THE BARONESS NEWLOVE OF WARRINGTON SPEAKS PASSIONATELY ABOUT NCS

The Second Reading of the National Citizen Service bill was recently heard in the House of Lords in which Baroness Newlove of Warrington gave an emotional account of the impact that the National Citizen Service has on young people from across Warrington.

She highlighted the need for such programmes by reading in the words of Jordan Dooley his account of the impact that programme had on his life during Summer 2016. Baroness Newlove spoke about the tragic loss of her husband Garry Newlove in 2007 as a result of an attack by a gang of youths, and cited the need to provide programmes such as the National Citizen Service.

Lady Newlove’s speech mentioned OnSide Warrington Youth Club and Warrington Council many times and the positive impact that the programme has on young people. The speech has been recorded in Hansard, to view the clip of Baroness Newlove’s speech please follow this link:

OnSide Warrington Youth Club has been delivering the National Citizen Service since 2012 – during that time almost 2,000 young people have completed this four-week personal development programme which is delivered three times a year. The programme is designed to give young people a boost in confidence, self-esteem and a wide range of other transferable skills.

Following on from Warrington’s success, we have recently been awarded funding from the National Citizen Service (NCS) under the Pathfinders programme, to engage young people from across the Youth Zone network in delivering social action projects in their specific areas. The scheme is currently delivered between October and December 2016, working with 150 young people in total.

This government funded initiative is unique as it targets all young people from across the country with the aim that the National Citizen Service will be a ‘rite of passage’ for young people when they complete their GCSEs. The programme recently received national coverage when David Cameron adopted the role as chair of the board of Patrons of the National Citizen Service Trust.

Dave McNicholl, Chief Executive of OnSide Warrington Youth Club, said: “We are thrilled that Baroness Newlove of Warrington is working so closely with OnSide Warrington Youth Club and delivered such a passionate speech about the positive impact that the National Citizen Service has on the lives of young people from across Warrington.”

For more info on National Citizen Service or Onside Warrington Youth Club please contact OnSide Warrington Youth Club on 01925 581226 or email to info@warringtonyouthclub.co.uk.