This youth club in Stourvale Road, East Boscombe is one of the
oldest in the country and is set to become a key YMCA project in
the coming years. Many thousands of young people have benefited
from the centre during over 100 years that it has been in operation
and it was handed over to Bournemouth YMCA in 2000 so that we could
continue to develop and expand the work to meet the needs of young
people and the community in the 21st century.
The centre has undergone a £4.5 million rebuild with the support
of numerous funders including MyPlace contributing towards a large
amount this. It is now a world class state of the art facility
boasting a large main multi-purpose hall for use for anything from
youth and children events such as birthdays parties, dance and
drama classes, business conferences, and production including
full theatre performances with state of the art lighting and sound,
all in a air conditioned room.
The building also includes the Soutbourne Childrens'
Centre, a bespoke youth club area, training kitchen, fully equipped
recording studio and control room, a multi-purpose training
room, a media training suite and 10 single bed accommodation
for young people. The facilities will all be accessible to the
young people in the area and will also be available to the wider
community to use.
The club aims to provide a safe gathering place for young people
and to provide a mix of formal and informal learning
opportunities in a light atmosphere, helping young people to
develop both hard and soft/interpersonal skills. It is operated by
trained youth workers who are able to provide support, advice and
encouragement to the young people at a critical time in their
lives, enabling them to maximise their potential.
Full information on the club and our development plans can be
found at www.pokesdownyouthclub.org or
by contacting our Programmes Manager - Mark Inkpen.