A major North East employer has signed a ten-year sponsorship agreement with a pioneering new youth and community hub in Newcastle.
Global engineering group British Engines has given its long-term backing to the Lighthouse Project at St Michael’s Church in Byker, a state-of-the-art facility which will offer a broad range of activities and services centred around young people.
And as well as helping to fund the Lighthouse Project’s set-up and ongoing running costs, the agreement will also see British Engines providing a range of new opportunities for young people from the Byker community, including work experience and training.
British Engines was founded in Byker in 1922 and now employs around 1,200 people, with its two divisions designing and manufacturing products and providing services for customers in a wide range of industries right around the world.
The Lighthouse Project, which is set to open in the summer, will provide a safe, welcoming meeting place where young people and the community can flourish, with access to a wide variety of activities and services for around 1,500 young people and families each year.
Activities and services will include an open access youth club for juniors and seniors, homework clubs, family health & wellbeing programmes, forest school, as well as mentoring, special educational needs support and detached youth work, in cooperation with local delivery partners.
The redevelopment will include a new purpose-built youth club annexe, arts & performance spaces, e-sports suite, music rehearsal space, outdoor sports area and a nature trail, as well as mentoring & detached youth work spaces.
Office, meeting & storage facilities will be available for local community partner organisations, while the building will also provide a new home for the Byker Scout Group and a reimagined worship space.
Alex Lamb, Chairman at British Engines, says: “The Lighthouse Project’s location is next to where British Engines was originally established as a company and, as a major employer in the North East, we feel a deep-rooted responsibility to give back to the local area.
“We feel privileged to support The Lighthouse Project. We were pleased to contribute funding to develop its physical infrastructure and initial set-up, and we are excited that our commitment will extend beyond its launch, with an annual grant that will help sustain its operations and ensure its long-term success.
“We look forward to playing an active role in helping The Lighthouse Project achieve its vision, creating meaningful opportunities for young people and making a positive, lasting impact on the local community.”
Ben Roman, Chief Executive at The Lighthouse Project, adds: “Having the long-term backing of such a well-regarded Newcastle business is a real expression of confidence in our aims and ambitions, and we’re hugely grateful to British Engines for recognising the impact that our work will have on its home city.
“The new opportunities that this relationship will open up will be life-changing for so many young people in Byker and we’re certain that it will provide many great examples of what they can achieve when they’re given the chance to thrive.
“Corporate support for our work will be essential in helping us achieve our full potential, and we’re continuing to speak to other North East businesses about how we might help them achieve their community investment aspirations.
“We’re moving closer to being able to share this fantastic new facility with our local community and the wider city, and we’re very excited about all the new opportunities that it will deliver for the people of Byker and beyond.”
The Lighthouse Project is being made possible with the award of a £4.2m grant from the Department for Culture, Media & Sport’s Youth Investment Fund, and through the generosity of Lord Crewe Trust and The Squires Foundation.
For further information, please visit https://thelighthouseproject.org.uk/ or follow @lighthouseprojectbyker on Instagram.