I feel incredibly fortunate to have been supported by youth workers growing up. Their guidance shaped my career and has played a significant role in getting to where I am today.
Youth worker support
I feel incredibly fortunate to have been supported by youth workers growing up. Their guidance shaped my career and has played a significant role in getting to where I am today.
Growing up in inner city Manchester, youth workers helped me unlock my potential and set a clear direction for my future. At first, I was reluctant to engage, but their persistence, care, and genuine interest in me helped me build the confidence to overcome personal challenges.
As chief executive of Empower, the charity that oversees HideOut Youth Zone in Gorton, Manchester, and its new Salford Youth Zone, set to open this summer, my goal is to ensure every young person has access to this kind of support and opportunity.
Time as a youth worker
Inspired by the youth workers who made a difference to me, I decided to give back and become a youth worker myself. I wanted to offer the same support, care and guidance that I had received, understanding firsthand the lasting impact it can have.
What sets youth work apart is that it's not forced – it's based on building completely genuine, voluntary relationships over time. This flexibility and trust are what allows youth workers to connect with young people who may be struggling. After qualifying, I worked in various organisations across Greater Manchester, including schools, colleges and Manchester City Council.
I gained a wealth of invaluable experience supporting young people and I was privileged to start my early career at Manchester City Council where I progressed from a trainee detached youth contact officer to the head of youth strategy and engagement.
Running a service
As head of youth strategy and engagement I led the division and developed the council's youth strategy, focusing on how best to engage with partners, providers and young people themselves to ensure that Manchester's young people had access to the support and services they needed.
I was passionate about making sure that young people had a voice and opportunity to shape decisions that affected them and their peers. Manchester is a diverse city region, with hugely contrasting areas of affluence and poverty, and this made it clear how important accessible youth services are.
Championing investment
In my current role I'm responsible for ensuring that as many young people as possible across Manchester and Salford can access the facilities and opportunities that youth zones and our amazing youth workers provide.
A big part of my job is engaging key stakeholders in the region, including leading businesses to ensure that we can maintain sustainable funding of the youth zones but more importantly create pathways and opportunities for young people to realise future success.
I work closely with local authorities to ensure that we approach challenges with a collaborative, multi-agency approach. We're seeing a surge now in the number of children and young people experiencing mental health challenges, often having to reach crisis point before they can access help.
The support that youth work provides young people, and the wider community is vital and can be truly life changing. It's all about empowering young people to realise their potential.
