Penny Appeal launches much-needed Community Hub

Earlier this week, Penny Appeal were proud to open their doors to a much-needed and vital Community Hub, at their Thornes Park Campus -  kicking off with the Youth Club, which will aid the young people (aged 11-16) within the Wakefield community.

The Youth Club is the first instalment of the wider Community Hub with the aim to unite and assist the young people in the area, and enable them the time to socialise, learn and grow outside of school times, whilst also retaining the same safe and secure environment.

The vision for the wider Community Hub over the coming months will see support facilities for refugee groups and families, while also supplying aid for the elderly, and anyone in need across Wakefield.

On Tuesday evening, we welcomed exactly 29 children to the Penny Appeal Campus, as a mixed-gendered group were expertly supervised by qualified youth workers and enriched by a range of activities such as table-football, a selection of top-range gaming consoles, pool and table-tennis and much more.

The children were given two introductory hours with the brand-new equipment, donated and supplied by Penny Appeal, who also treated the young group to free food and drink – as a selection of halal pizzas were on offer.

Ridwana Wallace-Laher, CEO of the humanitarian organisation said: “It was a really exciting day for Penny Appeal with the opening of our community hub.

“Thank you to the Community Hub Manager, Zahid Khan, who has turned our plans into reality. It allows us to give back to the community, which is what we have always been about.”

“The fact we can do this on our doorstep allows us to show ourselves in the local community. It really is small change, big difference.”

Mohammed Jahangir, the Chair of Trustee’s at Penny Appeal, added: “It has always been one of our objectives to alleviate poverty and we can do that while bringing some joy amongst the children in our local community.

“It means a lot to me as I grew up in the Wakefield area, and as someone who has been a Youth Hub worker, I know the impacts and importance of allowing the children the time to socialise and grow together.

“It is such a privilege to be able to give back and offer the space and facilities to the young people in the area, who have lost out due to facilities closing down in Wakefield in the last few years.”

The Youth Club project will run every Tuesday and Thursday in the large, spacious area on the bottom floor of the Thornes Park campus, with the first session starting next Tuesday (6th).