Every year Leeds Church Institute’s Team decide on a charitable organisation they would like to make a small donation to in line with upholding their values and commitment to stewardship, partnerships and supporting the impact of equality of opportunity in delivering city engagement. This year Kidz Klub were the recipients of this award, we hope that this donation goes a small way to contributing to a wonderful charity who continue to make a difference with their valuable work in our communities.
Read our short Q&A with Kidz Klub to learn more about them and how you can provide support.
What does Kidz Klub do and why?
Kidz Klub Leeds is a faith based locally trusted organisation that has been present ‘for the long term’ sharing the love of God in word and deed for over 20 years, supporting seven inner city wards, three of which are predominately BAME communities. We are a Christian charity working to benefit children of all backgrounds, we support many refugee and asylum seeker families. We aim to confront child poverty and to encourage children’s mental, spiritual, moral and physical development to enable them to participate in society as independent, mature and responsible individuals. We exist to reach the unreached 95%, a staggering 95 per-cent* of under 18s in the UK don’t go to church, though many of them are open to faith. In our communities, the church is often under resourced, but there lies the greatest need. During the health crisis, we’ve worked hard and remain present in our communities, our model allows for great engagement and connection. *Scripture Union’s ‘The 95 Campaign’
Being present for over 20 years and witnessing the effects poverty on the lives of children has been heart-breaking for us. We have reflected and listed to what the community tells us they need to turn the tide and provide opportunities for children to flourish and how lasting and long-term change for communities is best achieved.
Kidz Klub activities
Kidz Klub Leeds pre pandemic programme provided up to 11 hours of term time activities each week supported by 17 staff (8 sessional) and 86 volunteers in a total to 18 different community locations in some of the most deprived areas of Leeds, reaching 1250 children each week. We facilitate community activities supporting children to be at the heart of making a difference in their community. We carry out over 1000+ child home visits each week, provide holistic family support work including mentoring, one-to-one trips, and bespoke parental support. We run a Central Klub with an average of 350+ children attending each week (pre restrictions). We run four smaller weekly Hub Klubs, a Young Leaders programme, take children on summer residentials, carry out work in schools and have run a work placement and accredited training programme for out-of-work adults.
What would the donation from LCI do? What will it be used for or towards?
Our funding is solely reliant on charitable donations and our fundraising activities. The funding from LCI will enable us to sustain our core services and will enable us to develop new projects and initiatives which our communities tell us they need. We have a lot of work to do to meet our 2021/22 budget and to meet the ever-increasing demands on our work. We love partnering with others in our mission and thank LCI for their generosity.
What can individuals or organisations do to provide support?
Individuals can sign up to receive regular updates of our work and if they felt able could become a “Friend of Kidz Klub” by paying a regular amount to join in with our city-wide ministry. We have many events coming up in 2022 that individuals might like to sign up for and to help us raise funds for our work. We are always welcome for people to join the Kidz Klub family in a more direct hands-on approach if they have time to spare. Please see how to become a Kidz Klub Leeds volunteer on our website pages. We always welcome prayer for our ministry, and people can sign up for regular prayer points and join us on Zoom or when we hold in person prayer and worship events. Organisations can support our work with a one-off donation or by adopting us as their Charity of the Year. Our 2022 challenge events offer a great opportunity for team building and to work together to raise money for our work supporting children and families living in inner-city Leeds.
To find out more about the valuable work of Kidz Klub, events and ways to support.
Please visit: www.kidzklubleeds.org.uk
Facebook | Twitter: @Kidzklubleeds