County Durham youth charity secures £300k grant from National Lottery
Durham Area Youth says the grant will make a huge difference supporting young people and improving local communities
by Emily Gray · ChronicleLiveDurham Area Youth (DAY), a charity providing support, fun and educational opportunities for young people in and around County Durham, is celebrating after receiving a grant of £299,261.
The charity has grown rapidly since it formed in 2017. It aims to empower young people and make a positive changes for their communities through the provision of of a young person informed youth service.
Covering several areas across County Durham, including Pittington, Shadforth, Sherburn Hill, Sherburn Village, West Rainton, Great Lumley and Bournmoor, the charity offers services to young people aged between six and 18 years old. It also offers additional special educational needs (SEN) support sessions.
It is the third year DAY has received a grant from the Reaching Communities England - National Lottery Communities Fund. DAY delivers 360 youth sessions a year, which converts to a massive 19,000 hours plus of contact.
In the last year alone the charity has helped an additional 180 new young people, and over 44% of the young people it supports come from deprived areas. The weekly sessions in each of the areas are often split into junior and senior groups. Activities aim to develop social and lifelong skills, covering sports, cooking and craft exercises, alongside opportunities to gain qualifications.
The charity relies on core funding to enable a continuation of support for a wider network of young people - so the news of securing the grant has been warmly welcomed. Over 400 young people will directly benefit from the lottery grant on a weekly basis.
Emily Burns, CEO at DAY commented: "We are so grateful to the National Lottery for this support which will be fundamental to us continuing our work and ensuring we reach as many young people as possible.
"It will also support our workforce development which is key to ensuring we have the right staff to deliver a wider range of services. This is amazing news for DAY and means we will be able to continue to provide inclusive, open access youth provision over the next three years."
The grant also ensures DAY can create innovative, targeted and inclusive opportunities for two key transitional age groups, both 10-12 years old and 15-18 years old. DAY wants to enhance its service by increasing the activities it offers in the context of equality, diversity and inclusion factors. It is hoped these projects will not only make a difference to the lives of young people, but their families and the wider communities DAY serves.
The sessions, run by trusted youth workers, encourage young people to build confidence, learn skills and navigate the path towards adulthood. The idea is also to foster a sense of pride and purpose in young people about their local community, that will empower them to create positive change in the future.
Alongside weekly sessions, DAY also uses funding to enable additional projects such as training courses or programmes of community development. Previous projects include supporting Durham Pride, and a 12-week partnership with Live Well North East, a mental health support project called 'Gals with Goals'. Sessions were co-designed by the young people at the heart of the project, and covered topics of physical and mental wellbeing and mindfulness.
You can find out more information on sessions, activities and how to get involved on the DAY website.
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