Inspira – ‘Friday Night Project’

The original Friday Night Projects were set up specifically to address issues of youth anti- social behaviour in some key hotspot areas of West Cumbria.

In Copeland almost 2000 young people have participated in Friday Night Project provision since it began in 2012 and it’s believed that around a quarter of these individuals could be termed “at risk”.

Copeland Youth Network partners – Distington Club for Young People, Egremont Youth Partnership, Howgill Family Centre, Mirehouse Residents Group, North Copeland Youth Partnership, Phoenix Youth Project, Shackles Off, Whitehaven Harbour Youth Project and Inspira Cumbria applied to CCF to extend the delivery of Friday Night Project from 2017-2019 to sustain:

  • maintenance of low ASB rates
  • levels of participation and consequently “impact” (a minimum of 300 young people attend 10+ sessions)
  • risk taking behaviour work
  • access to physical activity and taster activities
  • to contribute to the financial sustainability of Copeland’s universal youth provision

Cllr Hugh Branney, Copeland Borough Councillor, said:

“Friday evenings are now safer for all and the opportunities for young people to develop appropriate relationships with paid and volunteer youth workers build a foundation for further and continuing personal and social development. As Copeland Borough Council’s Young People’s Champion, I strongly believe that this project improves life chances and choices for young people.”

Mike Priestley, Employer Relationships Manager, for Inspira, said:

“This is a project which young people really value and enjoy and which makes an important community contribution. Without the Copeland Community Fund and the excellent development support from their staff it would not happen. Our local, neighbourhood youth work providers do a great job working in a partnership to make opportunities available on this key evening of the week. These providers are the only sustainable means of delivering this sort of work.”

Additional funding of £9,000.00 was secured from West Cumbria Community Safety Partnership.

Outputs

  • 2.4 FTE Jobs Safeguarded
  • £9,000.00 of Match Funding
  • 200 Local People assisted in their Skills Development
  • 900 Local People who access a Community/Sport/Cultural Opportunity/Facility
  • 300 Young People – no of individuals attending more than 10 sessions in a year

Outcomes

  • We will at least sustain the significant reduction we have achieved in Friday Night youth ASB in our “hotspot ” areas
  • To provide skills development for 200 young people in key matters including strategies to keep safe around risk taking behaviours and awareness of how to lead healthy and active lifestyles
  • To ensure that youth providers have the funding and capacity to deliver free open sessions for young people giving them a safe place with a range of positive activities on a Friday night (48 sessions p/annum at each location)
  • To ensure that Copeland neighbourhood youth work providers are financially stable and sustainable to maintain their strategically important provision