Hello Everyone and many thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page. My name is Harry im 26 years old and im running The Vitality London Half on Sunday 3rd September raising money for The Salmon Youth Centre in Bermondsey.

At age 11 in my childhood for 14 years up to 25 (mostly between 11-18yrs), i went to this youth centre for the first time when my social life confidence was low and the inspiration engine was hungry. I was attending their 10-13s club of which i went with my Bestfriend at the time. There was loads of activities and workshops which they still offer today.

10-13s social club, 14+ social club, Rock Climbing, Football, Soft Play (pre school only), tennis, basketball, social area, disability friendly social club, Girls only Club, performing arts (music, dance), cooking, arts & crafts, 1 to 1 support, trampolining, young leader volunteering programme and offer opportunity of apprenticeship, day trips, residential trips and LOADS MORE.

This place is where at 15 years old, my FA Referee career started thanks to the centre and also took part in a Comic Relief fundraiser (GUNK), Tough Mudder, London to Cambridge Bike Ride. I also between 14-18 became a young leader then volunteer and also completed the Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award at the time of volunteering. During my time of volunteering with the organisation, I received a community award with london youth a recognition for voluntary services to young people and the same reason which i was awarded Salmon’s Member Of The Year 2014. 

I might be 26 and no longer able to attend. I personally want the best for the young people of our community today and be safe from the streets for many years to come. Salmon is one of a few large youth centre left in London. This urges my passion and determination to fundraise for the charity and beat my personal best of 1hr 58mins in 2019 when i took part in this event with my good friend Courtney (in the cover photo). So i wanna do this event in recognition as a thanks for all their support from a young age and this charity organisation played a massive part in my childhood.

Please give what you can and i appreciate everyone’s support and look forward to smash another personal best and raise as much money as i can to keep this place open. Please see below a statement of their mission and i thank you massively for visiting my page. Please spread the word and i look forward to doing you all and the community proud on Sunday 3rd September!!!

Our Work

We welcome around 500 young people every week. Our doors are open to all young people, from all backgrounds, between six and 25 years old.

We promote positive change in young people and support their transition to adulthood in three key ways:

• Improving young people’s Health & Wellbeing
• Preparing young people for Education & Work
• Involving young people in positive Community Engagement

What we offer

We provide generic and specialised youth work to young people across 35 weekly sessions, including activities such as adventure, arts, dance, drama, music and sports. Our targeted provision also includes:

Every young person has potential

We work with a wide range of young people many of whom are disadvantaged such as:

• Young people in care or leaving care.
• Young ex-offenders leaving prison.
• Young carers looking after a parent.
• Young people facing abuse at home.
• Young people at risk of homelessness or offending.
• Disabled young people.

We build long-term relationships with young people through regular social interaction. We believe that every young person has potential and we work intensively to inspire young people to reach their potential and contribute positively to the community in which they live.

Christian youth work

As a Christian youth centre, we strive to provide opportunities to explore the Christian faith in all our work, but most specifically in our Salmon Sunday sessions and residentials to summer camps, such as Limitless.

Staff members also share and explore their own faith through weekly Bible sessions called “Theological Reflections”.

History

TIMELINE

• 2016 – We launch a groundbreaking speaking and listening manual called ‘Let’s Talk About’, funded by Paul Hamlyn Foundation. The manual is a tool for youth workers, designed to help young people improve their speaking and listening skills through the medium of a radio show. It is well received by youth work organisations.
• 2015 – We implement the ‘Theory of Change’ model as a way to clearly demonstrate the purpose and outcomes of Salmon’s work and the enormous impact it has on young people and their families. Our three areas of focus for young people are Health & Wellbeing, Community Engagement and Education & Work.
  – An independent evaluation into Salmon’s apprenticeship programme finds that Salmon’s philosophy of “sticking with people” is central to our work and “critical in helping youngsters develop resilience to challenges, which might otherwise see them overwhelmed by adversity.”
• 2014 – Following rigorous external assessment, Salmon is awarded the PQASSO Level 2 Quality Mark (a nationally recognised quality standard for charity organisations, endorsed by the Charity Commission), in recognition for our efforts in striving towards the ‘Hallmarks of an Effective Charity’.
  – We launch a new three-year Business Plan putting forward our four strategic aims of in the areas of good quality youth work, sustainability, good governance and management, and monitoring and evaluation.
• 2012 – We receive the ‘Investing in Volunteers’ accreditation in recognition of the quality of Salmon’s volunteer management and involvement.
• 2011 – A research on the Salmon Youth Centre’s work by Institute of Education concludes that the Centre continues to play an exceptional and vital role as part of the local authority delivery system of youth services in Bermondsey and that most young people felt that attending Salmon had made them more confident, responsible, independent and cooperative but above all, attendance had made them more sociable.
  – Salmon like all voluntary sector youth centres faces a difficult future as spending cuts hit the sector and has already been forced to downsize radically to meet its new financial situation.
• 2010 – Phase 2 of the building is completed in June. The centre is officially opened by Ed Balls, Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families, along with three other ministers, Dawn Primarolo, Iain Wright and Dawn Butler. Click here for more information about the new centre. (see also Redevelopment of our New Building)
• 2009 – A £1.3m grant from the Department of Children, Schools and Families (the Youth Sector Development Fund) allows Salmon to treble its number of staff, filling the building with many different activities and clubs and attracting over 700 young people every week.
• 2008 – Phase 1 of the new building is opened in March, designed to cater for new activities and a more extensive programme of youth work, sports, arts, enterprise and pastoral care. Go to ‘Our Work – Redevelopment’ to read more about this project. (see also Redevelopment of our New Building)
• 2004 – Active England becomes the major funder (£2.75m) in March and by the end of the year, the majority of funding for Phase 1 has been raised. The Salmon building is demolished and the youth work moves to temporary accommodation in a derelict parade of shops next to the site.
• 2000 – A Development Manager is recruited to fundraise for the project. It is planned that the Salmon Youth Centre’s Redevelopment will be completed in two phases.
• 1996 – After a strategic review, the Trustees conclude that the Salmon building (made up of 3 separate buildings dating from 1910-1974) is a major obstacle to developing the work for modern needs. A Steering Group is set up including staff, Trustees, young people and local community members.
• 1995 – The name of the Cambridge University Mission is changed. This is due to the misleading impression of financial wealth which is becoming more and more harmful as the centre has now become reliant on non-local authority funding for 80% of its costs. The medical dispensary has now closed and the centre is focusing on youth work. The new name is the Salmon Youth Centre, chosen to retain the link to its founder and its past.
• 1972 – The new building opens!
• 1968-69 – A building programme is proposed and an appeal launched to rebuild old houses at the cost of £50,000.
• 1964 – There is major rebuilding all round the club and the London Borough of Southwark comes into existence.
• 1947 – The residential part of the building is reopened.
• 1939-45 – The residential part of the building closes during World War II. The building is damaged by a land mine.
• 1932-33 – A Girls’ Hall is built and three cottages are renovated.
• 1925 – A Sports Ground is acquired in New Eltham.
• 1922 – The name changes to the Cambridge University Mission. A significant number of Cambridge undergraduates and graduates find their way to the mission – sometimes during holidays, often when undertaking further study in London, especially medical training.
• 1916 – The Cambridge Medical Mission Settlement opens its doors to girls.
• 1910 – Further land and new halls are added.
• 1907 – A building on Jamaica Road is bought and refurbished for £1,400(!). This building acts as a boys’ mission club and residential settlement. Many of the residents and volunteers are medical students in London. Tuberculosis is the prominent health issue amongst the local population, so the settlement sets up a dispensary, as well as taking boys on trips and summer camps to the countryside.
• 1906 – Reverend “Pa” Salmon sees the abject poverty suffered by London’s inner city working classes. He notes that local churches are not engaging with the problem and are failing to make the Christian faith relevant to this community. He decides to do something about it. He gains the support of a group of Cambridge evangelical Christians. The Cambridge Medical Mission Settlement is born.

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