HideOut Youth Zone members meet Prime Minister and Home Secretary

This morning young people from HideOut, East Manchester Youth Zone met the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson and Home Secretary, Priti Patel. The visit was an incredible opportunity for our members, and gave them the chance to show their Youth Zone and share why it’s important to them.

Kane, 20 who was at HideOut this morning, said:

“I was very shocked that Boris Johnson came to HideOut today. He had a good sense of humour I got a selfie and video with him! I think it’s important that politicians get to see HideOut so they can put things in place that young people want and give youth clubs more money!”

The Prime Minister and Home Secretary got to experience what a Youth Zone is all about, touring the state-of-the-art facility which opened its doors in September 2020. From art to boxing, baking to sports, both the Prime Minister and Home Secretary tried their hand at some of the activities on offer.

They also met Jayden and James from Hideout’s media squad who were trained at Hideout this summer to use videography equipment and create content. The budding reporters had the opportunity to conduct an impromptu interview with the Prime Minister.

The visit was not only an opportunity to showcase the incredible facilities, but also to share stories of the difference Hideout makes to the lives of young people, and to highlight our commitment to bring more Youth Zones to more communities across the country.

Our Chief Executive, Kathryn Morley, said:

“We’re so proud of the incredible young people who attend our Youth Zones, so it’s fantastic that they got this opportunity to meet the Prime Minister and Home Secretary. There’s brilliant work happening each and every day of the week at OnSide Youth Zones across the country, and we’re committed to growing our Network and bringing more incredible support and opportunities to more young people in our communities. Thank you to the Prime Minister and Home Secretary for coming along and experiencing the power of a Youth Zone first-hand.”

Hideout member Caitlin, 15 met the Prime Minister in the kitchen where he took part in a baking activity along with the Home Secretary. Commenting she said:

“It was really exciting to get to meet the Prime Minister, he was nice and funny. We spoke about baking and whether he would go on Great British Bake Off! It’s great that Hideout gives us the opportunity to meet someone as important as this!”