Two new youth centres proposed in Blackpool

A new strategy was agreed earlier this year which includes an ambition to ensure every young person in the town lives within a 15 or 20 minute walk of some kind of youth club.

But following an analysis of what is already available, two areas of Blackpool have been identified as not having any kind of dedicated youth club.

These are the wards of Ingthorpe and Greenlands, which are both in the north of the town.

The council is now proposing to lease out both the Whiteholme Community Centre on All Saints Road in Bispham, and former Blackpool Rangers Clubhouse facilities for delivering youth activities.

It is also wants to appoint a proven youth service provider to run activities at both centres.

Documents on North West procurement website The Chest say the council wants an organisation with “a vision for developing youth provision from the two facilities outlined in this document, that engage children and young people from eight years and upwards.”

The contract would run for five years.

Blackpool Council scrapped its own youth services in 2012 and has now set up a new team to oversee and co-ordinate provision but will not run its own youth clubs.

The new team includes a youth service manager, a grants and funding manager, a training and quality manager, a youth engagement officer and administration support.

Annual funding of £225,000 will be allocated by the council to support the new set up. which includes working alongside the third sector and young people to develop funding bids, allocate funds and monitor delivery.

It follows a review, carried out by the National Youth Agency and Youth Focus North West, which recommended a resort-wide strategy with young people playing a leading part in its implementation.

It said provision should be available throughout the town within a 15 minute walk of any young person’s home, and also found youth workers were under-resourced with many parents saying they could not afford to send their children to activities.

There was also a need for a shake-up because many teenagers did not attend youth groups because they found what was on offer was “boring” and did not appeal to them.