St Patrick's YCW Group In Thornaby Raises Money For The Homeless

National President of the YCW, Marc Besford, travelled up to visit St Patrick’s YCW Group in Thornaby recently, to check out the latest work of the young leaders there.

The Group informed Marc that they have been using the YCW resources to explore the issue of homelessness and rough sleeping in their meetings. Through the SEE-JUDGE-ACT Method, the young people discovered that young people are increasingly at risk of becoming homeless and the figures nationally show that the number of young people who are homeless has increased dramatically over the last decade.

When it comes to rough sleeping, since 2010 estimates show an increase of 165%.

In response, the young leaders decided to raise money for their local Salvation Army homelessness service. They came up with the idea of trying to engage young people and their families by holding a gingerbread house making competition. The money raised through this was then donated to the homelessness project.

They also told Marc about their visit to a nearby residential home where they spent time with the residents, listened to their stories and helped out. This was part of a project looking at loneliness and inter-generational issues.

Marc said: “The work of this Group is inspirational. They’ve done a lot to promote the power of young people taking action and being the difference. I hope to come back again soon and hear about some of the other plans they have coming up.”

Remembrance Mass Held At St Antony's Church

The YCW supported St Antony’s Centre for Church and Industry with a Mass and Service of Remembrance at St Antony’s Church in Trafford Park.

Following the Mass there was a reflection on the turmoil of war and continuing need for peace in our world, with wreaths being laid at the War Memorial outside the Church. The Memorial has been listed as a Grade II monument by Historic England to protect it for future generations and acts as a permanent reminder of the many young workers who lost their lives in conflicts.

The Centre for Church and Industry was established in 1979 with the aim to promote better understanding and knowledge of Christian Social Thinking, especially in relation to industrial and economic issues.

It seeks to work with a wide range of community groups, organisations, churches and individuals to develop common objectives and to benefit the wider community through specific projects.

The event also coincided with the anniversary of Canon Joe Carter, who was a faithful supporter of the YCW over his years of ministry and was a Diocesan Chaplain within Salford. He was also one of the founders pf St Antony’s Centre for Church and Industry.

National President of the YCW, Marc Besford, said: “I would like to thank the Centre for all the work they did in organising the Mass and Service. We must never forget the sacrifices made by our young workers during wartime and the many others who tragically lost their lives.”

Cardinal Hume IMPACT Group Launch Mission Week With YCW Enquiry

On a recent visit to Cardinal Hume Catholic High School and Sixth Form, the YCW helped the school kick off their “Mission Week” - a Diocesan initiative that encourages young people to reflect on their vocations and how they can answer that call within their own lives.

The IMPACT Group brought together over 20 young people who were exploring the idea of leadership. Marc Besford, National President of the YCW in England and Wales, spoke to the young people about the focus of the YCW on building leadership amongst young people by developing their confidence and skills in their own lives.

Marc was joined by Sean Smith, the YCW National Treasurer, who set out why the YCW believed leadership was something everyone could be part of, especially young people. Sean reminded the Group that YCW founder Joseph Cardijn once said:

“A young leader is a friend and companion to others, not someone giving orders; they are not a stranger but someone who shares the same difficulties. Young people must be leaders in their homes, with their parents, brothers and sisters, at their place of work, when they go to lunch and when they speak to anyone.”

This commitment to the everyday form of leadership is a powerful and transformative tool for a YCW or IMPACT leader. It is why we have launched our own Leadership Programme, the purpose of which is to give each young person a definitive pathway to becoming a YCW leader. It is not an award scheme. Becoming a YCW leader is just a beginning!

The course is designed to help develop leadership qualities and skills through a programme of 12 units, each with 3 stages. For each stage there are instructions on how to complete it and where to find the necessary information. More information can be found here: http://www.ycwimpact.com/about-the-programme

Christmas Celebration Event For YCW Members Past And Present

Please see below an open invitation to YCW members - past and present - for our (slightly early) Christmas social.

If you would like to attend, please email Marc on marc@ycwimpact.com to let us know.

We hope to see you there!

Plans For New Group At St Mary's and St Philip Neri's Church in Radcliffe

Following a visit to St Mary’s and St Philip Neri’s Church in Radcliffe to meet their new Parish Priest, Fr Phil Brady, we are working towards setting up a new group there in the coming months.

The visit from the National Team included Marc Besford (President), Fr John Marsland (National Chaplain) and Eamonn O’Brien. They explained at the fundamentals of the movement, such as Cardijn’s “3 Truths”: the Truth of Faith, Reality and Method - as Cardijn described them: “The three truths that light up and explain the problem of working youth in the world today”.

It is through the contradiction between the truths of Faith and Reality that we can truly understand and appreciate the need for the SEE-JUDGE-ACT Method. This gives the young people an opportunity to discuss their own realities and examine how this all fits into their local communities and the wider world, but then inspires them to act upon this with authentic Christian action.

The meeting also set out how a YCW Group runs, the various ways in which young people can take on the leadership of the movement and ultimately, how the Groups can help strengthen the link between their reality and the Gospels.

Marc Besford, commenting on the visit, said: “It was fantastic to see the enthusiasm for another new Group being set up. We hope to be able to come back soon and help with any recruitment and training needs, but also to meet the young people of the Parish and see how we can support them to be inspiring Christian leaders in today’s world.”

Preston Group Continues Leadership Programme For Women And Girls

With the focus on developing leadership among the young people of the YCW and IMPACT! Groups, we have been supporting a fantastic initiative from Preston IMPACT!.

The project called “EpowHER”, which was set up by UKYouth and is supported by the British Red Cross, aims to inspire young women and girls lead change in their community. The programme also plans to address low levels of well-being amongst young women and girls in the UK by empowering them to have a voice, be heard and give back to their local community.

So far, the Group has organised activities around International Women’s Day, ran workshops on important issues like mental health and body image and taken time to review their work ahead of another phase of the project.

More recently, the Group held a residential at Castlerigg Manor in the Lake District, in order to enjoy some time together, run workshops and reflect on their own realities. The retreat was led by the young people and supported by their YCW Adult Companion Terry Mattinson and his assistant Maria. This gave them an opportunity to discuss the issues that they wanted to focus on within the wider topic of empowering women.

YCW National Training and Development Worker, Marc Besford, joined the Group for one of the days and heard about the plans they have for the future. He said: “We have some amazing initiatives coming out of this project and a real growth of leadership amongst the young women and girls. I hope they can continue to build on some of their earlier work and keep empowering more women and girls.”