Rebecca Wood and her friend, Grace Beaumont, both in their early 20s are in the process trying to establish a youth centre in Caversham Park Village.

They have identified that there’s little for under 18′s in the area to do after school hours. Currently a lot of local kids ranging in age from 10 early 20s hang around the local shops and fields with nothing to entertain them or no where they can go without being moved on by the local PSCO or shop owners. They are gathering a petition from the local residents in Caversham and parents of the kids.

They are concerned that the generation gap is growing bigger with neither generation understanding the other. They believe that people older than age 30 are scared of the kids and the kids don’t understand they are doing anything wrong in hanging out as there is nowhere else to go. Also there is a problem in that the kids have talents, whether in music or art or just supporting each other but have no opportunity to develop or show these talents. If they could get a venue, their plan would be to arrange themed nights, such as a night where kids can learn form average people about life after school (e.g. college work, jobs, business, relationships, managing their finances etc.) things that you aren’t taught at school but need to learn.

They want to help reduce negative situation with local kids, such as teenage pregnancies and kids getting in trouble with the police. They have said there is a local boy aged 14 with a retraining tag, which is exactly what they want to avoid. They want parents to be able to come and talk to the kids. They have a vision of no social workers, no counsellors, just kids expressing themselves, having open discussions about things in life such as sex, drugs and relationships. Older people such Rebecca and Grace, will be there to offer advice from their own experiences as they think the younger kids will be able to connect with them better than older adults. They think this is a problem that has been going on for generations and want to make people aware of what they are doing and any advice or ideas people want to suggest would be greatly appreciated. They think that the kids of today need a chance to prove they are smart and talented people, a chance to help them better their situation and help them achieve the best they can.

If anyone can help in anyway possible, please in the first instance email Rebecca: Beckylouise17@hotmail.com.

We at Caversham.Info, your local Caversham website supports the idea and will update you on their progress.