What a brilliant initiative on the Green in Devizes this week, and a pleasure to see what can only be described as a “mobile youth club.” It pitched up every day this week, with kids of all ages enjoying the facilities it provides. Me, ageing, either sleeping, working or complaining about sleeping or working, managed to completely overlook its very existence, while my kids and better half were aware of it.
Why am I the last to know about everything? Because I can’t be expected to look past my phone these days, relying on the book of face for my news, in-between sleeping and working! Councillor Jonathon Hunter Facebook posted about it, I inquired, perhaps unintentionally sternly, but only as a senior moment, I couldn’t see from the photos quite what the deal was!
So, I ventured down to see for myself, and aside the drizzle, it was in full swing. A volleyball net currently unattended, collapsible football goals with a group playing between them just beyond it, and at the van, children are surfing the net, or else playing a Tony Hawks skateboarding game on a console. There’s drinks, sweets and doughnuts aplenty, and Steve Dewar stands proudly by it.
Other features of the mobile youth club include a rock-climbing wall, which couldn’t come out to play because of the rain.
I was surprised to hear it had been in operation for five years. “I’ve been running Potterne Youth Club for about ten years,” Steve explained, and moved onto why it hadn’t been advertised on Facebook and other social media. “The reality is we don’t, because Facebook isn’t the best place to communicate with teenagers. It’s detached work; what we do is pitch up and engage with the young people there, we do it throughout the whole week, and day-on-day there’s an increase.”
Steve couldn’t see the point in me mentioning his mobile youth club, adamant the best form of communication for younger people is face-to-face, and besides, it was the last day it pitched on the Green, moving onto Trowbridge next week. I beg to differ, for if only to pay tribute to this guy and the wonderful work he does. In the plight of social facilities for children and youth clubs multiplied by this post-lockdown era, what Steve does here is at last as positive spin and proof amidst the doom and gloom of public services, there’s still saints like Steve, out their engaging youth the best way he knows how.
The opposite effect of a lack of amenities for youth is unfortunately anti-social behaviour, juvenile crime and possible drinking and drug taking, as we all know. Steve mentioned how the charity aided awareness and prevention of these difficult predicaments. But all the time, parents were always viewed as runners-up, his focus was entirely on the wellbeing of the children, except when he offered me a doughnut, kindly donated by Morrisons! The youth demographic there was all-encompassing, and clearly, they all enjoyed it equally.
It’s certainly evident here, social media is not needed to make kids aware of an occasion, it works by word-of-mouth as it always has. Grown up with it fed to them, rather it’s the adults who engage more with the internet, and while kids are still out, running, jumping and playing sports and games outdoors, a large majority of generation X are glued to their devises, ironically whinging that the kids are glued to their devises! I knew this, I’m guilty too, but it was great to actually witness evidence of it happening in our own town.
Steve also noted he attends local schools to let them know about the project. The van moves across the county, planning to pitch up in Trowbridge. “We’d love to do it more,” Steve expressed, “as a concept we could run this throughout the entire summer holidays, but because I work in schools termtime as well, my wife would kill me if I spent my entire summer holiday doing this! And also, financially as a charity, we get a little bit funding, and if we had more, we would plan to do more.”
And I conclude, ultimately, what an absolutely fantastic and inspiring guy, I tip my hat to Steve Dewar, and ask science, can we clone this chap?! We need more facilities like this, operating throughout the county and school holidays, we need more Steves!
Trending….
Devizes Residents; Glue Chattering Teeth Toys To Market Cross!
Our trustworthy Gazelle & Herod reported today that “disgraceful” behaviour in Devizes Market Place has elevated into a dental issue…. Publishing an article which states the police are frustrated by the issue, they quote an Inspector, who said The Public Spaces Protection Order “has given them certain useful powers, but lacks teeth, and has yet…
Devizes Brickley Lane Play Area Public Consultation
Devizes Town Council would like to hear your views on the proposed scheme for the Brickley Lane Play Area… They are inviting residents and the local community to share their feedback. The consultation closes on the 30th September 2026. The Town Council is proposing to refurbish the Brickley Lane Play Area, which has been closed…
The Bayeux Tapestry: In-Conversation Event in Frome
In 2027, British Museum exhibition curator Michael Lewis and medieval historian Janina Ramirez will be appearing at Frome’s Cheese & Grain for an exclusive talk on The Bayeux Tapestry…. This special event invites audiences behind the scenes of one of the most talked about exhibitions in recent history. On Saturday 6th March 2027, join the…
What’s on at the Wharf Theatre in October?
OCTOBER at The Wharf Theatre, Devizes arrives with a burst of creativity, variety and irresistible entertainment. This month’s programme showcases everything that makes the Wharf Theatre such a beloved cultural home: bold theatre, international film, Shakespearean drama, laugh‑out‑loud comedy and the soaring power of live opera. It’s a rich, colourful season designed to surprise, delight…
Dinosaurs at Jurassic Hillworth Park!
Images: Jess Worrow Ah, for the connotations of US drive-in movie theaters, now in decline over the pond, but embedded as characteristic romantic americana; the rock n roll era, waking up little Suzie, and Danny Zuko making his move on Sandy while a monster movie plays on a giant screen in the background. It was…
3 Daft Monkeys Jumping on The Barge at Honeystreet
I can be sent an album, review it because I love it, and put the artists atop of my cognitive must-see list. Although the list will grow as time progresses, I’m the elephant with a knotted trunk, awaiting some legendary local venue to announce, yeah, we’ve got these guys coming…… In this case the legendary…
“Playhouse Creatures” at The Wharf Theatre, Devizes, October 8th-10th – A preview
by Ian Diddams images by Simon Hoy This tragi-comic play, set in 1660s London, focuses on the first English actresses allowed on stage after the Restoration. It explores the lives, struggles and camaraderie of five women navigating a male-dominated world, dealing with sexual exploitation, ageing, and the fight for artistic freedom. Bawdily funny yet profound,…
Halloween Firewalk for Wiltshire & Bath Air Ambulance
Would you dare to join Wiltshire & Bath Air Ambulance at their airbase on Friday 30 October 2026 for an unforgettable Firewalk Challenge? Feel the buzz, face your fears, and experience the ultimate adrenaline rush as you walk barefoot across hot embers beneath the autumn night sky – all while supporting Wiltshire & Bath Air…
Ruby Darbyshire’s Freeman Tribute at Ilfracombe Festival
If it’s not unusual for Wiltshire singer-songwriter Ruby Darbyshire to break out the bagpipes at a gig, it’s often for a solo stint of piping. Yet Ruby continues to experiment with ways she can merge piping into her music, and this, recorded last weekend at Ilfracombe Maritime Festival, shows Ruby at her best, backed with…
“Pink Mist” at The Mission Theatre, Bath, September 9th-12th
by Ian Diddams images by Mike Stevens This week marks 25 years since 9/11 (11 September 2001), when the world awoke to the news that Al Qaeda hijackers had flown two commercial airliners into the Twin Towers, causing their collapse and a devastating loss of life. In 2006, British troops were deployed to Helmand Province;…
devizine.com 