Council hoping for new youth centre to combat anti-social behaviour
The Base is set to open this spring
Swindon Borough Council is hoping the new Youth Centre ‘The Base’ will help improve young people's mental health and tackle anti-social behaviour.
The name was revealed earlier this week when the young people who are leading the project gave a number of councillors a tour of the new facilities.
It is the first new youth centre in years to open in Swindon.
Council leader Jim Robbins said: “There is a real sense that there isn’t lots of opportunities for young people to do because lots of these services have shut down over the pandemic and over those years of austerity that we had to deal with.
“It feels like there’s less and less places for young people to go where there isn’t a cost attached”.
The Base will feature facilities like a recording and podcasting studio, a design studio and a hairdresser’s as well as a multi-faith prayer room and a kitchen for cooking lessons, all of which were ideas brought forward by young people involved in the planning process.
There will also be youth workers present to make sure that the young people get the support they need, so that any mental health issues and anti-social behaviour can be detected as early as possible.
Councillor Paul Dixon, Cabinet member for Children’s Social Care, said: “This project is fundamental to our work in building a fairer Swindon. It is a fantastic example of what we are doing to ensure our children have the support they need to achieve their hopes, dreams and ambitions.
The Base has been led by young people for young people, and I am delighted to see the progress that has been made. When the centre opens later in the year this will be a landmark moment for young people in Swindon, and I can’t wait to see the impact it will have for our local community.”
The redevelopment of the building, which formerly hosted the Lyndhurst Centre, is set to be completed by the end of March with lots of its services expected to start running shortly after.
However, the council is expecting the youth centre to only become fully operational in the summer as they say some services will take an additional few weeks to be completed.
The Base will be open daily from 8am to 10pm for 11 to 16 year-olds.