‘Safe space’ is under threat
ITS FEW SURVIVING YOUTH CLUBS
FEARS EALING COULD LOSE ONE OF
LONDON teenagers campaigning against the destruction of their “essential” youth club protested at a council meeting in a desperate attempt to save their “safe space”.
The Ealing Young Champions are a group of young people who launched a petition to Ealing Council this summer in the hopes of stopping the demolition of the Young Adults Centre in Southall.
After gaining over 1,500 signatures, the petition is now being debated at a Council meeting on 19 October.
The teenagers will be having a presence outside the Town Hall from 6pm as well as speaking at the meeting itself.
Ria Siadima, 15, spoke to MyLondon about what the youth clubs mean to her and other young people in her area: “They provide a safe space for a lot of young people in the community. Some don’t even feel safe in their own homes, so the youth clubs are somewhere to go when people don’t have somewhere safe to be.”
Even though there are only three youth clubs in the borough, Ealing Council plans to destroy the Young
Adults Centre, one of the three, and redevelop the site for housing. Moreover, two youth centres in Ealing have already been shut down in the last ten years.
In fact, youth services across London have been slashed over the past decade, with Green Party London Assembly member Sian Berry finding that funding has been cut by 44 percent between 2011 and 2021.
Ria commented: “Underfunded isn’t even the right word as we haven’t really had any funds to build youth services.”
The teenagers have been working hard to promote their message, getting 100 more signatures on the day of the petition’s deadline.
But they are still unsure as to what the outcome will be for their youth club, which Ria remarked is “nerve-racking”.
No decision is going to be made at the meeting today, rather it is meant to be an an opportunity for the young people to express their concerns at the site’s closure.
Kari, 19, remarked: “To see the YAC torn down would be absolutely devastating. It is already limited as it is in Ealing with the borough filled with flats and empty buildings in general. Now, Ealing
Council is debating whether to keep one of the few precious institutions we really need in the community.
“Why? How has it got to a point where we are forced to stand outside and protest a youth centre that is essential to young people within its community. If this happens, where will we go? The Young Ealing Champions will do all we can to protect the community even if Ealing Council won’t.”
An Ealing Council spokesperson said: “We know how valuable youth services and youth centres are to younger residents. We are currently considering how these services can be delivered in the borough in the future to ensure that the needs and requirements of the communities they serve continue to be met.
“Young people have already provided valuable feedback on what future services should look like and this will form a major part of future plans, and will be a part of any wider consultation processes.
“Services offered by the YAC is not just building based, it is a collaboration with other charitable and voluntary youth services, as well as the council and we will look at how best to support this.”
The Ealing Young Champions are focusing on the Young Adults Centre for now because, Ria said, “A lot of young people feel really passionately about this issue.”
But the project is part of the Young Ealing Foundation, which has gained funding from the likes of John Lyon’s Charity. Ria hopes to continue working with them, and to become a special educational needs teacher one day.
Ria commented: “This has given me a voice and a way of expressing my opinions. Any opportunity that I could get to stand up for young people in front of people who can make a change and hear my opinion openly would be incredible.”