2020 will go down in the history books as one never to be forgotten (despite how much we may want), but one of the hardest parts of the year for many Liverpool families in Liverpool was Christmas. Families across the city were faced with a Christmas without any food or presents under their Christmas Tree. However, the team at Positive Futures refused to let the global pandemic ruin Christmas, and so set about spreading some festive spirit of their own.
Positive Futures works with thousands of young people across North Liverpool every year, supporting 4,908 young people with information, advice and guidance in 19/20. They also worked with 21 families during the same time period. So, come Christmas, the youth development charity could see first-hand the difficulties facing Liverpool families, and set offering support to those who needed it the most.
In the lead-up to Christmas, the charity supported local families by delivering food hampers and provided activity packs to 15 families for use over the festive period. They ran Christmas themed activity sessions where young people got to make gingerbread men, create gifts for their loved ones and cook some of their favourite foods. They also ran a Christmas Quiz Night and held four Covid-secure Christmas film nights, providing young people with a safe space to meet others and enjoy some Christmas magic.
To support the development of their young people during this time, they have also continued with their volunteer programme whereby volunteers are working towards gaining their volunteer qualification, and ran a series of online workshops for young people to access.
But the team didn’t stop there. In December they also launched their Winter campaign, Positive Pyjamas. This campaign aimed to engage with local businesses, supporters and the general public to collect donations of PJ’s, dressing gowns, slippers etc. These were then distributed to young people to help keep them warm over the festive period. This campaign was so popular that the charity has extended this throughout the Winter months, to keep ensure that no young person goes cold.
With the rising pressure on the council and central Government to do more to invest in youth development after funding cuts that have amounted to nearly £6 billion over the past decade [1], and child poverty on the rise, especially in the North and Midlands [2]; youth charities such as Positive Futures have never been more important. They serve as a lifeline for many families and young people by providing targeted one-to-one support, youth development and school intervention. To read more about the support Positive Futures offers, visit their website.
