Rock Hub Basildon
Rock Hub with ATF
Achieve Thrive Flourish (ATF) run a programme on behalf of the Violence and Vulnerability Unit, with support from the Essex Local Delivery Pilot, to engage young people who are not participating in the education system or are at risk of exclusion.
Participants involved are rewarded with a trip to the RockHub, if their attendance to school and attitude improves. The young people are from disadvantaged areas and were referred to ATF through the school systems. ATF engage with young people through boxing, football, rugby, basketball and cricket and this new addition of climbing gives participants a chance to develop new skills and relationships at the Hub.
Active Essex Local Delivery Pilot funded the Rock Hub trip, as well as additional sessions for the young people to continue climbing. The LDP allowed ATF to carry on working with the young people, so they could start their volunteering journey to embed themselves further into the community and engage in more positive relationships.
The trip provided young people with instructors who were positive role models, providing them with the encouragement they needed to pursue a passion such as rock climbing, to remove negative influences in their lives.
Providing young people with an opportunity to try something different helps to open up their possibilities and experience an activity they would previously not have had access to. This, in the long term could ignite a potential passion or career pathway, further detering them from engaging in criminal or anti-social behaviour.
