Hailsham youth workers encourage young people to stay active online

The message comes after the coronavirus pandemic has stopped face-to-face services in the town, and youth workers believe staying in contact and keeping young people engaged is important.

The services are encouraging youths to join in with discussions and take part in online activities, including interactive challenges, quizzes, and recommendations on which films and TV programmes to watch and what games to play on their smartphones.

Andy Joyes, youth project coordinator at Hailsham Town Council, said, “Due to the coronavirus pandemic and social distancing measures currently in place, there has been a lot of changes to young people’s living circumstances.

“Keeping young people updated on social media and in touch with youth workers are important and, on our Instagram page in particular, we are producing lighter content and activities to keep young people engaged.”

The temporary closure of Hailsham Youth Service, which manages the Square Youth Café, Friday Night Project and Monday Youth Club, as well as other support services, is part of a town council-wide measure to combat the spread of coronavirus.

Andy said, “With all the guidance from the government now impacting our lives, we’ve put measures in place to make sure we’re protecting the health and safety of young people in Hailsham and residents at large.

“It’s crucial that we’re all following the latest health advice from the NHS and Public Health England – and it is our duty as youth workers to look after the health, safety and wellbeing of young people who use our services, as well as our staff members. “Hopefully our social media pages will help young people easily reach and engage with youth workers, until such time when we can reopen our centres and resume activities.”

Regular updates and activities can be accessed on Hailsham Youth Service’s Facebook page www.facebook.com/HailshamYouthService and Instagram account www.instagram.com/hailshamyouth

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Regular updates and activities can be accessed on Hailsham Youth Service’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/HailshamYouthService/) and new Instagram account (www.instagram.com/hailshamyouth/).