Aldridge Manor, home to a great youth club. I do hope nobody is attached to it. Picture by Adrian Rothery and posted on Gegograph under a Creative Commons license.
As a result of the imminent closure of Aldridge Manor Youth Club and sale of the Manor House by Walsall Council, local activist Paul Sharpe has got his thinking cap on, and is appealing for help from anyone who might be able to help him set up an alternative club.
I’m sure lots of us – me included – went to the Manor as kids, and understand the value of Youth Clubs. It’s heartbreaking to see them go.
Paul sent me the following request a couple of days ago:
Hi Bob
As previously discussed the Manor House Youth club will be closing at the end of March after about 60 years. The building will also be closed and will then be sold off at some stage. As will most other council run youth clubs
There is a youth Club at the Aldridge Methodist church on Wednesdays from 7pm to 830pm. I believe that this has been going for a good few years. I would urge young people to go along to this… However I am aware that this may not appeal to some of the kids that go to the Manor.
I think it is really important that our kids and Aldridge in general have somewhere to meet up with others and to make and maintain friends and to do different activities, just as some of us older ones did in our childhoods.
The prospect of an independent local youth club that is run by parents (and by any other interested people/volunteers ) is being explored and I am meeting with some key people from a couple of good local venues this week that may be willing to provide a youth club base at least once a week.
However this is not something I can really do on my own.
Please if anyone is willing to support this possibility in a practical way, or on an organisational level please can you contact me in order for this to become a reality and a valuable resource for our local kids.
Thank You !
Paul Sharpe
You can find Paul on Facebook here, or mail me and I’ll pass your message on: BrownhillsBob at Googlemail dot com.
I wholly support Paul in his aims, and have been very sad to see the Walsall Youth Service dismantled – youth provision is very important indeed, but has been a very, very easy cut to make. Both The Plastic Hippo and Linda Mason have written eloquently and sensibly about this.
Please help Paul if you can.