At Leicestershire Cares we work with local businesses, schools, community groups and other partners to help young people. Whether they are care leavers, homeless or ex-offenders, we partner with companies to give them chances through life skills training or job opportunities. We want to completely transform our 'warehouse' into a safe and inspiring place for our young people and supporters. It will be warm, welcoming and it will be well-equipped for us to do cooking classes, have an open space for youth drop-in sessions and also a secure space for one-to-ones and well-being workshops with our young people. Better facilities will also increase how many young people we can help and ensure that noone is left behind! The new space will host: • Weekly drop-in sessions and regular workshops for young people • One-to-ones with our young people • Catch-ups with local businesses and our supporters • Presentations/events for young people, staff and other organisations

What we'll deliver:

• An attractive new space for young people attending sessions at Leicestershire Cares
• A superb working space for our young people, staff and business partners
• A brand new kitchen area to facilitate cooking classes as we encourage young people to look after themselves

Why it's a great idea:

Many of the young people we work with come from vulnerable backgrounds. 'John' was moved foster homes a lot as a child and at the age of 18 was left to fend for himself. Now through the support of the charity, he has a solid network of friends, a stable home and employment. He attends all of our workshops and we see him every Wednesday at our 'Chill + Chat' drop-in session. Our young people face challenges such as being unemployed, having anxiety, being homeless or living in poverty and this is why our new space will be so useful. We want to see more people like 'John' benefiting from what we do! The 'warehouse' requires some personality to attract young people. It’s the public face of the charity; it will resonate with our supporters and young people by creating a safe and family atmosphere. Our young people want to have somewhere they can feel at home. Having a place like this would allow us to attract more young people whom we can help.

Steps to get it done:

• Define - creating our personalised illustration of the 'Lounge'
• Design - create a 3D walkthrough of our new space
• Manage - order our materials!
• Fit Out - create an outstanding finish

We will have a total transformation of our current space including: - New flexible furniture to host youth drop-ins, larger trainings and meetings - New lighting and ceiling - New and better equipped kitchen to meet the needs of our young people and for cooking classes - Improved acoustics for group sessions and one-to-ones