Sharples Group Support Local Youth Zone

Sharples Group supports Local Youth Zone as Warrington Youth Club moves to brand new, state of the art premises.

The Onside Youth Zone network offers young people aged 8 – 19, or up to age 25 for a person with a disability, a positive environment and a safe place to go. The network currently has 10 community-based hubs with another 10 in build or planned, offering local young people everything from hot meals to guidance and support.

The culture is one of belief in the potential of young people, of harnessing imagination and giving a generation the chance and confidence to lead healthy, aspirational lives.

Onside Youth Zones also provide a platform for other community, local and youth service providers to reach isolated young people to offer one to one support. The support and activities provided are proven to reduce antisocial behaviour by 50%+ and the utlimate aim is to open 100 Onside Youth Zones, including one in Warrington.

To this end, the Warrington Youth Club (WYC), formed in 1952, is currently undergoing a major transition which will see it build an incredible Youth Zone right in the middle of the town.  The £6.5m state of the art centre, which should open in Spring 2020, will offer world class youth provision and mark a new chapter for the youth club that was.

The new facility will enable the WYC to offer a safe, inspiring, state of the art space for young people from across Warrington, seven days a week.

Over the years, Sharples have assisted other Youth Zones across the region, including Bolton and Chorley, and helped raise in excess of £500,000 for young people. Now Warrington is our focus and our Managing Director Mark Brocklehurst has recently become the Chair of WYC. To build and operate a youth zones takes dedication, passion and an army of volunteers and the Sharples team have stepped up to the plate.

Mark said, “I am incredibly proud of all Warrington Youth Club’s achievements as a long-standing community resource. The transition into the amazing building will be just the start of a long journey and the Sharples team are looking forward to the ride. This will allow us to offer more activities and support to the amazing young people in our area and empower them to fulfil their potential.”

Sharples have a number of fundraising initiatives planned for the rest of 2018 including Mark riding tandem with a young man with Down Syndrome on the Big Vimto 110km Bike Ride, and a 163-mile ultra-marathon across the Jordanian Desert. Watch this space for more details.

Sharples Group have also donated five new multi-functional printers (including Toshiba, OKI and Lexmark) to equip the new hub with economical and professional print facilities, essential for the smooth running of the operation.