Holiday Provision for Young People at the Waterside Centre, Newbury

28 June 2021

Berkshire Youth is delighted to announce a partnership with West Berkshire Council to ensure young people can access youth provision over the summer holidays. The Holiday Activities and Food Programme is funded by Department for Education and distributed by West Berkshire Council.

The programme aims to encourage young people to:

• eat more healthily over the school holidays
• be more active during the school holidays
• take part in engaging and enriching activities which support the development of resilience, character and wellbeing along with their wider educational attainment
• be safe and not to be socially isolated
• have a greater knowledge of health and nutrition
• be more engaged with school and other local services

Berkshire Youth will deliver the programme to young people aged 11+ from the Waterside Centre during the summer holidays, one of the first programmes to run out of the newly refurbished centre. Berkshire Youth will also work with partners in Thatcham – including Thatcham Town Council, Thatcham Youth and RMD Adventure Learning – to develop a community summer programme for young people aged 11+ in Thatcham.

These programmes will offer young people a variety of opportunities to be engaged in activities in a safe space in their community during the long summer holidays. Young people will also be offered a meal to ensure that no young person goes without being fed over this time. Whilst the funding was established for those children eligible for Free School Meals, Berkshire Youth has secured additional funds from Greenham Trust and Sovereign Housing Association to ensure that any vulnerable young person can access the programme.