Station Youth Centre opening moving ever closer

The Centre, located at the former Free Church premises in Western Road, is scheduled to reopen in mid-September once the necessary refurbishment to the building and grounds is completed and will engage young people in Hailsham and the surrounding area.

An official opening event attended by youth service staff, local councillors and dignitaries will take place at the Centre on Saturday, September 14 from 2pm, of which members of the public are invited to attend to find out more about the facility and services on offer to young people.

Two additional and separate opening events are scheduled, the first taking place on Friday, September 13 from 6pm-7.30pm at which community groups, voluntary associations, charities and local clubs are invited to attend. The second, scheduled for Monday, September 16 (12pm-1.30pm) is open for local businesses and sponsors to attend.

The Station Youth Centre already had a successful trial run earlier in the summer, with nearly 400 young people having visited the venue within the first week of opening.

The announcement of the opening of The Station Youth Centre is just part of an exciting new chapter for Hailsham Youth Service, following the recent purchase of new premises by the Town Council and relocation of the youth service's operational centre to Western Road.

The Service, which celebrates 25 years of effective operation in Hailsham and Hellingly next year, has had an impact on the lives of thousands of young people and grown from one operational base at 1 Market Square into an expanded service which operates throughout the local community.

Funded and managed by the Town Council, the Service provides activities, support services and opportunities for young people in the local area and operates the Hellingly Youth Hub and Monday Youth Hub sessions on weekdays, in addition to organising free and low-cost activities at various locations as part of the 'Friday Night Project'.

The new Hailsham Youth Service building, at which The Station Youth Centre is based, is suitably located close to the town centre and recreation ground (allowing the Service to stay at the centre of the community) and boasts high accessibility levels with disabled access provided and nearly 400m2 of space for young people and the wider community to use.

The ground-level main hall, housing 'The Underground', has been transformed into a lounge-style space for young people and sessions will be free to enter. Various activities will be on offer and facilities include comfortable seating areas, pool tables, air hockey, table tennis, table football, board games, Nintendo Switch and X-Box.

Further updates and information regarding opening times from mid-September are available on the Service's website (hailshamyouthservice.org) and Facebook page (HailshamYouthService).

"The Station Youth Centre provides a safe place to motivate, inspire and empower young people in a constructive way, building community spirit and well-being, " said Youth Service Manager Andy Joyes.

"The new centre has already proved to be a great addition to Hailsham, and I believe it not only provides a safe space, but also gives young people a range of great opportunities just like the young people who attend the Hellingly Youth Hub, Monday Youth Hub and Friday Night Project receive.

"Within growing communities, provision needs to be made for young people. By running this new, much larger and inclusive centre, our hope of encouraging them to take part in the wide range of activities organised by Hailsham Youth Service has already been fulfilled with the high number of attendees at the Monday and Hellingly Youth Hubs and Friday Night Project activities over the summer break!"

Town Mayor Cllr Paul Holbrook commented: "By acquiring the new centre of operations for our youth service, we're optimistic that we can now go even further in terms of meeting the needs of young people through facilitated activities and support. In short, The Station Youth Centre is a great addition to Hailsham Youth Service's offering.

"Managing the greater demand from young people to have safe places to go and something to do out of school time is important.

"The Station Youth Centre's aim is to provide a space where young people can chill out and make new friends and, like our other venues, will ensure a safe and welcoming environment for them regardless of background, gender or culture."