Young Greenwich Day turns pink as event celebrates youth service

Celebrating young people across the Royal Borough of Greenwich (RBG), Young Greenwich Day took place on Saturday 19 October, supporting Lyle Taylor's Pink October.

Held at The Valley, the event showcased the great opportunities offered by Young Greenwich, which Charlton Athletic Community Trust (CACT) delivers on behalf of RBG. Simultaneously, Young Greenwich helped the Charlton Athletic FC striker to raise awareness for Cancer Research UK.

Complemented by the clear skies and hints of pink for Pink October, Young Greenwich had a variety of activities including badge making and soft archery along with music and entertainment.

Activities partners of Young Greenwich put on included live judo sessions with Metro Judo Club, boxing with Champions 4 Change and hoola hooping with Streetwise Law. Other Young Greenwich partners joining in the festivities included B Young Stars, Royal Museums Greenwich and YMCA, showcasing what youth related programmes they have on offer.

The event was also attended by Charlton forward Chuks Aneke, who played FIFA with the young people at Valley Central Youth Hub. Guests from RBG also visited Young Greenwich Day, including Leader Danny Thorpe, Cllr Ivis Williams, David Pinson and David Borland, plus Steven Whitmore (Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust).

Young Greenwich Day was also attended by young people from Short Breaks, a programme run by CACT which delivers fun, positive experiences for children and young people with disabilities. Derby County Community Trust also brought a group of young people to get the Young Greenwich Day experience.

Danny Thorpe said:

"We do a lot of work with Charlton Athletic and CACT. Young Greenwich Day is a great example for CACT to demonstrate all of the amazing work that's happening across our community. It's great to come down and see the quality of work that happens here with young people and families in particular."

The guests and young people included Cancer Research poster competition winner Natasha Watson joined Lyle for a pitchside presentation before the match.

During half time, a group of Young Greenwich members and CAFC mascots took part in the first ever Battle of the Mascots challenge. The challenge consisted of an action-packed relay race around the pitch supported by CAFC's Sir Valiant, Derby County's Rammie , Lyle and singer/songwriter Lee Ryan.

Delighted about the event, CACT's Head of Youth Service, Jeannette Harrison, said:

"Young Greenwich Day was a great opportunity to highlight what the youth service has to offer young people. Staff and young people embraced Lyle's raising cancer awareness by wearing pink in various guises. It's always a pleasure to speak to parents and of course a great result for CAFC."


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