Story and photography by Shuna Beckett
The All Saints Youth Club on Lyons Close provides a warm and welcoming environment for young people in the area, with pool tables and table tennis as well as access to an outside grass area.
It is run by Sheffield Futures Youth Team and provides open access provision for young people 13-19 years every Tuesday and Thursday at 6pm – 8pm.
The free Doorstep Sports Club also runs at All Saints every Saturday at 4pm – 5pm.
Unfortunately, the young attendees aren’t happy about the nearby basketball court and football pitch, which are separate to the youth club.
Khalid, a keen young basketball player, told me:
“We can’t play at night as there are no floodlights. The backboards are broken and there are bits all over the court.”
Janine Dalley, Manager of Community Youth Teams, said:
“Sheffield Futures rent the youth club and ensure that inside is a safe and welcoming place for young people. We also work with partner organisations to run a free sports club at All Saints, which uses the local amenities of the basketball court and football pitch.”
The club organised a clean-up of the surrounding area after meeting with Councillor Ibrar Hussain last autumn. Volunteers from the club and the wider community came to collect litter.
The young people would like more to be done so that they can play their favourite sports with friends during the winter months.
Young journalists
Young people from All Saints Youth Club are getting involved in the new Community Journalism training scheme being run by the Burngreave Messenger.
This aims to give people the skills and confidence to participate in the newspaper and the community.
The sessions will take place at the Youth Club and will cover photography, writing and reporting, interviewing, social media and campaigning.
The Youth Club participants I talked with said they didn’t read the Messenger, and the training course aims to make it more relevant to young people, by getting young voices heard.
Young people are also encouraged to earn money by delivering the Messenger around the area
Contact the office for more information. 0114 2420564 mail@burngreavemessemnger.org