“A place that makes my not good days better.”
Up to 250 children and teenagers come to the Sulgrave Youth Club every week, most of whom have little access to other organised activities.
The cost-of-living crisis has had a devastating impact on families who were already struggling to make ends meet. For many parents and carers, there is little-to-no money to spare for non-essentials like children’s clubs or extra-curricular activities.
It’s perhaps not surprising that, according to a report by Sport England, children and young people from less affluent homes get the least amount of physical exercise. Those from a global majority background, such as Black and Asian children, are also considerably less likely to be physically active than White children.
The Sulgrave Youth Club in Shepherds Bush welcomes 200-250 children and teenagers every week. The club was founded in 1926 and is now a registered charity. Three youth clubs meet weekly, all of which are free and offer a range of activities, such as football, dodgeball, table tennis, art and music. The club also runs low-cost taekwondo, drama and rollerskating clubs.
The benefits for the young people who take part extend far beyond physical exercise. Club Manager Nick Sazeides shares, “The club gives young people a safe place to be. It’s a place where they feel comfortable and know all the staff. It’s also a place where they can express themselves, and a place where they learn while having fun.”
One of the areas of learning is cookery. The young people are able to join in with cooking a healthy meal at the weekly youth clubs. For those experiencing food poverty, the meal they share with their friends at the club may well be the most nutritious they eat all week.
A junior member says, “It makes me more happy and I get to meet new friends, cook and do fun games. I have a place that makes my not good days better!”
The Sulgrave’s maths, English and science clubs are very popular. While many children struggle with these core subjects, those from low-income homes that don’t have English as a first language can find them particularly challenging. Nick shares a recent message from a parent: “Amaiah received outstanding results for her end-of-year exams. She almost got full marks on both math and English papers, a huge improvement from last year. Thank you all so much. It’s amazing how much an extra hour a week can help a child.”
Over 650 children and young people aged 7-19 come to the Sulgrave Youth Club every year. 73% are from minority ethnic communities; 59% live in areas of deprivation or receive free school meals; and 18% have a learning difficulty or disability. Most have little access to affordable facilities outside of the club or school. As one parent shares, “It’s hard to find inexpensive fun things to do with the kids but my daughter loves Sulgrave and it doesn’t hurt my pocket.”
Nick adds, “Young people can become bored, frustrated, and isolated if at home, or susceptible to negative peer pressure and potential anti-social behaviour if out on the streets. Without the opportunities offered to them by the Sulgrave, their experiences would be limited, their social development would be impaired, and their potential would not be fulfilled.”
One of the senior members shares, “Sulgrave is like a second home to me and the staff are like family and if the Club ever shut down it would feel like a piece of me disappeared.”
The Sulgrave Youth Club was awarded one of our Flexible Three Year Grants earlier this year. Nick says, “It was a real bonus as we lost our council contract last year and our running costs have increased. The grant will give us a degree of financial certainty.”
Find out more
You can find out more about the Sulgrave Youth Club on their website: www.thesulgraveclub.org.uk
If you’d like to apply for a Community Grant for your organisation, the current funding round is open until Monday 13th January 2025. Find out how to apply here.
Guy is a retired solicitor who has lived in Hammersmith for over 40 years. As well as having a long legal career, Guy has decades of experience in the not-for-profit sector. He was a school governor for 35 years and spent several years volunteering as Chair of the Finance Committee at Hammersmith & Fulham Law Centre. If you recognise Guy, that’s probably because he also served as a local councillor for Hammersmith & Fulham.
“We recently represented a migrant woman who was trafficked to the UK by a wealthy family. She was forced to work extremely long hours as a nanny, housekeeper and cleaner. She didn’t receive anywhere near the minimum wage, and the family had control of her passport and bank account.”
Everyone at Hammersmith United Charities would like to thank Vivienne Lukey as she steps down after 12 years as a trustee, including six years as Chair.