Campaign: Make Them Teen Leaders

Our campaign aims to raise £60,000 to invest in our town’s future by providing 100 ‘teen leaders’ at Blackburn’s £6 million Youth Zone.

The state-of-the-art club, in Jubilee Street, has embedded itself into the heart of the community since opening in June 2012 and boasts more than 3,500 members.

The Youth Zone already has 15 young leaders, who have led teams on community projects and acted as positive role models for their peers.

With your support, we want to develop the Young Leaders programme and give youngsters access to weekly workshops, work experience, accredited short courses, key resources, and a recognised qualification.

England and Blackburn Rovers legend Alan Shearer, who is an ambassador of the Youth Zone, said: “As a youngster, I was lucky to have had supportive adults to help nurture my talent and passion for football, which shaped my future career.

"Blackburn Youth Zone does just that for the young people of Blackburn with Darwen, offering them a helping hand in developing talent through positive opportunities.

"That is why I am delighted to back the Teen Leaders Appeal and encourage everyone to get involved."

It is hoped that creating 100 new teen leaders will bring a profound shift in the role the borough’s young people plays in the community, and build better relationships between youngsters and the wider area.

Chief executive of Blackburn Youth Zone, Peter Little, said: “What we found in the first 18 months of being open is a lot of young people are really keen to have the opportunity to make the town a better place.

“The challenge for us is how do we give them the chance, how do we build their confidence, and how do we enable them to make that positive change.

“This programme gives them the skills, motivation and chance to do it. It’s about telling them the town wants them to take on that challenge.

“It’s not just investment of cash. Part of the message is that people believe in them and that’s more important than anything else.

“The cash buys the support and the work, but the message from the town and from the Telegraph is that they care about young people, which is as, if not more, important than what the cash buys.”

A sum of £60,000 will allow the Zone to deliver a package that can roll out to 100 young people and raise their aspirations.

Your donations will help young people develop their careers by covering the cost of registering them for a Community Volunteering course, funding specialist staff to support their development, and residential placements to build their confidence, life skills and to teach them new skills.

Some of the 15 existing young leaders organised a visual arts event to celebrate the Zone’s first birthday in May.

They went on work experience with professional artists to create a programme of activities, and helped to light the show, rig the sound, film and photograph the event.

Others joined with Zone staff to volunteer at the East Lancashire Hospice.

They visited and talked with patients and led a unique art project that looked at people’s hands as a way of creating memories.

The young leaders also used their own hands to clean the Hospice garden.

Head of youth at the Youth Zone, Neil Sewell, said he was hoping to create an army of teen leaders. He said: “Young people are the future, and they are the future of Blackburn, so if the community wants the future to be a bright one, they need to get behind their young people.

“If people don’t invest there’s no future for Blackburn as far as I’m concerned. It’s a no brainer. Remember that politicians and everybody else keeps talking about putting Blackburn on the map. It’s young people who will do that.

“If we can help that process then we will be proud to say those young people represent Blackburn and we were part of it.”

Blackburn MP Jack Straw backed the campaign. He said: “I think it’s great, a fantastic initiative. I’ve been an active supporter since the day it opened.

“I have seen the value of the Youth Zone already. It provides a completely safe environment, and one where youngsters can be themselves and do all sorts of things they can’t do at home or in a traditional youth club. It’s a wonderful place.”

And the leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council, Coun Kate Hollern, added: “There’s an awful lot of untapped talent in Blackburn and Darwen. It’s fantastic the Lancashire Telegraph is leading this campaign.”

To get involved you can donate to the appeal directly, or hold a fundraising event.
To request a fundraising pack or to donate online, visit http://www.blackburnyz.org/youngleaders.
Alternatively, you can text BYZA01 and the amount you’d like to donate (either £2, £5, £10, or £20) to 70070.
For example, to donate £5, text BYZA01£5 to 70070.
You can also donate over the phone with a credit or debit card by calling 01254 292001.