29th June 2012

CHARD: Helping young people to find some direction

WHILE others complain about young people hanging around on the streets, the Streetspace team have, for the last five years, been working with the youth of Chard and now Ilminster, to help them make their own place in the community.

Like the Street Pastors, they are Christians but do not preach to the young people, only having theological conversations if asked.

Their detached youth project works with those who tend not to engage in youth organisations, talking with them and identifying what may spark their interest.

Working closely with the town council, Streetspace helped with the successful skate park project at Henson Park in Chard and members are currently working with the youth of Ilminster and Ilminster Town Council to build one at the recreation ground there.

With so many cuts in youth provision, they are trying to catch some of the fallout and fill the gap.

Experienced youth worker Tracey Hallett from Haselbury Plucknett was taken on as a student youth and community worker by Streetspace last September. She is studying two days a week for her youth and community and practical theology degree.

Tracey has been charged with the task of organising the third annual community day to be held in Henson Park on Saturday, July 14th and is also running a youth club at Tatworth Church and helping to fundraise for six Chard youths to go to Romania in August, to help Chard-based charity Project Romania.

Mother of two Tracey loves her work. She said: “Since September we have done so many good projects with young people, we are really expanding and it’s so exciting, we are moving on to one-to one -mentoring.

“My post is split between Tatworth Church and Streetspace. Tim Price the vicar there is the chairman of Project Romania and when one of the young people expressed an interest in going to Africa to do some voluntary work in Burkina Faso we realised that was too expensive and too risky, so we suggested going to Romania.

“Chard’s twin town Sie Ca Mare has a rainbow centre - a community centre for the village where they hold a GP surgery twice a week but they have no pharmacy. The plan is to convert a derelict portacabin. The six guys we are taking have been involved with Streetspace for three or four years and we are hoping they will become young leaders.

“There is a nine stage process to approach people on the street. First we walk past regularly, say hi and make eye contact, you have to be aware you are meeting them in their space and not everyone wants to have contact. The relationship we try to establish is non-judgemental and in the winter months we have meals and meetings when we meet them on a monthly basis over food at the Liza Tandoori. We try to see them face to face once a week and just hang out and chat, I just started a girls’ group and we use the Welcome Bap.

“A lot of the work is about building self-esteem and confidence. We also help with careers advice and try to point them in the right direction, they are such a mixed bunch and unemployment and financial pressure is a massive issue. Things like the skate park project and the community day can help them rediscover a sense of belonging.

“How I came to this is a bit of a story, my husband is in the military and I had been doing a youth and community degree with the MOD but took a year out of work because I had been very ill. I already had Christian values but while I was ill, my faith developed.

“When I was well again, every time I looked at courses on the computer, this one kept coming up but part of the academic study was a practical placement. There was nothing local that I could see but I decided to sign up anyway and then I saw Streetspace were looking for a student and it all fell into place.

“It is a fantastic opportunity for me. I ran youth clubs in Ilchester before and helped get the youth parish council off the ground there. With two children who are 11 and 12, it’s a real challenge but my husband Dean is being wonderful and volunteers himself at the youth club on Friday nights.

“The community day should be bigger and better this year with 35 stalls. A lot of other agencies are involved - Yarlington are providing a drumming workshop - and Chard Town FC are going to hold a penalty shoot off. Kelly Leigh dancers will be street dancing and the majorettes will be there, the town council are very supportive and the mayor will be on the barbecue again.

“On behalf of the team I would like to take this opportunity to recognise the work of all our volunteers and say thank you to those who are supporting us.”

CHARD: Helping young people to find some direction

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