As part of our Collaboration Labs work to shape future funding, our Director of Strategy, Claire Rick, visited a youth club on a barracks in Northern England.
In our latest Field Notes edition, Claire reflects on what young people shared, the importance of trusted adults and safe spaces, and why great youth work matters so much for children growing up in the armed forces community.
A hot June evening, in the week when September’s new Year 7 pupils were doing their taster days at their future schools.
A youth centre in Northern England: bright decorations on the walls, toddler toys around a story carpet, a very busy blackboard, the toaster on the go and a pool table which has seen better days – but still does the job. A trip to Alton Towers is in the planning.
So far, so similar to the sort of scene you might find at youth centre buildings in all sorts of places across the UK.
Except this particular youth club sits on a barracks. Its members, young people who live at the site – or in the surrounding city area – because their parents are serving at the base. There are a little over 20 young people of secondary school age in tonight, for the one senior session which takes place each week. Some of them see each other in school during the day, too: they’re a community within the school community, supporting each other like family, despite a big age range.
We’re there as part of our Young Lab activities to help shape our next strategy, for the grants that we’ll make from April 2027-March 2030. Our friends at Good Work With (external link) have designed some activities to engage young people in conversations about the future they’d like to see for ‘future them’: what is it that can feel difficult or challenging about school or wider life because they are part of a serving family, and what could make that better? What would they like someone else to understand about their life as part of the armed forces community? How would they help someone having the sorts of feelings they’ve experienced?