About us
Who we are
OnSide Youth Zones is a national charity with a mission; to build a network of affordable, high quality Youth Zones across the country, transforming the lives of young people, by giving them somewhere to go, something to do and someone to talk to. OnSide aims to inspire young people to lead healthier and more positive lives, raising their aspirations so they grow up to become happy, caring and responsible citizens. For just 50p per session young people between the age of 8 and 19 (25 for those with a disability) can access over 20 activities each evening at a Youth Zone, occupying their bodies and minds in a fun way, while learning new skills and socialising in a safe, positive way. Each Youth Zone operates according to OnSide’s model of best practice, but is run as an independent charity by local, private sector-led boards with the support of Local Authorities, a strong management team and army of local volunteers. Open 7 evenings per week and all day every school holiday; Youth Zones are open when schools are closed.
OnSide was established as a charity in 2008 to create Youth Zones across the UK. It has been growing rapidly ever since and has hugely exciting and ambitious plans to continue and accelerate this growth. We have a network of ten Youth Zones and OnSide’s role is to support both the existing network and also create new Youth Zones across the UK, including in London.
The OnSide Youth Zone Network currently has over 35,000 young members, over 1000 volunteers with a vision is to open 20 fully-operational Youth Zones by 2020.