The Big Leeds Chat roadshow took us to Swarcliffe Youth Club, Mindmate and Barca, where we got the chance to hear what would make young people happier and healthier.
More than 20 young people came to these Big Leeds Chats. What did young people at Swarcliffe and Barca say?
On the whole, a lot of the young people who talked to us at Swarcliffe Youth Club and Barca had found life during the pandemic boring. It had been tough to learn over the internet, partly because it was harder to focus away from school. Some people felt they had really fallen behind as a result.
Other things that made school (and life more generally) harder were a lack of private space at home and difficulties getting hold of a computer. Some young people were loving getting back into school, although others had found the transition hard, and a number of those we spoke to had been part of 130 students excluded en masse over a uniform violation.
A few of the young people had lost loved ones during the pandemic.
Crime and anti-social behaviour were a big part of lots of our chats around the city, but never more so than with the young people in Swarcliffe and Barca. There were a lot of worries about knife crime, but another thing that discouraged people from going out was intimidating groups of older teenagers.
The young people who chatted with us really valued the chance youth club gave them to get together somewhere safe and welcoming. They’d like to see more kinds of organisations like these, as well as a skate park and some well-lit areas where they can meet friends.
