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2024-03-31-annual-report

Deanby Youth Club

16-20 Oldpark Terrace BT14 6NP

Charity number: NI101009 Phone:07873605823

Deanby Youth Club Annual report 2024

Deanby youth centre is a part time, voluntary youth organisation and registered charity in a church-based facility which delivers youth provision within the Oldpark and greater area of North Belfast since 1969. Our youth centre consists of a sports hall, a computer room, a gaming room, a senior room, a programme room, a dance studio and spacious outdoor grounds. As an organisation we are very much aware of our role within the community. The Youth Club provides community-based support for young people across Oldpark, Cliftonville, Westland, Marrowbone and Upper Ardoyne areas of North Belfast. We offer a variety of age specific groups that participate in several positive, fun, and structured activities. Our organisation uses the methodology of informal education to enhance the personal and social development of young people in a safe and caring environment. The Centre develops means of engaging young people through programmes which they can not only participate in but also help to design and deliver. We feel that this approach fosters a greater sense of engagement from the young people which ultimately ensures that the projects have a much greater impact in improving the quality of life that they experience. Our programmes and activities are responsive to and reflective of the needs of the young people in the Oldpark and wider area which we serve and are strategically designed to correspond with the curriculum for youth provision. We provide gender specific work with both boys and girls, and we often provide a range of projects that young people can use to develop skills, confidence, and self-esteem. We seek to develop a range of cross community initiatives to address the legacy of the troubles and to tackle some of the remaining fractious and tense relations between young people of both communities. We monitor the impacts this has with the young people through a number of evaluative means including, recordings and observations of staff members, other qualitative data from parents, teachers, and community representatives, quantitative data from programme and project evaluations and data and feedback from other sources including other service providers both statutory and nonstatutory. There is no private profit or benefit derived from our operation, all is done for the benefit of the public.

At this current moment, we operate a generic provision of 2 nights per week and a further 2 nights per week as a drop in-centre between the hours of 6:30pm and 9:30pm, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, to facilitate our members between 9 and 18 years of age. Our centre is run by a committed and skilled staff team of 7. We have 1 qualified part time leader in charge, 3 qualified part time youth workers, 3 Volunteers. Our volunteers are a major help in the running of the youth club. Our membership is currently at 136 and growing, with the approximate attendance of 50-70 per night.

Management committee chair comments

The year of 2023-24 has seen Deanby Youth Club face significant challenges but has continue to overcome and deliver effective quality youth provision throughout the Oldpark community in a challenging area. It has increasingly developed our good relations work and received very good

feedback from our partners . (“Dropped into centre whilst on detached on a number of different occasions, young people are always occupied and there is always good work happening. Positive atmosphere and always open for collaborating. The staff team are very welcoming, inviting the AYE team into centre and inviting us along to events happening within the club. From the perspective of AYE, Deanby Youth Club are a great example of positive collaboration between youth organisations. Social media posts are consistent and showing all of the work within the centre. Discussions with staff - always positive despite cuts to the youth sector.”) ARDOYNE YOUTH ENTERPRISE (“Deanby YC is a busy and wellattended youth provision. Its services are tailored and bespoke to local needs.) YOUTH WORK ALLIANCE. (“Working together with local youth centres such as Deanby on cultural diversity and inclusion helps support the integration of BAME and newcomer young children into youth services and helps raise awareness in local children of the needs of newcomers living in the area.”) BELFAST FRIENDSHIP GROUP.

The Centre continues to operate under the control of its Management Committee and under the direction of the Leader in Charge. Due to the dedication of our Leader In Charge, staff and volunteers, Deanby Youth Club has continued to successfully deliver a range of programmes and activities, both consolidating and improving old programmes and activities as well as introducing new ones and providing a well-run drop in centre 4 nights per week. All these programmes continually work in partnership with young people and look to help enhance their lives.

The membership of the youth club is ever increasing, and the young people who attend, often daily, have the opportunity to avail all the youth club’s services, while also building and developing relationships with other young people and with various partner organisations.

Governance is the foundational responsibility of the Management Committee and with the help of Youth Work Alliance we undertook a total review of all our policies and procedures and made changes to Safeguarding and Health & Safety to keep up with modern safety and embedding of CRED, emotional health, and wellbeing framework.

The management committee are very grateful for the work our staff continue to deliver within the community in a challenging climate. We are also very grateful to the young people and parents who continue to support the work of the staff team. The management committee would like to thank all the various funders who continue to provide financial support to our organisation to allow us to provide the very best service to the young people we can. We hope that you will continue to support our growth for the years to come.

Impact of programme delivered on the lives of children and young people.

Programmes

2023/24 has seen Deanby Youth Club deliver at least 1 session of our continued programmes per week which also included participative structures and other workshops, capacity building support which is accessible and relevant to each individual participant and to provide support for young people to volunteer and gain experience in the local community. We make our plan around these programmes through good quality youth engagement and through the DE’s as well as our own needs assessment for the local area. We collaborate with parents, young people, schools, local politicians and other youth providers.

The young people who have benefitted from the programmes are dealing with a range of complex issues influenced by family and peer relationships, generational issues, the legacy of conflict in the area which continues to divide community life for young people, the issue of drug use, mental health and suicide which have been a growing crisis among young people in the local area.

These programmes have valuable educational outcomes that meet the needs of the young people through the following key headlines:

The feedback from the young people we have received through our programmes have been very positive. Our programmes have helped young people cope with mental health and wellbeing, helped young people know the dangers of alcohol and drugs and where to find help who have been suffering with the issues in their own life. Introducing young people to other cultures and backgrounds while exploring their own cultural identity and creating a summer programme to help deter young people away from risk taking behaviours and getting involved in violence over the summer months.

Volunteers

We have worked with a number of young members over the course of the year who we have help implemented into the fabric of the running of the club. The staff have helped the young people become valued volunteers and make that transition from members. We have estimated that over 576 volunteer hours were provided during the year by our young members who gained essential experience in running workshops, activities and being young ambassadors for the club, keeping them away from the issues that faces them on the streets of their local community and helping them on a path to become active members of their community.

Drop in

Our drop-in sessions continue to work with young people between the ages of 9 and 18 years of age. Within these sessions the Youth Club provides community-based support for young people. We offer a variety of age specific groups that participate in a number of positive, fun and structured activities such as sports, dance, arts & crafts, games and team building sessions. We provide gender specific work with both boys and girls and we often provide a range of projects that young people can use to develop skills, confidence and self-esteem. We encourage participation and inclusion and our young people have benefitted greatly from all our drop-in sessions. We have seen transitions from young people going from the ages of 9-11 , 12-14 and then on to15 -18 and eventually turning into volunteers for our youth club.

Here are some comments made by our members and parents in our recent evaluation feedback questionnaire of our drop-in session:

Highlights

2023/24 has been a very successful and memorable year for Deanby youth club despite facing the challenges of cuts to our youth provision. Our dedicated staff and management committee have found a way to continue to support the young people covering 4 nights per week.

Weve had some amazing highlights throughout the year and some of these highlights are shown below:

Starting off with our Mental health and wellbeing programme completed by 10 young people between the ages of 14-18 and our junior programme with the same theme 10 young people between the ages of 9-13. Here are a few pics:

The start of our summer programme kicked off with our BBQ FAMILY FUN DAY 2023.

Here are some pics for the rest of the trips we organised over the summer, providing trips for 180 young people and in centre activities for a further 60 young people per night.

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Our job fair, working along side NBAP went fantasticlly well.

The next highlight was our culture and identity programme

Next throughout the year was our participative structures. The young people getting together and designing all our major events including Halloween week, Christmas week, organising our BBQ fun day, our neon disco, Valentine’s night, volunteering in the tuck shop, designing their very own workshops, and social action programme.

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11 41*.1 Pre Valentines At Oeort6y YC •$ Disco PAP4CAtrÉE MAKTNJ strawberries chocolate

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Throughout the year we also had sports coaching. On Monday evenings we had Rochelle from Newlodge arts delivering Hip Hop coaching and Friday evenings we had Conor from kapow youth dodgeball coaching dodgeball throughout the year. Here are some pics of some of our sessions.

DODGEBALL COACHING ": TIME 7:30 FRIDAYS DEANBY YOUTH CLUB DODGE BALL COACHING WITH CONOR FROM KAPOW YOUTH DODGEBALL ASK STAFF FOR MOFtE INFO IFYOUR YOLING PERSON IS INTERSTED HIP HOP Dfll, | F.I'FRI IIONDlll DEllNB)' i(xrrH CLUB DI1￿￿ STUDIO H'ITH DI1￿￿ (DncH. RffHIIIE IN CONJUNcnoN IYriH NtwLot nK -xYoufiic

One of our highlights is giving the young people the freedom to cook and learn new skills. Providing snacks for the rest of their peers on nearly a nightly basis.

Also included in our highlights for the year was our fantastic Easter Community funday on March 2024 in conjunction with the Cliftonville/Oldpark association. On that day we had over 600 people from the local community through the doors of the youth club.

One of the biggest highlights of our year was our fantastic residential. Our focus was on leadership, resilience and working part of a team, and all the young people loved it.

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Finally, here are a few pics of our nightly drop in sessions throughout the year.

Young people’s Voices and the running of our organisation.

As cited in the EA local development plan for north and east, "Young people will be able to meet up with friends, take part in activities, learn new skills, develop their social and have fun", as a key output. Deanby have been facilitating a senior and junior members forum, to ensure all our members views based upon their current needs. They have been able to nominate their peers to our board as a representative to the young people, and volunteer in community events and organisations. They also have the opportunity to design their very own programmes and workshops and design all upcoming events within the youth club. This continues throughout all quarters of the year. The local assessment of need document also incites the importance of the young people’s voices being heard, which Deanby youth club prioritise within the running of the organisation.

Youth committee chair comments

“I have been a member of Deanby Youth Club for 8 years now. I have always felt safe and valued as a young person within the club and the staff have helped me through major issues in my life. Through the Participative structures of the youth club, me and my peers feel that not only are we members of the youth club but feel we are part of it. We gain great satisfaction in the running of events and feel inspired when our ideas and decisions we make are helping the experience of the other members within the youth club. Deanby Youth Club has help make me a better person than I ever though I could be.”

Quality Assurance and the running of our organisation.

We believe as a staff team that Quality Assurance is essential to our continuous improvement of our practice as we implement the EA endorsed Quality Assurance Framework. Working through the Quality Assurance Framework, we Implement ongoing reflection meetings each night which is recorded through various processes, and we reflect on these at the start of every night and put into practice any changes we need to make. We would also involve all volunteers, staff and young people in decisions and changes they feel need to be made throughout the organisation. We would have internal needs assessments and collaboration with other youth organisations throughout the local area. We would have quarterly Staff and management committee meetings which we include our junior and senior committee members to have their say and reflect on what improvements need to be made. We also have Standardised decisionmaking processes in built into our agendas each meeting.

We also prioritise that our staff Understand Impact of Services . We continue to seek training on the Outcomes and Engagements Frameworks to be facilitated to the whole staff team. We have set up training with YWA which will take place in June. We have sessions set aside for staff training and workforce development. Our aim is for staff to develop a clear understanding and awareness of the expected youth work outcomes framework and also the engagement framework. This is evident in our last EA moderation from which we received the award from the moderator as ‘Outstanding’.

Our youth club will host child protection training on the 11[th] June to keep our safeguarding training up to date and all staff have completed their access NI. We are also working closely with Ardoyne Youth Enterprise (AYE) in finding out the assessment of need within the Cliftonville and Oldpark areas while also carrying out our own assessments. We are also working with them in their ‘small words’ programme and the Belfast friendship club where the young people learn about diverse cultures and backgrounds.

Conclusion

To help us evaluate our service within our practice, we made a questionnaire and sent it out to the members and parents of the local community. We received a satisfaction rating of 97%.

Below are the results of our questionnaire.

Can you provide any evidence to support your decision, like how we have helped you?

Amazing staff , they put on trips , fun days great for the kids and community The residential helped me build a better relationship with people I haven't properly spoke to in ages

I felt safe and I met my gf I cannot let my son out so this is a safe place for him to go

Providing a safe place

Have fun, good friends and playing games.

My daughter has joined the youth club, but is leaving the house 4 evenings a week to socialize rather than sit in on her phone .

I mean lots of friends

Every member of staff are good people and the club has been ran smooth

It speaks volumes when your kids absolutely love it!

I have somewhere to go when I want to go out and if I’m in an argument u sort it out for me The club has helped me make a few friends so if you are lonely the club can be helpful for that sort of thing

Kept me safe and gave me a reason to stay

My step son didn’t do anything other than sit in his room and watch screens. I have tried for years to get him to a youth club and this year we succeeded and he heads out the door and can’t wait to go. I just wish he would form friendships beyond the club but maybe in time that will happen.

As both my kids are young, I do not like them out running the streets, the youth club have introduced new interests to my kids, my daughter now loves dance which helps her physical health, my son is very quiet and going to the club has helped him with is social skills that he always wants to go play football, pool or sit in the games room.

Kids had a safe/ entertaining place to go in the evenings especially in bad weather/ dark nights. Even if they had no friends to go to the youth club with they always felt safe & valued by the leaders there. Created a bit of Space for the older kids using the youthclub to just “ hang with their friends “.

Parent came to me and told me how you had helped their son

Yea like if we argue then you short it out

Bringing my son away on his first residential. Which he really enjoyed.

Always packed club, support young people very well and you can tell the staffs heart and soul go into their work.

My daughter feels safe. Helps her not to overthink what is actually going on in her head and makes her smile

my child has said that you all take time to listen to her

Felt safe and made friends and enjoy the club

Always very supportive to children and would phone with any issues that arise

My son was having to do structured activities in able to spend time with his peers in youth club he’s able to relax chat play with his friends in a safe environment

My two Boys Attend the club every night it is on and they absolutey love it.

A youth leader has helped me stop the thought to self harm and suiside

My Son goes to deanby and i have seen an significant improvement in his behavior and social growth, making new friends and have a safe space to go to. Deanby is a great asset to the young people of oldpark and ardoyne.

What do you think we need to do better?

Nothing really Nothing, brilliant club

Yes More fun trips Do more trips Getting more money Nothing Open 7 days 🤣 Nothing u Run more groups Is there a way to let parents know what’s happening. Always hard to get anything out of my step son. Also How we can help? At this point, I think yous are great and all staff are great to have a chat with if needed Possibly with a bit of funding get some equipment. Clear up the outside space make it useable. Fundraisers for outings. Get more footballs Yous are amazing staff members and give your all for the children. So no need for improvement. Nothing that I can see on my end Use are brilliant at what use are doing just keeping doing what use are doing maybe a residential More trips and bring back senior nights None I genuinely don’t think there’s anything the whole centre and staff do all they can Only to open more nights, if possible More groups Open more nights, Maybe even weekends

We have delivered the following programmes and workshops over the year. What projects do you think have been most helpful for children or young people in the Oldpark area? Social Ath"on Programme tt... Mental Health and Wellbeing Sexual Health and Relations... cohol Awareness Anxiety Anti-soual Behawor Drop In Club SeniorlJunior CommitteelFor_.- Group Work Arts & Crafts Emotional Support Online Safety Staff & Volunteer Development Peer Leadership Sports Programmes Drug Awareness Dan Cultural Identity Cultural All projeds are great. My ch... 142.4%) 148.5%) 121 2%) 136.4%) 136.4%) {36.4%1 160.6%,, (33.3%) {36.4%1 ,'36.4%1 148.5%) 133.3Q/o 13 {39.4%1 130.3%) 133.3%) -13 (39.4%) 30.3%} 112_1%1 12.1%) 13%) 13%) 13%) 13%) I'm not aware of any ol thes... All off them 10 15 20 What more can the youth centre do better to help you and your children? Mentoring Drug and alcohol prografflmes Residential experiences More courses and training Sports programmes More group work Young women's work Young men's work Sexual Health programme Emotional support Drug reduction programmes Arts and (¥afts Complementary Iherapies Cross Community Work Stress reduction programmes Not sure abcHJt better becau... {18.2%1 121.2%) 139.4%} 127.3%> 127.3%) 121.2%) 127.3%) 118.2%) (15.2%) 118.2%) {15.2%1 121.2%) 121.2% ,136.4%1 121.2%) 13%) 10 15

How could we do things better at the centre?

More senior nights 🤡🤡 More trips Open more hours and more evenings More members in the club to make friends Everything’s good Keep doing what you are doing and possibly strengthen with more applications for grants/available funding. It’s already fine Drug and awareness work and cross community Groups

I think getting young people involved in voluntary work supporting and making our community better. Letter pick up. Clearing areas that are littered. That can create a sense of achievement and well being for neighbourhood and teaching respect and pride in our community. I feel the staff are a great support to our young people and from me personally yous do you best every night yous are there.

Open a tuck shop , get the kids to work in it. Programmes N/A Continue to do what your doing 👏 Just keeping being you dont know

It’s good the way it is

Get road tarmacked at from of the club for safe driving More groups Spruce the centre up a bit.

Is there anything else you need for us to know?

No

Funding needs sorted 🤑🤑 Nope All good

Get the founding sorted please and thank you much appreciated kind regards Mairead and cadhla ✌️👏 Yous are awesome 💖 Nope bye bye Update this place

I wasn’t able to answer th last three as a parent I don’t know anything about her building. Maybe you could have a parent drop in. To see the work of the club? Build support ? Thank you for all your time and efforts showed to my child.

my child loves going to the youth club and she has made new friends and is more confident Road at the front really needs tarmaced Deanby is a great club

Thank you for helping me for the years I have attend the youth centre

Any young person or parent i know that is connected to Deanby have amazing things to say about the staff and the club. Keep up the good work.