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Your support has enabled us to engage many hard to reach young
people and move them towards independence, through the provision of vocational
training in joinery and furniture restoration. Many people from the widest
range of socially excluded backgrounds have attended the project, many of whom
have shown remarkable progress during their time with us.
At the outset, the project set out to provide the best training and facilities to each young person, backed by intensive personal support and individual development. The workshop is now equipped with complete sets of hand tools for each trainee, along with all the machines one would expect to come across in an apprenticeship e.g. thicknesser/planer, morticer, band saw, cross saw etc. Health and Safety is of course paramount, and as part of current requirements, the machinery is linked to dust extractors and each has an emergency cut out facility.
One such example is a young man who was referred to us through West Kent Youth Offending Team. He has a history of exclusion from school, and a criminal record relating to stolen goods and illegal substances. His attendance at the project since joining in September 2003 has been exemplary, and he has shown a real aptitude for joinery. His intention is to become a self-employed bespoke furniture maker and, in order to realise this ambition, he has been attending a Basic Skills tutorial in conjunction with his woodwork training. We are confident that he will pass his City & Guilds Basic Woodworking Skills qualification this summer, and plan to offer him a position on the project as a future "peer" trainer. West Kent Young Offending Team have reported that they are amazed at the progress this young man has made.
The success of the project is linked to the intensive programme of personal development that runs in conjunction with the skills and business training. Our support worker has been instrumental in challenging entrenched behaviour; supporting not only the young people, but also their parents or guardians in their dealings with referring agencies and various authorities. Many young people have changed dramatically since participating in the project and attendance is excellent. The project has a high profile within the local judicial system, and the positive effect it can have on young people is well documented. In two recent cases it was decided not to award a custodial sentence to a young person, as it was felt that attendance at the Horizon Project was likely to have a far more successful impact on their future behaviour than imprisonment.
Even if you're not ready to buy some of our fantastic furniture yet, why not visit our West Kent YMCA web site and make a donation, to help continue our much needed work.
Please visit www.westkentymca.org.uk.
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