Youth First, the community benefit society that provides youth services to more than 11,000 young people in Lewisham, is now offering support online.
With its youth clubs and adventure playgrounds closed because of the coronavirus crisis lockdown, Youth First has launched an online service with fitness challenges, and dance routines.
There are also free handpicked films, Watch + Learn TV programmes, and lots of support and advice for young people.
“Despite sites being closed, we want to ensure that young people can have fun, grow and access the support they need,” says Youth First.
Youth First was spun out of Lewisham Council’s youth service in September 2016.
It offered a way to sustain and ideally grow youth work in Lewisham, during a climate of cuts and financial pressures across the public sector.
Traditional local authority youth provision has seen funding cuts of around 70 per cent over the last decade as central government forced big reductions in council spending.
The community benefit society, a not-for-profit organisation, has a participatory structure which allows staff and young people to be directly involved in management of the society.