A £20,000 grant by Hampshire and Isle of Wight Freemasons has enabled the rollout of a life-changing coaching programme.

The young 18-to-30 year old residents at YMCA centres in Basingstoke and Southampton are benefitting from the skills of the talented Performance Coach Steve Jones. Steve said:

“Many of the residents have had difficult and very troubled pasts. Because of traumatic childhood experiences often repeated night after night, they struggle with all sorts of emotions, self-doubt and anxiety."

“Negative preconceptions of any kind of future have become built in. These young people have no confidence and feel worthless. The programme gives them the motivation and the tools to go out and make a difference with their lives.”

The coaching programme devised by Steve is called ‘FIT for work’. It starts with ‘Focus’ and helping the attendees understand themselves. I is for 'Inspiration’, what are the blocks in their lives and how do they start thinking differently? And T is for ‘Transformation’, raising their horizons and creating an action plan.

The initial programme funded by the Freemasons and delivered by Steve has almost been completed in Basingstoke and Southampton. With members of the YMCA staff taking part in the coaching sessions, both centres are confident there will a very valuable in-house legacy to deliver an on-going rolling

programme of the coaching sessions.

Sarah King, Fundraising Manager at the YMCA said:

“We are most grateful for the support and financial investment by the local Freemasons enabling Steve Jones to deliver his specially devised coaching sessions. What a success."

“I’m so pleased, they are now able to say, ‘I could go out and get a job’ and ‘I could get a place of my own’. These are the opportunities our young residents rightly deserve.”

John Pearson the Charity Lead for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Freemasons said:

“The programme is going to give many more of the residents at these YMCA centres a future. We are delighted to play a part by funding this valuable work by Coach Steve.”

One of the FIT for Work workshops with the YMCA Basingstoke centre team members and delegates, at head of table l to r Coach Steve Jones, Adam Barrett, Head of Youth Support and Programming at the

Centre, and John Pearson. In the foreground right of table Sarah King, YMCA Fundraising Manager.