Charity funds youth club to cut boredom and crime

Paul Carey, chair of CYPG, speaking at the launch of The Vault

A new youth club has opened in Callington, in Cornwall, in the building of a former bank which closed in November.

The Vault offers young people a place to go, 10 years after the last youth club in the town closed.

It will hold drop-in sessions each Wednesday for people aged between 13 and 21.

Paul Carey, the chair of the Callington Youth Project Group (CYPG), said he wanted to offer young people opportunities to learn and the chance to talk with youth workers.

'Lack of facilities'

He said there were issues with drugs and knife crime in the town, but he hoped the new centre would offer an alternative path for young people.

"At least we are giving young people the chance to come in and learn and perhaps interact with some youth workers that we are paying for.

"The founding trustees came to realise there was a lack of facilities for young people in Callington, especially those that tend to shun more organised activities such as scouts and football."

He said as a registered charity they were not subject to threats of closure from council or government funding cuts.

'Quite scary'

"Just judging by the enthusiasm of the young people in here today, I think it will survive for some time," he said.

Aiden, 18, said there was previously a lack of activities and groups in Callington.

He said: "[This is] somewhere where young people can explore other things, other than getting mixed with the wrong crowd. I think it's going to be good."

Amy, 18, said: "I honestly think it's quite scary where most kids I know are afraid to walk home alone after school.

"I had to escort a Year 7 once because he was afraid someone was going to jump him on his way to his grandparents, so there is definitely a problem with gang violence, knife crime and the county lines [drug crime] around."

Two years ago the CYPG set up the LiveWireBus taking young people from Callington to two youth clubs in Saltash via a borrowed minibus.