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On Monday 19th February, three young adults showcased the volunteering opportunities Fresh Futures’ young adults service has to offer at West Yorkshire’s first Youth Conference. Organised by the Youth Advisory Group and held at Greenhead College, the event was a triumphant call for organisations across the county to champion the voices of young people.

The Mayor for West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, gave a rousing welcome to the attendees, many of whom were young adults representing organisations intent on empowering youth voices. Also in attendance were colleagues from West Yorkshire Police, members of the councils and creatives, who all shared the common goal of valuing thoughts and ideas from young adults.

Guest speakers delivered a variety of engaging performances and speeches, evidencing how they value lived experience and encourage young people to flourish. Soundproof Box CIC gave a thought-provoking performance which aims to eliminate patterns of abuse through supporting survivors and reminding society to call-out unwanted behaviour. During the Red Flags Interactive Theatre monologue, the audience was encouraged to wave red flags whenever we felt like threatening behaviour was being displayed.

Activist Marvina Newton gave a powerful talk about the journey toward racial trauma informed care through utilising healing and empowerment. She raised awareness of the presence of social privileges through facilitating the Privilege Walk exercise. Participants were encouraged to take a step forwards or backwards depending on their reactions to statements, for example, Marvina said:

if you find it difficult to find make-up for your skin complexion or a hairdressers in your community, take one step back.

Three members of the audience participated in the Privilege Walk, including our very own Zay Alabi (pictured, centre)! Marvina gave Zay a platform to speak openly about their experiences of prejudice and Zay’s words were an impactful reminder of the need advocate for marginalised identities with empathy and compassion.

Samuel, Zay and Nathan (pictured, left to right) networked with members of the public, holding meaningful conversations about how the new service helps young people build their confidence and self-esteem. They also actively participated in workshop discussions across the themes of serious violence, drugs and alcohol, anti-social behaviour and violence against women and girls.

Zay said:

It was a fascinating and eye-opening experience.

Nathan found the conference:

very useful in case I was ever to come across a dangerous situation.

Samuel said:

I found the youth conference interesting and informative. I learned how local administration is working with and for the people to make a positive change and how the police are trying to work in a friendly environment. I opted for the crime against women workshop session. I found that session eye opening and the measures that were being taken by the Mayor and team members were worth praising. I think it’s a positive thing that the mayor’s team were noting down the feedback from the session.

Alice Lowe OBE, the Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime closed the evening by sharing her appreciation for the first West Yorkshire Youth Conference. She spoke of the importance of listening to young adults’ experiences s to understand how we can improve lives across the county.

Thank you so much to Samuel, Zay and Nathan for their contributions and for giving up their time to promote the young adults service. We are grateful to the West Yorkshire Combined Authority for including us in such a momentous occasion for the youth of West Yorkshire!

Since September 2023, we have been co-creating a service with young adults aged 18 – 26 years old and living in Kirklees. We want to say a massive thank you to everyone who has taken part in the pilot service and contributed their ideas: we couldn’t do this work without you!

Our new service is called elevate, which aims to develop confidence, self-esteem and social skills.
We welcome anyone aged between 18 – 26 and living in Kirklees who wants to make more social connections and develop their confidence. We are especially keen to help those young people who are struggling to find employment or further education opportunities, as we know this group can feel invisible and in need of empowerment.

Are you aged between 18 – 26 years olds and living in Kirklees?
If you’re interested in helping other young people, or you would like to find out more about accessing our service, we would love to hear from you! Please get in touch with our Community Connections team to find out more:
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 07526178180

Today we’re talking to Mark Farmer, Fresh Futures’ CE, to ask him about the new brand launched earlier this week. Mark, YCC has become Fresh Futures – tell us why you’ve decided to change your name.

“When we were established 50 years ago, our vision was simple: to support vulnerable and disadvantaged children in Kirklees.  Over recent years, our remit has diversified and we provide many more services.  From our work with young people at our alternative education provision through to our work with perpetrators of domestic abuse, our services are more holistic today, than ever before. We’ve changed our name to one that represents our vision to enable children, young people and their families to have to have opportunities for a better life, both now and in the future.”

What difference will the new brand make on the charity?

“The new brand won’t change the services we deliver or the support we provide – we will continue to deliver consistently and provide support to people who need us in Kirklees and the wider region.. The re-brand is about ensuring that our name demonstrates to the local communities who were are and what we do to help.”

This year is your 50^th birthday, has the re-brand been planned with this significant anniversary in mind?

“Absolutely! For us, our 50^th birthday is a great opportunity to look back at the fantastic impact the team have made on the local community over the past 50 years.  But it’s also an opportunity for us to look forward about how we can help over the next 50 years.

We all recognise that these are challenging times for many. Between the pandemic and global wars, through to the cost of living crisis, many people from Kirklees are struggling and living in poverty. Fresh Futures wants to be at the heart of finding solutions in our  communities, championing new projects and continuing to diversify and support more people.”

What’s on the horizon over the next year for Fresh Futures?

“We have some exciting new projects coming up over the next 12 months. In January we’ll be launching a warm spaces project, from there we’re developing an employability offering and a support network specifically designed with young adults at the heart of it.  There’s also developments within our education provision, with a move towards more vocational courses, alongside opening our doors to offer education to post 16 young people.

Both I and the trustees feel that Fresh Futures is the right name for the exciting developments ahead, while still representing our core services supporting children, young people and their families.”

Watch this space – exciting times for Fresh Futures ahead.