A sports coach is encouraging children to shatter segregation barriers together by taking part in martial arts lessons. SOPHIE-MAY CLARKE finds out more

APPALLED by the picture of Blackburn he felt was painted on a recent BBC Panorama documentary, the head coach of a martial arts club is keen to break down barriers.

The programme, White Fright: Divided Britain which aired in January, was met with a backlash over claims Blackburn had become ‘more divided than ever’ in he past 10 years — something many locals greatly refuted.

Martial arts coach Rob Freedman is one of these people and says the youth programme he runs is the perfect example of exactly how wrong the documentary was.

The programme, Focused Youth, was set up at the Blackburn Predators martial arts club three years ago with a goal of providing free training to youths and to get them off the streets.

Coach Rob says the results he is seeing are exceeding his wildest expectations. “Without fail, every new member of the programme will train with members of the same ethnic group. I usually allow it for the first time but then I encourage them to mix it up.

“After a few weeks of training I don’t think they even notice the skin colour of the person they are training with.

“With the amount of wrestling and grappling we do at the club these youths can’t help but get up close and personal.

“This, I feel, has had a massive impact in breaking down some of the barriers that may have existed.”

As well as dedicating three free sessions a week to youngsters in the community who may not be able to afford to train, Rob has gone to extra lengths to try to break down barriers in the street too.

The martial arts coach now works alongside Lancashire police, regularly going out with the community policing teams to talk with local children. He said: “I feel this has been useful for both the club and the police, with many youngsters perhaps more likely to engage with someone not wearing a uniform.”

PC Tom Wignall, one of the officers who works with the club, has praised Rob’s efforts to give kids something to focus on. He said: “For the last seven years, I have witnessed Rob’s continued efforts to get kids off the streets.

“The classes are of a detailed, disciplined and fun nature and go a long way to teaching self-defence through a sport that is fast-growing and exciting.

“As a Blackburn resident myself and a serving police officer, I very much value the work Rob is doing which contributes towards changing lives and giving children a hobby to focus on.

“In many cases I have met children who display challenging behaviour or have come through the door from under-privileged backgrounds. Rob’s work has given them something to focus on and taught them valuable lessons.”

Fellow officer, PC Caroline Lanciotti, said: “Rob and myself have teamed up several times over the past six months and targeted problem areas known to the police and local community as anti-social hotspots.

“We have engaged with over 300 young people and asked them what type of activities they would be interested in to keep them from hanging around the streets and it’s been really interesting.

“I think the police uniform sometimes creates a barrier and it has been a really positive experience going out on the streets with Rob and finding out what causes anti-social behaviour and ways we can reduce it in an approachable way.”

Through the youth programme, Rob has also been invited to some of Blackburn and Darwen’s local schools to give talks on the benefits of becoming a martial artist.

He said: “During these talks I take some of the success stories of the youth programme, who describe how training has been useful for controlling their anger problems, becoming more active, more disciplined and in some cases how it has helped to prevent bullying.

“Some of the youngsters who have trained at the club for a while have made unbelievable transformations in both their physical and mental wellbeing. They describe how they ‘were heading down the wrong path’ until they started training at the club.”

Members of the youth programme will take part in a charity log-carry, with proceeds from the event going to a children’s orphanage in Romania.The club have recently received a recent donation from the National Lottery, which has help contribute towards the running of the Youth Programme. Free youth classes are held on Monday and Wednesday at 5pm and 10am on Saturday at the club on Chadwick Street, Blackburn. All are welcome.