The Current Project

The current project started when Bournemouth YMCA took over responsibility for the club as sole corporate trustee in November 2000. A feasibility study had already been completed and showed that the club had a huge legacy and great potential for serving the community and young people at Pokesdown. This study was wide ranging and comprehensive in its approach and included specific reports and research that took a number of forms:

• A demographic report on the Pokesdown/Beaufort area.
• A report on Southbourne completed by Healthworks.
• A borough wide research exercise carried out by Bournemouth Youth Service among young people.
• A local research exercise carried out by Bournemouth YMCA in conjunction with Bournemouth Youth Service among the community immediately surrounding the club.
• Face to face consultation with the local residents and users of the current facilities, both in consultation meetings and one to one visits.
• A Conditions Survey on the building.
• Consultation with specialists in arts/theatre, fitness, ICT etc.
• The Learning and Skills Council Strategic Area Review carried out under the Success for All initiative.
• Bournemouth Borough Council’s Housing Needs Report 2005.

The research clearly showed that whilst a youth centre was desperately needed it should be one where the facilities would be accessible to the wider community, and ideally one that might include some young people’s housing. The youth centre could particularly facilitate a greater interaction between the young people and the adult members of the community whilst sensibly maximising use of the premises. The ‘family centre’ atmosphere thus created would enable the young people to develop cross-generation communication skills that would benefit them in their future, supporting their own transition into adulthood. Establishing housing on the upper floors would enable the Charity to widen its brief among young people whilst meeting another severe local need of housing.

Premises Options

A number of schemes have been considered ranging from refurbishment with some reshaping, to a total demolition and rebuild with advice sought from architects, surveyors etc. The Trustees debated these options at length and ultimately the decision was taken that the preferred route was to demolish the current building and to build new premises on the same site. There were a number of reasons for this decision:

• The Conditions Survey showed that the building was in severe need of at least a very full refurbishment including replacement of many of the flat roofs. Indeed the summary of this report states, “significant areas of the property are now suffering from extreme age and inadequate maintenance necessitating large scale expenditure to be required in the near future…In conclusion we would note that considerable expenditure will now need to be set aside to enable the continued use of this site”.
• The current building has been added to and extended over many years in different phases and it has developed into rambling premises rather than a cohesive whole.
• Because the building is situated on a slight hill, there are numerous different levels accessible only by stairs. To make all the areas of the building accessible, particularly to those with disabilities and special needs, would be virtually impossible and very costly.
• The current layout of the site prohibits maximisation of the space to provide the facilities needed. In particular, it would be extremely difficult to include housing.
• The aspect of the building from the road and houses in the area is far from attractive. The extensions are utilitarian and with deterioration over the years the building is described by local residents as ‘an eyesore’.
• The building does not meet the needs of the 21 st century. Modernisation would be difficult, costly and would still not give the facilities needed. As the Conditions Report states: ‘The accommodation is however outdated and does not appear to meet the current requirements of the youth movement in terms of layout or facilities. Accordingly the expenditure recommended above whilst creating a sound and watertight structure is unlikely to address the site deficiencies with regard to usability, and reallocation of recommended maintenance budgets to a new scheme may therefore be considered more worthwhile in long term planning.”

It was decided that the building needed to be cohesive, very accessible, well designed, attractive inside and out, with good use of space and with an ambience that would be conducive to good youth work and learning as well as providing good quality accommodation. Only a new build will give us these facilities and also appeal to adult users and young people alike.

After much discussion, the Trustees decided that the preferred option was to demolish the current building and erect new and a three-story newbuild scheme was drawn up. After much consultation with the Bournemouth Borough Planning Department and local residents, a planning application was submitted in November 2005. These plans provide for an increased youth and community facility of around 849m2 compared to the current usable floor area of around 500m2, whilst also incorporationg around 956m2 of residential space.

The Facilities

The ‘Research and Needs’ analysis showed that a number of specific areas of work would be beneficial to young people and the wider adult community and the proposed facilities are based on these. The facilities proposed are as follows although these are subject to change:

 (a) Children, youth and community facilities

• Youth Club – Youth Centre/Foyer/coffee bar areas: It was felt that the building should first be a childrens' and youth facility. Although there would be significant advantage if the wider adult community could access the facilities offered, the children and young people would still have priority and should see the club as theirs.
• Children's Centre - again in line with the above, a Children's Centre would be of great benefit with this including such things as parenting classes, creche facilities and so on.
• Sport – A multi-purpose hall will allow small team sports, aerobics, circuit training etc to take place, encouraging a more active lifestyle and offering an introduction to various sporting activities. This facility will help counteract the trends confirming that young people’s fitness/health is deteriorating.
• Arts, Theatre and music performance: The multi-purpose hall would also be used for workshops in drama, dance, music etc, enabling the teaching of these skills and also the associated softer skills such as confidence building, teamwork and so on. Cinema/video screenings may also take place.
• Training and community rooms – A suite of multi-purpose rooms will be available for use by both young people and older members of the community both during the day and in the evenings.
• Media training area – This comprises a PA/projection room for the main hall, media training/edit rooms and a band practice room with recording booth attached. It will have particular emphasis on media based ICT (Information and Communication Technology) including radio, video production, music, web design etc. In conjunction with Bournemouth YMCA’s Hope FM community radio station, it is intended that training for voluntary sector groups and others will enable them to publicise and present their work. It may also be a base for the YMCA's Hands on Media video project.

(b) Housing

• Housing – The private and self-contained accommodation area at the Centre will comprise 16 single bed flats for young people aged 18 – 25 years.

Many of the rooms and facilities at the centre would also be available for other community groups, local companies or individuals to hire when not being used.

From our research, we know that the facilities in the Children's Centre and Youth Centre would be attractive for and beneficial to young people and local families. The overall aim of the centre would be not only to provide recreational activities but also to work with young peoples’ own interests to develop their skills, confidence and self-esteem. The facilities would also fulfil a need in the wider adult community whilst producing a revenue stream to support the youth work and maintenance costs of the building.

Finally, and importantly, the scheme will meet a significant local housing need for young adults that has been prioritised for urgent attention.

The Development

Whilst the final layout plans are still being discussed, it is hoped that work on site will commence in August 2007 with the demolition of the existing building. It is proposed that the development will take place in two phases with Phase 1 being to complete the childrens', youth and community facilities with 10 single bed flats above, and Phase 2 being to add the remaining 6 flats at the lower end of the site.

If you would like to comment on our plans or become involved in some way, please contact our Project Manager or complete the feedback form.