100 and counting – the Renegades pass a major milestone
Drum roll please… membership of The Renegades Youth Club has rocketed through the historic hundred members barrier and now stands at more than 120 children.
In just five years – despite two of them spent in lockdown – the maverick rural club has attracted a constantly rising membership of local children aged 10-18, magnetically drawn by the wide variety of often mad activities and the great fun had by all.
“The children have never needed a youth club more than they do now and the figures speak for themselves. As a result, we are actively planning a younger club for children aged 8-10 to run alongside the older group, and have opened a membership list for anyone interested,” says Group Leader Gareth Miller.
Never likely to sit on its laurels, the Renegades also has great plans to further extend the club. “We are planning to open a Space Hive page (which is operated through West Sussex County Council) to raise money for our first minibus, which would also act as a mobile youth club. We have plans for it have free Wi-Fi, a film screen for gaming and film nights, a canopy to keep the kids warm and dry and storage for all the portable activities we offer. These would include archery, laser tag, water pistols, arts & crafts, cookery, drone flying and game nights.
“In our rurally isolated community, a minibus would mean we could provide vital transport links and reach those children who have no means of travelling to a centre, we could facilitate children meeting their friends from different villages and just bring the youth club to where the children actually are. It could even be a mini festival on wheels.”
In the last few weeks, the children have enjoyed a film night sleepover, been to Brighton, canoed, graffitied their canoes with art, cooked everything from macaroni cheese to making their own bread, played football and even had their first attempt at Shibori (a Japanese dyeing technique to create patterns that are spread unevenly across fabric). Boredom is just not an option.
The Renegades is a Registered Charity. Membership is free or a voluntary contribution of £10 a month. Please contact Gareth Miller on 07801 862550 for a taster session.
The Renegades services are not just for kids!
Gareth is more than willing to do older groups for archery canoeing and astronomy. If you are interested, please contact him below:
Gareth Miller, The Renegades Youth Club
Email: Renegadesyc@gmail.com Tel: 07801 862550
Website: Renegadesyc.org
