Youngsters’ faces beamed onto landmark buildings
TEN YOUNG PEOPLE HELPED BY YOUTH ZONE OVER LAST DECADE FEATURED
THE FACES of 10 young people who have been helped by Manchester Youth Zone during the last decade are to shine out on landmark buildings and advertising spaces across the city.
The Harpurphey-based project is celebrating its
10th year this month
– and to mark the milestone they intend to make the young people themselves ‘the stars of the show.’
They have worked with photographer Jody Hartley and creative agency Typocom to create the 10 in 10 campaign, featuring 10 young people who have benefitted from joining.
The campaign launched in May at Axis Tower on Deansgate, the 28-storey residential skyscraper owned by Property Alliance Group which is unmissable to thousands of people, and which will feature the 10 in 10 portraits on its digital advertising space.
The 10 young people included in the campaign range from aged 10 to 26 years of age, all of whom have very different stories on how Manchester Youth Zone (MYZ) has helped them reach where they are today. They include Clayton Davison, 20, who regularly visited the Youth Zone and made it his second home. Growing up with peers who were involved in anti-social behaviour, Clayton worked with youth workers at MYZ to create a different path for himself. Clayton says: “I gradually turned a corner and was able to manage my anger and not allow it to get in the way of my future.”
He focussed on his football skills, often taking children under his wing and helping them improve. MYZ enabled Clayton to undertake coaching awards and now he works with City in the Community and comes back as a worker coaching football on the 3G pitch. Of the youth workers that never excluded him or gave up on him he said: “They helped me open up and changed me.”
Also included is Alec Mudimu, 27, who grew up in Moston and went to school locally. Football was his passion and aged 16, when MYZ opened he came into the centre to see what was going on.
MYZ became a regular hang-out for him and his friends and in the early days it was a meeting point to go somewhere else. More often than not Alec and his friends would be there from when the doors opened to closing time.
As time went on Alec’s football career continued, but he was also inspired by the work of MYZ to take up youth work. Starting as a young leader, he was able to connect his passion for football with a new interest in youth work. He moved quickly from being a young leader through to becoming a paid qualified youth worker at MYZ.
During this period, he travelled to Wales for the football and back to Harpurhey for the youth work sessions. Then, he received a call asking him to play for Zimbabwe.
He says he had experienced firsthand how staff at MYZ had encouraged and supported him personally with his journey to professional football and was keen to be part of supporting other young people to realise their dreams. However, international football was an offer he could not refuse.
He continues to play for Zimbabwe but welcomed the opportunity to return to the club to be part of the 10th birthday celebrations.
He says: “Some of the things the young people go through are so scary – such as self-harm, abuse and neglect. It has shown me the level of support that they need. I was glad to be part of the project. What it does for young people is indescribable.”
Amanda Naylor OBE, CEO of MYZ added: “We are thrilled to unveil our fantastic campaign at Axis Tower. Property Alliance has come on board as a supporter of Manchester Youth Zone in our 10th year and it is the perfect building to showcase our 10 in 10 campaign in the heart of our city. The young people themselves are what makes the Youth Zone special and so it’s only right that they are the stars of the show. There has never been a better time to do this as Manchester city council also launches its work to become a UNICEF child friendly city through its ‘Our Year’ campaign.”
The Youth Zone opens seven days a week and expects more than 31,200 visits by young people in this year alone.
Some of the things the young people go through are so scary such as self-harm, abuse and neglect Alec Mudimu