Youths love our exciting activities
We’re entertaining and educating
If fast-paced activities are your thing then this year’s summer youth programme could be for you.
In last year’s programme, mountain biking, white water rafting and grand prix racing sessions were some of the exciting activities guaranteed to get the adrenaline going.
Our youth programme also included rock schools, animation workshops and dance workshops, providing the chance to learn some new skills and have fun.
Last summer, we also decided to venture into local parks, and the Summer Road Shows were created.
Working with partner organisations, including Lothian & Borders Police, we went to Union Park, Davidson’s Mains, Clermiston and Gyle Park.
These open-air events combined music, food, sports, urban arts and mobile football and, overall, 1615 children and young people took part in our programme in July and August 2011, the largest number in recent years.
The West Edinburgh Neighbourhood Partnership meeting in December played host to a number of people delivering youth work in West Edinburgh.
There were presentations from the Council’s Community Learning & Development, the Girl Guides, Lothian & Borders Police, St Thomas’ Church, libraries, and pupils from St Augustine’s High School.
Did you know that:
- In an average week, 1,327 children and young people attend youth groups or projects in community centres in west Edinburgh
- Regular activities include sport, arts, outdoor activities, drama, youth cafes, dance, outings, support and advice
- Some of these activities lead on to qualifications of one kind or another, for example the Duke of Edinburgh Award
- Uniformed youth organisations such as Scouts, Cubs, Girl Guides, Brownies and Boys Brigade meet weekly in 15 different venues throughout west Edinburgh
- 30 venues in west Edinburgh, including community centres, churches, schools and leisure centres provide something for children and young people to do, on a weekly basis.
Learning opportunities for adults can be fun too
As well as developing lots of exciting opportunities for young people, the Community Learning & Development service also works with adults in the area.
In addition to a fantastic Adult Education programme run by South Queensferry High School, there are a variety of classes and groups at local community venues throughout west Edinburgh.
Two local groups for adults with learning disabilities have recently decided to take on the challenges of accredited learning.
The Sunshine group in South Queensferry and the Wednesday group at the Rannoch Centre have enrolled with Borders College.
They are gaining qualifications in subjects such as photography, IT and healthy eating – in between running successful campaigns for supported accommodation and organising trips to the theatre.
Some of the most popular groups in the past year have been the PEEP and Growing Confidence groups, which run all over west Edinburgh in local centres and schools.
These classes give parents and carers a chance to meet and learn how to support their child’s learning, or to get practical tips on the challenges of parenting, in an informal and friendly setting.
“From comments we received, we found that participants in these groups were reassured that other parents were going through the same things and experiencing the same issues as they were. They also said they had learnt just how important emotional wellbeing is to children,” said community learning and development worker Lorna McCulloch.
Need to know
For further information on learning opportunities for adults, contact Lorna on 0131 339 5351.