Youth work for community sports team
A football club's sport in the community project has stepped in to provide youth work in villages.
The TNSFC Foundation, run by the Welsh Premier football champions, The New Saints, has been involved in providing leisure activities for all ages in the Oswestry area for the past five years.
Gill Jones, foundation manager, said that it now also had a youth and community worker who had stepped in to help youth clubs in Gobowen and Weston Rhyn and set up youth cafes in both area.
She explained the breadth of work the foundation does to a meeting of Oswestry Town Council.
The foundation has for the past year, organised holiday clubs in Cae Glas Park and Gateacre playing fields, funded by the town council with an average of 20 children attending each session.
Similar sessions four children between the ages of four and 14 were held in Gobowen. St Martins and Weston Rhyn, she said. These also included the provision of free, healthy lunches.
"These have been very well received by families, particular those of children who have free school meals who struggle to provide meals in the holidays," she said.
"We were able to obtain big lottery grants to stretch the money that we were given."
The foundation is asking Oswestry Town Council to consider renewing its partnership for work in Oswestry after the February half term activities and to consider what it would like from the foundation.
"We would rather be commissioned that receive a grant."
Councillors praised the work of the foundation over the past year.
Councillors Mike Isherwood and Peter Cherrington said they would like to see the Foundation expand its activities to eastern Oswestry where they said, there was also the availability of indoor space in case of bad weather.
Councillor Oli Rose said she would like the council to consider commissioning work from the youth engagement officer.
"It seems to work in Gobowen and Weston Rhyn, it could work in Oswestry as well. There seems to be problems with older children in Oswestry at the moment so maybe that's where we should direct funding, to community outreach work."
Councillor Vince Hunt said he was keen to see lunches included in the holiday activities.
"There are children in Oswestry who suffer from holiday hunger which is awful in a civilised county. But there are families who really struggle."
Councillors agreed there should be further talks between the council and the Foundation.
