Spare hospital room could be answer to estate’s problems
Tuesday 15th February 2011, 2:29PM GMT.
Room for improvement – PC Karl Addis wants support to turn this room into a community centre. (Picture by Steve Sarre, 1093800)
ANTISOCIAL behaviour on the Chemin des Monts Estate could become be a thing of the past if a new initiative aimed at parents and children is successful.
The permanent beat officer for St Sampson’s has been drafted to the Castel estate to tackle problems highlighted by its residents.
On arrival, PC Karl Addis set about asking them what they thought needed improving in the area.
Most adults said that children on the estate needed something to do, so he set about finding a venue for a parent and toddler group and an after-school club.
He located a room within the King Edward VII Hospital and, after discussions, Health and Social Services agreed that it could be used on a 12-month rolling basis, as long as the building was still in use.
- Read the full story in the Guernsey Press. See below for subscription details.
Island Life
All about Guernsey
Ambassador of the Year 2011
History & Heritage
Visitor Information
Guernsey's government
Campaigns
Voice For Victims
Voice for Victims is a campaign aimed at promoting the rights of those affected by child sexual abuse.
This is Guernsey
Guernsey Press
Useful Links
“finding a venue for a parent and toddler group and an after-school club.”
So are we saying it is the toddlers who create anti social behaviour ?
Also those youngsters who would attend an after school club are probably the least likely to cause problems.
Where is the youth club, the basketbull hoop the football pitch with all weather surface that the 13 to 18 year age group can use, you know the ones most likely to cause problems.
Report abuse
Here here Mike, what they need is controlled environments though not just another court to be monopolised by the very people it is there to prevent creating problems. Too often these areas become exclusive rather than inclusive and a gathering place for youngsters needing something to do, what they do there is not always what is intended. If those environements were available and free to use but also supervised fairly and leniently, I can speak from experience and say that many would go there rather than hang around estates and car parks in the dark.
Report abuse
Mike
The full story makes it clear that there is no room near this particular estate to provide those desirable things.The children are forced to play in the road
I think the 13 – 18 year olds spend their time in the Gent’s Pool changing room
Best of luck to PC Addis.Once you have cracked the Castel, head out to St Peters where the trauma of aircraft passing fifty feet lower over the rooftops will cause a mini crime wave
Report abuse
So often we are told that these problem children need something to do. What would they like to do?
There is so much available in Guernsey by way of youth organisations, sports clubs, educational courses, charitable and community services, etc, as well as all the less formal facilities they could be using (and improving rather than vandalising). The wonder to me is that so many young people manage to find the time to keep all these opportunities in business.
The problem children do not really need something to do they want something done for them which requires no expenditure of time or effort on their part.
Report abuse
As a tenant of the estate in the article, i do think it is a good idea for the children. There are so many children that are outside playing on the estate that i am surprised none of them have been hurt. I spend alot of my time outside with my son when he is out there playing. What saddens me is that i never see any other parents out there watching their children, little ones as young as 3 weaving in and out of traffic it is just madness. School holidays are a nightmare as the parents can’t be bothered to take the children out and just let them run around at their leisure. There is a park down the road that costs nothing. One of the parents stated that as you could no longer ride bikes on the park it was forcing kids out onto the street to ride their bikes, but that ban only came about last year yet children have been left unsupervised riding bikes for longer than that up here. An after school club is al very well but it just seems to me that it gives the parents more free time away from their children. In my opinion what children want is a bit more attention from the parents and to be taken out a bit more. But its the same old isn’t it, have children, let the rest of society look after them. Maybe a how to entertain your child club could also be made but then nobody would turn up.
Report abuse