Young Person's Story

This week is Children's Mental Health Week (9th - 15th February 2026) and the theme is 'This is My Place'. We spoke to a young person who regularly attends our youth club to find out how the wellbeing sessions have helped with her own mental health, and the benefits of youth club.

The young person began coming to YMCA youth club, specifically getting involved in the wellbeing elements in 2025, because she was having problems with her mental health.

These sessions have helped improve her mental health because from the moment she arrives at youth club the "atmosphere is happy and bright", which makes her instantly feel happier.

Building a relationship with Sarah, Wellbeing Officer at YMCA Humber, has helped this young person to open up about her own mental health. She describes the staff who runs these sessions as "kind and understanding", and they are honest in their responses, they don't say "Its going to be fine", instead they help individuals understand "its going to take some time to recover but you are going to be alright." 

A big aspect to youth club and the wellbeing themed sessions is for young people to feel safe and to be themselves. The young person said, "I feel safe being myself here, at school I feel there is a norm, you've got to be something you don't want to be, but here [YMCA youth club], you can be what you want." This statement shows the impact youth club has had on this young person, and is one of the reasons she attends regularly because she can be herself. 

Without access to youth club, the young person said "I would be a lot worse than I was a year ago", previously she would be in her room all the time listening to sad music, now she comes to a safe place to socialise and feels this has helped her become the "type of girl that will go out and try make new friends."

Sarah Howden, Wellbeing Officer at YMCA Humber said, "the youth sessions which we provide at YMCA Humber are vital in allowing the children of the local area to discover who they are and the potential that they have. Wellbeing runs through all of our youth sessions, and it is important to give our young people a safe space for them to explore their feelings without judgement. By doing this it shows them they have a safe space to be their true selves. We try and do a range of activities to help them explore their wellbeing such as crafts, sports activities, and trips that all have a theme which focuses on either their emotional, social, mental and physical wellbeing.