Charity Ambition, Aspire, Achieve to open second base for young people

Charity Ambition, Aspire, Achieve is to open a new centre in Stratford later this month.

The charity has been helping disabled and disadvantaged children in Newham, from its first base The Terence Brown Arc In The Park in Hermit Road Park in Canning Town, since its formation.

Now the new centre, The Abbey Hub, will open with a naming ceremony on August 30. The base is in Gay Road, Stratford.

As a trustee of AAA, I am honoured to be associated with the new project as our charity expands to help all those young people who need it most in the community. It has been possible with the help of many people in and around the community in Newham.

“There’s very little in the area for youngsters at the moment,” said Ambition, Aspire, Achieve (AAA) founder Kevin Jenkins.

“The area is also quite cut off – on one side you’ve got the River Lea, and at the bottom you’ve got the big Thames Water site. It’s made up mostly of family housing, so we’ll be there to serve them.”

• Volunteers at work earlier this summer

AAA have a ten year lease on the former three bedroomed house, which is owned by Thames Water.

A Saturday play project and after school club has been running at the new site, and this will continue when the children go back to school in September.

Once it’s completed, there’ll be more resources and funding to increase the number of clubs, introduce a soft play area and an adventure playground, which can be explored further at https://schoolplaygroundideas.co.uk/pretend-play/.

• One of the schemes we have already staged at The Abbey Hub

The charity is still in need of donations, including plants, vegetation and tools, or volunteers if people are willing to give their time. For more information, email kevin@theaaazone.com or phone 07860 487727.

“We’ve converted the inside of the house into a space for young people,” Kevin said.

• The Abbey Hub and volunteers at work 

“But the outside is still in the process of being brought up to scratch.”

The outside space will be used for environmental education – our plan is to to have a beehive and areas where children can grow plants.

The work’s been done by volunteers, with workers from organisations including Tesco, Westfield and Turner and Townsend having all helped out.

• More work is being done as the weeks go by

Kevin added: “It’ll be a full-time facility, and we’ll be putting more of a focus on risk work as well. That’ll be more intensive work with children in greater need.”

We have today launched a Facebook Page to keep everyone upto date with all the work that is going on at the Abbey Hub in advance of our official opening and naming.

Details here: https://www.facebook.com/AbbeyHub/