Safe Space to Speak
Feelz on Wheelz
We are S3 (Safe Space to Speak), and we are the youth board (ages 14-25) who governs the Dyfodol Ni Partnership, which uses and promotes new ways of improving young people’s mental health in Ceredigion.
Our aim is to make good trouble…everywhere! We’re starting in Ceredigion, talking to people in power about the issues that affect us, disrupting the norm, and popping up at young-people-focussed events and meetings, to ensure truly youth-led services. Once we conquer our county, we’re going bigger, and hope to influence change across Wales, and beyond.
The Dyfodol Ni project has shown us that we really can make huge change, we just need the right people to listen.
We will lobby for systemic change, based on consultation with young people and their views on the issues we should campaign for.
Young people want safe spaces in their towns and villages, and we will campaign tirelessly to ensure access to safe spaces in as many areas as possible within Ceredigion. Safe spaces are defined in point 10 of our manifesto aims.
We will use our work in point 3 of our manifesto to ensure good quality services for young people, and aim to improve signposting and therefore access to these services.
transport within Ceredigion is not good enough. Young people consider it to be infrequent, unreliable, or totally unavailable.
Our manifesto sits on the desk of every person in power across the UK. People are paying attention, and it’s exciting! If you share our passion for speaking up for young people, ensuring safe services, and making change, please get in touch to become a member.
Proudly funded by the National Lottery Community Fund
Our main priority is ensuring safe spaces across Ceredigion. Throughout 2024, we developed an Endorsement Scheme for those running spaces and services for young people in Ceredigion, which has been tried and tested by some of our Dyfodol Ni Partners, and will open publicly in 2025.
S3’s Manifesto outlines what we consider to be safe spaces, as a result of extensive consultation with 1300 young people across the county throughout our research year, with safe services following a very similar criteria. Our Endorsement Scheme follows these requirements, and asks applicants to detail how they meet each step. The aim is for all youth-focussed organisations in Ceredigion to be endorsed by S3, so that young people recognise that it is safe, and will meet their expectations of a safe service.
Organisations who do not meet all criteria will not be criticised, instead this is a learning opportunity for both us and the applicant – we will discuss the weak points, and ways they can improve, followed by an in-person visit so that we can see the way the service works for ourselves. Our aim is to help organisations be the best they can be, so that we are all more stable, and relevant for today’s young people.
At the end of our research year, we made a film to show you all just how much youth-led safe spaces are needed, and why it is so important that young voices, like ours, are listened to, and that people take action on what we need.
Depot is a safe space for anyone aged 14-25, it’s totally open access, meaning you can just walk in—no need for any sign-ups or referrals, and the only requirement is being the right age!
Feelz on Wheelz is a mobile youth cafe for 13-25 year olds, run by trained and qualified Youth Support Workers. It was designed by young people, for young people, and aims to cover as much of Ceredigion as possible, particularly targeting areas where there is a need for services for young people
Stage Goat Theatre Company have joined in partnership with Area 43 to launch 56, a new early support hub in the heart of Lampeter.
