We believe every young person should be able to fulfil their potential. Whether that’s learning a new skill, training for employment or improving their self-confidence as they take on new challenges. Sa’ida Mohammed, 30, has been a resident at YMCA Walthamstow for the last three years and is employed and training as a playworker in…
Martin Francis, 36, is the Maintenance Worker at YMCA Wimbledon and has been a resident in the hostel three times. He first came to the hostel in 2005 and stayed a couple of months, then returned in 2013. This was a difficult period for Martin as he was trying to gain custody for his son…
With summer now in full swing, YMCA is calling on people to show their real-selves and pledge to ‘be real’ in order to fight against body image negativity that arises from the constant bombardment of ‘beach body ready’ adverts, pictures and magazine features. Previous YMCA research has revealed that young people are heavily influenced by…
Over the past few months members of our Inclusive Lives Project team has been working with Filmanthropy UK to produce a user-led fitness instruction video. Funded by the Big Lottery. It’s aimed at everybody in the community, to encourage people to get active, dance and have fun! Even our care givers got involved in the video, showing us how...
On Sunday 8 July we’re hosting the 11th Junior Tennis tournament – join us to support the youngsters as they compete! It’s a Knock-out format, and all singles finals will play over a set of six games. Some of the players will be seeded, based on draw size and matchplay rankings when the draw is…
Ingrid Posada, 42, is a resident at YMCA Surbiton. Originally from Columbia, a talented singer/songwriter and a presenter on Relaks Radio, Ingrid was left homeless when she escaped domestic violence. She was in a formal relationship for just a year, but in that short space of time she suffered emotional and physical abuse, which left…
Group exercise classes are very popular at our centres, taught by committed and enthusiastic instructors. At YMCA Hawker in Kingston, there’s a great range to choose from such as Body Pump, Zumba and Tai Chi. The current Tai Chi class is on Tuesday mornings 9am-10am and on fine days takes place under the trees on…
Our Inclusive Lives project team won a Silver Award this month at the Merton Partnership Volunteer Awards, which was hosted by Merton Voluntary Services Council. It’s the Borough's annual celebration to acknowledge and pay thanks to the tremendous contribution that the thousands of local volunteers make to Merton. This year awards were presented by the...
It’s a special weekend on 4th and 5th August at YMCA South Ealing as the prestigious Nord Wing Chun Kung Fu school is visiting to hold a martial arts seminar for over 30 competitors from around the world. Wing Chun Kung Fu has had a huge surge in popularity because of the cult Ip Man…
Eid Aljazairli, 24, is a young Syrian refugee who lives at YMCA Walthamstow. He fled Damascus and came to the UK in 2016. His dream is to become an Olympic swimmer after being inspired by watching videos on the internet of US Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps. “He was amazing, flying through the water,” says Eid….
18 February 2019
