Praise from Wansbeck MP Ian Lavery for East Bedlington Youth Club, run by Pride Action North

By Craig Buchan
Published 1st Aug 2023, 11:37 BST
Updated 1st Aug 2023, 11:37 BST
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Free activity sessions for children in Bedlington are “so important” for the area’s young people, local MP Ian Lavery has said.

The Wansbeck MP visited East Bedlington Youth Club, which runs supervised sessions for children between eight and 12 years old every Friday.

The club, run by Pride Action North at East Bedlington Community Centre between 6pm and 8pm, aims to provide opportunities that families might not be able to afford and to allow children to congregate and have fun under adult supervision.

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Mr Lavery said: “I had a positive meeting with representatives from Pride Action North who have been doing some fantastic work in my constituency to support a wide range of young people often from deprived backgrounds.

From left, project officer at UK Youth Jess Sansom, Wansbeck MP Ian Lavery, and Pride Action North charity manager Angela Brudenell. (Photo by Pride Action North)From left, project officer at UK Youth Jess Sansom, Wansbeck MP Ian Lavery, and Pride Action North charity manager Angela Brudenell. (Photo by Pride Action North)
From left, project officer at UK Youth Jess Sansom, Wansbeck MP Ian Lavery, and Pride Action North charity manager Angela Brudenell. (Photo by Pride Action North)

“It is so important that support like this is out there for young people, especially during such a difficult period financially and the knock on effect that this can have on their mental health, as well as physical wellbeing.

“I look forward to working with the team at Pride Action North long into the future to support their continued efforts to make a positive impact here in Wansbeck, and the wider north.”

Pride Action North, which organises the club with the parish council and funding partners UK Youth, has also introduced a five to 12 holiday club every Monday during the summer holidays, and has plans to introduce the clubs in other Northumberland locations.

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Charity manager Angela Brudenell said: “The youth club has been a great success since we introduced the sessions to young people in Bedlington, and the positive impact it has made on the lives of the youths and their families has been significant.

“Being able to provide a safe place for them to spend time and engage with their friends instead of being bored with nothing to do, which can often lead to causing anti-social behaviour, is something we are really passionate about at Pride Action North.

“To receive such glowing praise and strong support from our local MP is really pleasing, and we are excited about how we can improve the sessions we run to serve a larger group of youths across the county.”