There has been a real sense of energy growing across our ‘Not My Label’ Programme delivery hubs. Week by week, our young people are taking part in new activities and slowly making the space their own.
Each hub session is shaped around KORI’s six key outcomes: enhancing wellbeing, building good communication skills, strengthening social networks, developing a strong sense of direction, increasing cultural capital, and supporting environmental education. These outcomes help guide our activities, but we are also seeing their impact in small moments. For example, a young person trying something they were unsure about, sharing their ideas with the group, encouraging someone else, or simply choosing to come back to our hubs each week.
Some sessions are creative and reflective, giving young people the chance to express themselves and build confidence. Others are more active and challenging, including our Friday sessions at Castle Climbing with the older group. Through these Friday sessions, we have seen many of our young people step outside their comfort zones and begin to recognise what they are capable of in a completely different environment.
In one recent younger group session, we explored the theme of joy and happiness through different activity stations. One station invited young people to draw and design their dream hub session. Another focused-on wellbeing, where they reflected on things that make them feel annoyed or angry, and how the things that bring them happiness can help them manage those feelings. At another station, our youth worker taught the group how to juggle, integrating fun and movement into the session.
A big part of what makes the hubs work is the consistency of the team around the young people. Sessions are usually supported by our Delivery Manager, Youth Development Worker, and Wellbeing Practitioner, each bringing a different layer of support into the room and helping to hold a safe space. Having a team like ours helps ensure that young people are not only taking part in activities but are also being noticed and supported throughout the session whenever they need it.
Youth Voice
“I like coming into hubs because we do a lot of fun, cool things every week.”
“I like coming into hubs because I am able to have fun and see my friends.”
We are excited to see how the hubs continue to grow, while doing what we do best.
