The Last week

If you were to take a snapshot of your youthwork practice , a point in which all things you did culminated... when would it be... For me the Sidewalk project was this in the last week, notably saturday night, but we'll get there in a moment.

The Project went to the four transition days, in which we gave out information and cards to lots of P7 pupils, some S2/3 pupils who were helping on the day, gave out some annual reviews to teachers and mingled with other agency workers who were also there. For many 11 yr old what we do on a friday and saturday is fairly irrelevant at the moment, given that most of the Yp we see are 14-15 +, yet good to let them know what we are doing and also puiblicise this in the schools too. 

Also took a young person who weve seen for a while round to a local charity shop so they could start volunteering as they wanted to do something and had only been involved in some projects since leaving school a long while ago.

Friday Night in North Muirton was a busy one, saw some young people from the transition days and some good chats with others, The CC was unusually quiet.. maybe YP were saving themselves for saturday....

Saturday, the hottest day of the year, Young People were everywhere, on the inch, skatepark, in town and also at an underage disco event. We had 17 conversations with 61 young people, from those who wed known for a very long time, those who were drinking, and walking young people to bus stops or waiting with them until their parents picked them up. Quite a few young people at the Disco were seen at the transition days and so the timing of this was great. It was a night when we did all the things we could do, advised Yp about alcohol, offered spport in conversations, signposted to agencies and introduced the project, waited with YP until they were leaving town. In the midst of this we received some positive reactions like 

two young people waved appreciatively as their mum was picking them up

young person thanked us for providing them with a bus fare

It was a late night but one that in three hourse encapsulated the work of the project, the acceptance of the project in the lives of young people and the various ways we can support young people on the streets and also long term.

oh yeah, and today that young person starts work at the charity shop....