I'm a community development worker and communities are often keen to put in sports and activity facilities when they get hold of some funny money. I've been working on the Big Local programme since 2011 with communities in the midlands including St Matthews in Leicester. The neighbourhood is very diverse with around 4,919 people of whom 1,618 are under 16, that’s 32.9%.
In 2012 the community were asking for things for the youth and that became the Cruyff Court, a MUGA, outdoor gym, running track basketball, netball and tennis pitches marked out. I thought it was wonderful and so did the community.
Then a couple of years ago I spotted Make Space for Girls and began to wonder if we’d done the right thing by girls and young women in St Matthews. In November I attended the St Matthews Big Local AGM and heard this wonderful young woman speak about her journey. The latest MSFG newsletter popped into my inbox and it was all about the power of allies and folk running with MSFG’s ideas and designs and the two events clicked in my head. Over to Zee and Ish.
