Teenage Kicks 2010!

The ninth annual Teenage Kicks took place at Haggerston Park last month with over 300 young people taking part competing across five age and gender categories. 'Team SkyWay' won the under 12’s category. It was a tight game, with 'Team Skyway' lagging behind but coming back to win 2-1. It was Newington Rangers who claimed the under 14’s title and Arsenal in the Community overcame the opposition in the under 16’s category. Team SkyWay claimed an exciting victory again with the older team winning the under 19’s category thanks to a last minute goal in the final and Team Abi lifted the trophy in the girl’s competition. To see pictures of the winning teams celebrating, click here.

Due to heavy rain, the event was delayed but thanks to the efforts of the staff and volunteers our games went on regardless and was a great success! This year twelve volunteers helped out on the day doing all sorts, from marshalling teams to their pitches (or match areas) to helping with trophy presentations. Without them braving the weather and giving up their time we would be unable to put this tournament on year after year so SkyWay owes them all a massive thank you!

This year also saw the continuation of SkyWay’s Event Manager programme. The programme took on four volunteers in the months leading up to Teenage Kicks to aid with the organisation of the tournament. Brenda, Ebenezer, Esther and Dolapo worked with SkyWay's very own Toks to make the day possible - so a big thank you to them as well!

At an event like Teenage Kicks, feeding the hundreds of hungry young footballers can be quite a challenge! Luckily, at this year’s event several local businesses were generous enough to donate fruit, bottles of water, cereal bars and other snacks. So SkyWay would like to thank Marks and Spencer, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Essex Food Service and Poundland for helping out.

At the last few Teenage Kicks tournaments a film documenting the event has been made - this year will be no exception. The film, which will follow the progress of Team SkyWay in their quest to be crowned champions of the under 12’s category, is in the process of being edited ready for its premier. Check out the SkyWay website for details of when and where it will be showing, or add SkyWay Charity as a friend on Facebook for updates on the film and other things going on at SkyWay. If you can’t wait for this year’s film then have a look at TK in the Park (part one, part two), the film made at last year’s event!

United Allstars Camping Trip

United Allstars recently returned from their camping trip in the English countryside and here is what happened:

Dear friends

Just a brief report on the United Allstars trip to the countryside outside Hessle, on Humberside, and east Yorkshire with 20 kids from Peckham over the half-term. The trip received organisational supported by SkyWay Charity and was funded by local fund-raising, Children In Need and Help a London Child.

The trip was huge success! For many of the children from Peckham, aged between 7 and 10, it was the first time they had been to the English countryside. They camped for 4 nights at a family run camp-site bordered by farmers’ fields and a few minutes walk from the woods. The children were accompanied by volunteers from the football club and SkyWay Charity as well as 4 parents who had come up with their children.

Whilst there the children learnt to put up tents, went on a long walk through the woods, visited the cities of Hull and York and generally saw a friendlier side of England... where everyone from the ‘locals’ to Police on the beat to the other holiday makers staying on the campsite were without exception massively hospitable and friendly.

The boys also did football training on the local village team’s football pitch every morning. On their penultimate day they competed in one of the largest kids football tournaments in the north. Our Under-9s team, despite being the youngest group of kids taking part, went 8 matches unbeaten only losing to a fluke goal in the last minute of semi-final extra time. The tournament organisers and the other teams who the boys had knocked out all complimented the players as being the best “footballing” team in the competition.

With thanks to everyone who helped organise the trip from the football club and SkyWay. It did wonders for the boys’ self confidence and is an experience which we believe will remain with them for a long time.

Joe

Street Art Community Project - COMPLETED

Sorry for the delay in posting up these photos but here we are...






Once again, we would like to say a big thank you to all the volunteers that came on down to help prep the wall. Without you we wouldn't have been able to do it! Massive thanks!

Street Art - Mapledene Estate

On a drizzly Saturday in March 6 young people from the Mapledene Estate in Hackney joined SkyWay’s resident street artists to produce a fun piece of street art.

Having been approached by the tenants and residents of the estate to brighten up the playground whilst offering something for the ‘bored’ young people on the estate to do, the SkyWay street art team and young people decided on a design that reflected their pride in their estate and this need to brighten up the communal playground that, up until now, was sporting a very well used and dilapidated look.

The young people learnt pretty much from scratch how to spray paint and carefully followed the design laid out by the artists.

The final product, a fun and colourful piece, has clearly transformed the wall into a work of art that the estates residents, both young and old, are “very pleased with” according to resident Dionne Cox.

Check it out…

If you would like SkyWay to deliver something similar for you then give us shout now. Check out the SkyWay Calendar of Events for forthcoming street art workshops.

Bike Maintenance

WANTED: Volunteer Bike Enthusiast / Mechanic

We have recently begun a bike maintenance programme at our youth club, the Blue Hut, which is proving very popular with the young people. So popular in fact that the two bike mechanics and one youth worker are struggling to cater for the growing demand.

So, we are looking for someone who is a bike mechanic or bike enthusiast to kindly volunteer two hours of their time (or as much as possible) on Thursday evenings between 6.00pm and 8.00pm to support the team deliver bike maintenance instruction and enthuse the young people in the programme.

What with the recession and all and minimal funds, this will be an unpaid position at present but we will reimburse travel expenses and provide refreshments.

If you are interested in the position, drop us an email at info@skyway.uk.com or call 020 7729 6970.

Please forward this on to anyone you think it might be of interest to.

Many thanks.

Teenage Kicks '09 Press Coverage...

Link: Hackney Gazette article (P.3)

Street Art Community Project

WANTED: VOLUNTEER PAINTERS...


Having been impressed with previous SkyWay street art programmes (please see links below) and the work produced by the young people in restoring previously dilapidated spaces in their community with original pieces of art work, a Hackney resident has recently offered SkyWay a 10 metre high exterior wall on the side of her home (see image to right) to create a lasting piece of street art.

SkyWay street art programmes aim to provide young people with the opportunity to express themselves in a legal and safe environment whilst creating a lasting piece of artwork that will benefit their communities.

Such a project is on a scale far greater than anything SkyWay has previously undertakenn and would provide SkyWay with an unprecedented platform on which to present the positive work it does engaging young people in constructive and progressive activities.


SkyWay would very much like to undertake such an ambitious programme in late November / early December '09.


We are looking for volunteers to help paint the wall white prior to the street art commencing. Ideally we would like to carry this out during one weekend but are flexible.


If you are interested in helping out, please contact Danny on 020 7729 6970 or email info@skyway.uk.com.



Links: SkyWay Street Art

Teenage Kicks Volunteers

As Teenage Kicks draws to an end, everyone hear at SkyWay would like to say a huge thank you to all you amazing volunteers that helped make it possible. Thank You!!!!!

This years TK was very different from the previous 7 years with it being held throughout the long summer evenings in August rather than the cold winter nights in October and on the soft, lush astro-turf as opposed to the deadly hard tarmac pitches previously played on. So with such a new format to contend with, the success was all the more satisfying.

As already mentioned the SkyWay team hugely appreciates the time and effort all you volunteers have committed to TK and value you immensely. You offer another dimension to our activities and engagement with the young people of Hackney.

In order to build on this, we would love it if you could use this blog to share with us your ideas and thoughts on how things went, how things could be improved (if even possible), how you engaged with the young people and the lovely SkyWay staff and anything else you fancy talking about (related to TK, preferably). So leave a comment or if you would like to post your own article, just email info@skyway.uk.com in order to be added as a contributor.
And just to kick things off, could you please tell us which you preferred; the apples or the oranges?

Thanks again!

For photos, see www.flickr.com/photos/skywaycharity
For more info, go to http://www.skyway.uk.com/