The gloves were on this week at a boxing gym in Stafford which has proved a big hit with youngsters as part of Space 2016.
Staffordshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Matthew Ellis visited the Right Stuff Project during the second week of the summer holiday Space programme.
He saw dozens of young people put through their paces in a fun environment as part of four weeks of sessions put on by the popular boxing project. A video of the visit can be seen at https://youtu.be/cer7lN6XBcg
ndy Whitehall MBE, Right Stuff founder and manager, said: “This summer holiday is the second year we’ve done the Space scheme in conjunction with Staffordshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner. It was a fantastic success last year and we’re really pleased to have it back in the gym. It’s been really positive for us because we’ve managed to have four weeks where we can get on-the-job experience for our young leaders and our tutors. The whole thing has brought a lot of different projects and people together for education, fun and positive activity. Hopefully, we can build on that so that those young people stay engaged. Space for us is a must for us – year-on-year we would love to run the Space scheme.”
Mr Ellis said: “It’s been brilliant to visit this Space event. We brought Space back again for a second year having modernised it from the 80s and 90s. This bunch of young people not only having a fabulous time and getting fit and building confidence. What is happening here is providing a really good opportunity for the future citizens of Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent.”
Kaitlyn Traat, a Right Stuff young volunteer boxing tutor, said: “I find the Right Stuff Boxing Gym really good. It helps me through everything. When I started I was going through a really bad time in my life and boxing was the only the focused me. It’s really pushed me to do better things with my life and I would definitely recommend it to any child.”
Space was originally an activities scheme led by police in Staffordshire aimed at engaging young people before it stopped in the 1990s. Space 2016, co-ordinated by the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, is aimed at increasing skills, improving health and wellbeing, and creating opportunities for young people aged 11 and 17 to take part in positive activities to make communities safer.
Over the summer holidays 3,100 individual indoor and outdoor activities – many of them free of charge – are on offer including archery, tobogganing, ice-skating, swimming, boxing, arts and crafts, wildlife, ten-pin bowling, den building, drama, DJ mixing, dodgeball, fishing, football, gymnastics, kayaking, military challenge, movies, skating, music, photography, street dance, tennis, wheelchair basketball and trampolining.
People are urged to visit the Space website at www.staffordshirespace.uk to find out more and book their places for activities which run until Friday 2 September.
Mr Ellis added: “Space 2016 is up and running and we’ve had some great feedback so far. I’m getting out and about and witnessing Space in action and it’s wonderful to see the enthusiasm from the young people and organisations involved.
“Last year Space saw more than 13,300 attendances by young people and it was great to see such positive activities taking place. The money I have pledged will help to increase young people’s personal skills and improve their health and general wellbeing by creating opportunities for them to get involved in during the school summer holiday. I also hope in the future we can start to get more adults involved in helping out with Space and volunteering.”
