to-one mentoring scheme for young people with behavioural problems – they can come for an hour every week and just play table tennis and talk, for instance.”

Pete feels that “Wendover gives the impression of being a wealthy place, so such problems have been overlooked by authorities. But in getting to know the community it’s evident that there are people with real needs and there are pockets of deprivation.”

With this in mind the Centre applied to implement the Government’s HAF (Holiday Activity & Food) scheme aimed at 11-15 year olds who are normally eligible for free school meals during term times. This will run on Fridays during the coming school summer holiday.

“Providers who normally charge are paid to give the services for free, with free food too,” explains Pete. “It’s also a youth club that offers activities like cooking, baking, football, inflatables, and three trips: bowling, GoApe and ice skating.”

As centre manager Pete has helped it grow into a more structured organisation – previously it was very reliant on volunteers. “Because of Covid I did everything at first, and then delegated after that. So it’s not just me, I’ve been trying to make it more sustainable to go on,” he says.

Looking to the future, Pete feels that the Youth Centre could usefully start to reach more into the community, beyond the schools and existing circles that already know about its activities and benefits.

“We’ve created an environment that’s safe to chill out in and meet friends. We’re demonstrating that young people are doing useful and positive things, countering some people’s ideas that they’re always up to no good. The main thing to know about is the passion of young people – it’s a great community!”

Charity success as Shed goes solar and expands

Wendover Shed has been advancing on all fronts in the past month: its application to become a charity has been approved, membership is growing, it’s opening three days per week, it has solar power and a start has been made on an outdoor covered space that will double its working area. It held its first educational demonstration, on wood turning, on 10 June.

It was earlier in June that the collaborative craftwork and social interaction group learned that it had succeeded in its application to become a registered charity in record time – it only applied a month previously.

Anyone with an interest in making things, mending them, learning how to work with tools, or just wanting to meet up with likeminded people, is welcome as a member. Membership is just £15 per year. The Hog is open to members, prospective members and visitors for three hours every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, with times on the website at www.wendovershed.org. There are also monthly “open shed” meetings and occasional educational demonstrations.

The first of a planned series of skills demonstrations took place on Saturday 10 June, when Gary Rance, a renowned and famous wood turning expert who lives in Wendover, gave a demonstration of using a lathe to make beautiful wooden toys and ornaments.