FUTUREhope Hertford and Ware Mobile Youth Centre
1
The Pitch
Problem statement
Sadly, there are not many places left where young people under the age of 18 can go in the evenings to meet friends and relax. Pubs will not admit them and many youth clubs have closed down. This means they often have to resort to congregating in public places such as parks or by the shops, which can lead to them being more vulnerable, being cold or wet or in the worst-case scenario creating trouble for themselves or others. This is not good for the young people or indeed other sections of the community who might feel uneasy. Since the COVID pandemic we have seen a marked increase in the number of young people feeling isolated, lost or anxious. We meet young people where they are at.
Solution
We need funding to run and maintain our minibus which goes into local schools such as Sele and Chauncy at lunchtime and in the evenings to locations across the towns where young people are. It offers a safe, warm environment for them to hang out and they can get free refreshments, play games or just chat with our team of volunteers. Running this service obviously costs money - maintaining the bus, insurance, servicing, MOT, and providing all the games and refreshments for the young people is not cheap. The bus is a popular and vital part of our youth outreach and it can also be a way for users to hear about the other services that Futurehope might be able to offer them - such as mentoring.
Why are we best placed to deliver?
We have been successfully offering this service on the FUTUREhope Bus to young people from Hertford and Ware including Sele, Kingsmead and all areas of Ware especially those around Chauncy and Presdales, for many years. It has become a well-known and much used resource for young people locally. We take the bus into local schools such as Sele and Chauncy for lunchtime support and advice sessions as well as to local community and council-run events like the Hertford Gala and Dickensian Night in Ware. We also go out each Friday evening to various parks and fields in the towns where young people congregate and we can reach anywhere between 10 and 30 young people per session.
Focus Areas
Delivery plan
Budget breakdown
| Insurance (per year) | £1,250 |
| Road Tax (per year) | £325 |
| Maintenance/Repairs (per year) | £750 |
| Breakdown Cover (per year) | £125 |
| Food and drinks for the young people (per year) | £450 |
| Resources for the bus - video game controllers, games, books etc (per year) | £450 |
| MOT and Service (per year) | £350 |
| Additional exterior lighting to improve visibility and safety for the Bus | £300 |
Beneficiaries
100 people
Who will benefit
Expected impact
If we can get funding for the bus for another year it would have a huge impact for our work with teenagers in schools and other areas of the towns. We estimate that we welcome over 100 different young people on board across a year and we can see the impact it has when they come back to us for more support and tell us their stories. Indeed we have spoken to a number of people who are now adults who tell us that the Bus had a big impact on them when they were younger and kept them out of trouble. It also made them realise that there were people who cared about them and were prepared to give up their time to support young people. With the huge number of different pressures that modern teenagers face from school, social media, peer pressure, dysfunctional families, drug and alcohol availability and mental health concerns, we believe that they need more support than ever. Our mobile youth centre can have a real and lasting impact on these young lives.