North East children’s charity, Kids Kabin, is taking its new environmental education workshops on the road with the help of a £2,925 grant from the Newcastle Building Society Community Fund.
Kids Kabin runs a range of workshops for young people in disadvantaged neighbourhoods in Newcastle and Middlesbrough, to help them learn and develop creative and practical skills.
The workshops are delivered both on the street, using bike-powered mobile trailers, and in local community venues. Activities include pottery, cookery and woodwork, as well as bike repair sessions run in conjunction with Byker-based charity Recyke y’bike.
Kids Kabin has used the £2,925 grant to build and equip a new eco-trailer, following growing interest in environmental issues among its young people. The trailer contains gardening equipment, litter pickers, and even bike-powered smoothie makers.
The grant has also been used to set up new environmental education initiatives at the charity’s main centre in Walker.
Will Benson, chief officer at Kids Kabin, says: “Taking our workshop trailers to street locations makes them as accessible as possible for young people who might not feel comfortable in a more formal venue, or might not be able to get there for any number of reasons, and it helps to break down barriers that might otherwise stop them taking part in something they’d enjoy.
“There are lots of small green spaces around the Byker area in particular and our young people are really enthusiastic about getting involved with tidying up these neighbourhoods.
“This latest grant has helped us get this project up and running far more quickly than we otherwise could have and we’re now working towards taking our workshops out to even more North East neighbourhoods.”
This is the second time that our Society has supported Kids Kabin. In 2019, a grant of £1,600 supported their workshop activities.
Download the press release (PDF, 111kB).
Image caption: Will Benson, chief officer at Kids Kabin, demonstrating how a bike-powered smoothie maker works to our Head of Environment and Sustainability, Joanne Oskarsen-Stewart.
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