On Wednesday the 1st of February, we welcomed well-known broadcaster Emma Willis to Streetlife. Emma has had big roles on Radio One and Big Brother. Emma came to our Blackpool day centre to meet some of our fantastic young people. This visit was part of Emma’s work with Comic Relief.

Comic Relief works hard to raise money throughout the year for those living in poverty. One of their biggest events is Red Nose Day, which will take place on Friday 17th March. Red Nose Day provides everyone with the opportunity to get fundraising and support those living in poverty.

Comic Relief has worked closely with Streetlife over the years. We have received many grants from Comic Relief, which have helped us to continue supporting young people in Blackpool.

Emma and her team came along to see what the current grant is allowing us to achieve at Streetlife. Emma met the team and observed our afternoon drop-in session, where Emma spoke to the young people. At the end of the day, Emma accompanied Kaitlyn, a young person we support and Rachael, a valued staff member, on a walk around the local park.

Kaitlyn was able to chat about her experiences, the support she has had and continues to have from Streetlife and how she is now helping others.

At Streetlife, we believe in supporting young people in many ways. Many young people in Blackpool come to us for support for living arrangements, but we also offer classes to develop essential life skills for young people in the local community. These can include mindfulness sessions, art therapy, cooking classes, CV writing and much more.

We know how tough it can be, so we aim to support young people in as many ways as possible. The cost of living crisis is only amplifying the need for our support. Our amazing team of staff work hard every day to provide care and support to young people.

Most of our skill sessions take place in The Base, but we also have our Night Shelter. This offers space for up to 8 young people to stay overnight. This space gives them access to their own bedroom and a shared bathroom and kitchen area. We offer this so that younger people have a space to feel safe and cared for. None of this would be possible without the support of others.

Our whole team and the young people we support are extremely grateful for the continued support we receive from Comic Relief. It was a pleasure to welcome Emma Willis to Streetlife so that we could show her the amazing facilities we are able to offer.

You can see Emma’s visit here on BBC iPlayer.