Abbey Centre Baptist Church

To serve the social and spiritual needs of people in South Northampton

Abbey Centre Youth @ Risk Project

The Abbey Centre Users' Association is providing a coffee-bar and ICT room, and a youth worker to meet some of the needs of those young people who are most "at risk" in South Northampton.

The Need

On average, 1,000+ young people use The Abbey Centre every month (our activities leaflet includes details of our young people and children's work), but there are small groups of teenagers who are either unwillingly, or unable to do so. These young people are often excluded from school, feel alienated from their homes and wider society, and spend a lot of time on the streets. They often have premature experience of sex and are involved with alcohol or other forms of substance abuse. They may well have been in conflict with the police. A facade of bravado normally covers up low self-esteem and an inability to relate positively or creatively to anyone or anything. These young people are "at risk", viewed with suspicion, and considered "hopeless". Without help, they may well become criminalised, the subjects of mental health regimes, residents of institutions, or generally aimless. We believe that although they are going through a difficult time, if they can be helped through it, treated with respect, and given relevant and acceptable opportunities, the majority will in time become productive, valued citizens with a proper self-esteem. We have seen this happen in the past through the work of good Youth Clubs, but in the twenty-first century, new approaches are needed.

For one year (2000-2001), we employed a researcher/youth work, to get alongside some of these teenagers and find out how they think The Abbey Centre might help them. Some were engaged in small group activities and low-cost sports and outings, but their main request was for a coffee-bar/meeting place where they would be welcome, with some associated ICT to provide an inexpensive, contemporary activity. This pilot scheme led to a resolution by the Users' Association to respond to the young people's views. The Abbey Centre has now almost completed such a provision.

The Potential

We are excited about this project! Because the scheme involved the enlargement of an existing and already used room to create the coffee bar area. Some existing user groups have benefited, but the biggest potential is for use with the target group of young people.

Pilot schemes have shown that a good percentage of the target group of young people respond positively to ICT-based activity, so we are also building an IT suite with a youth worker's office and counselling room. Working with small groups, who have first been contacted on "their territory" by face-to-face youth work, enables mentoring to take place. The police are supportive of the facility (they have used The Abbey Centre as their "rest & report" room); there are those who see the potential for working in a neutral location with adults and/or teenagers in the Home Office sponsored Fathers Direct project or as an extra-mural resource for the local community school. We have on-site contacts with life-long, and positive relations with NIAS drugs awareness personnel. There is a lot of support for The Youth @ Risk project , and we hope to appoint a youth worker to capitalise on this.

In this kind of work specific outcomes, especially in the short-to-medium-term, are sometimes difficult to measure; but the results of a lack of any support for young people who are "at risk" are quite evident now.

With the aid of The Northamptonshire Partnership we have also set some specific measurable targets so that the work is well focused, and young people are given real opportunities to move on to better things.

The Youth Worker & Volunteers We see the appointment of a key worker as very important. Part of the job is to recruit, help train, and manage a team of volunteers. If you would like to volunteer, or would like further information about this project, please contact Karen Coster (Project Youth Worker) Tel: 01604 769474 email: karencyouth@yahoo.co.uk NB: The total project costs for an initial 3-year period are in the region of 160,000. We have raised most of the necessary funds, but still have a small shortfall. If you would like to support this project financially, please make cheques payable to

The Abbey Centre Users Association and send to:

The Hon. Treasurer, Mrs. L. Goulbourne.

19, Limefields Way, East Hunsbury, Northampton

Thank you for your interest and support.