Three young boys hugging each other. They are outside and surrounded by trees.

Housing associations come together to deliver for Bristol youth

SNG (Sovereign Network Group), together with Clarion, Brighter Places, and Abri Housing has raised £19k in match funding to support Young Bristol’s innovative Youth Club on Wheels work across the wider Bristol area.

The Youth Club on Wheels is a new mobile youth service, which works with young people aged over eight in hard-to-reach areas of the city and rural areas where there is currently little to no services for young people to interact, engage and enhance their skills.

The pioneering service provides opportunities and activities for young people including: 

  • Social, creative, multi-media, sports, indoor and outdoor projects and activities 
  • Job and homework guidance and support 
  • Healthy food and tips to support food preparation 
  • A safe place to talk with trained youth workers 
  • A place to relax and socialise with friends 

The funding will support more young people in the areas of Brislington, Speedwell, Montpelier, and Castle Park. The programme will run until August 2024.  

Henry Palmer, Community Investment & Partnership Lead for Bristol said: “This partnership with Young Bristol and investment in their fantastic Youth Club on Wheels will offer young people around the city a fantastic foundation to build their future on. Together with the South West Housing Community Partnership, we hope to continue to pilot new ideas and collaborate to benefit our communities. Supporting young people is high on our agenda and one of the strategic areas that underpin our community investment Offer, and we are looking forward to seeing the impact of this programme.” 

Lucy Saunders, Head of Development and Fundraising, Young Bristol said: “We are absolutely thrilled to be working in partnership with SNG and other Housing Associations from the South West Community Housing Partnership.  Their vital support will allow us to take our unique mobile youth service out to those communities most in need. Our Youth Club on Wheels is designed to reach those communities where there are gaps in youth provision. The project will offer a unique programme of positive activities for young people including sports, games, interactive discussions and creative activities.” 

Kieran Jones, Community Development Officer at Abri said: “We’re committed to supporting our customers and communities to thrive, this includes ensuring young people are supported to engage and grow where they live. We’re delighted to have provided £4,000 of funding to support Young Bristol’s efforts in creating positive and life-changing contributions that make a real difference. 

This collaboration was developed within the South West Housing Community Partnership, a group of community practitioners from social housing providers who meet on regular basis to pilot new ideas and join resources in shared communities. 

Find more information about the service, including times and dates of when the mobile youth service will be running.