Across the Fylde Coast, youth work is not just evolving, it’s leading the way. A renewed vision is placing young people at the heart of local strategy, decision-making, and community action. This shift is powered by deep historical roots, bold partnerships, and growing recognition that youth work isn’t just valuable, it’s vital.
The region has long been a pioneer in youth services. After the Albermarle Report in 1960, youth centres and detached youth work projects flourished through the 1970s and ’80s. These spaces became lifelines, offering structure, support, and identity.
In recent decades, despite the loss of statutory youth services, the Fylde Coast’s Voluntary, Community, Faith and Social Enterprise youth sector has stepped up. Organisations like Magic Club, Streetlife, The Boathouse Youth, Streetwise, and Blackpool Boys and Girls Club, along with the region’s three Football Foundations and community partners, now offer more than just activities, they provide belonging, purpose, and voice.
United Youth Alliance (UYA) is part of this collective, a youth-led, values-driven organisation that ensures young people have the space, tools, and agency to lead change. UYA’s Youth Hacks including the UK’s first LGBTQ+ Hack and the country’s first youth consultation for the new National Youth Strategy have set a national example for what youth-led participation looks like.
But what does youth work really mean to young people?
“I joined because I wanted to make a difference in my community and bring a feminist perspective to an area where support for young people can be hard to find. At school, I struggled to find myself. Youth work gave me a way to explore who I am and to take part in something bigger.”
Young people involved in UYA’s Coastal Social Action groups have created podcasts, co designed a young men’s event, produced a short film about young women, and led research on gender bias in careers. Many are #iwill Ambassadors, trained as young researchers, and participate in targeted work with young women, LGBTQ+ youth, and young men.
“For us, youth work means we’re free to be ourselves. It gives us space to feel safe and valued. We joined because we wanted to be heard but also because we wanted to lead change.”
Through these programmes, young people have attended Four Nations conferences, travelled to Wales and Scotland, and plan to visit Ireland in 2026. They’ve spoken to MPs at the Houses of Parliament, representing their communities and proposing real solutions.
“We’ve met women making change in our communities, been interviewed on BBC Women’s Hour, and featured in national campaigns about the rights of girls. We’ve had real influence with funders like the National Lottery.”
Youth work is far more than support, it’s about expression, and co-creation. It’s about facilitating space where young people build agency, lead dialogue, and help shape the systems that impact their lives. Its about creators not consumers.
UYA is part of a powerful regional movement, supported by national frameworks such as the Labour Government’s National Youth Strategy, the Power of Youth Charter, and Plan International UK’s State of Girls’ Rights Report. Together, they form a shared vision for equity, access, and youth-led change.
Their projects have included Move Together Blackpool, in partnership with Blackpool FC Community Trust, using youth-led research to identity how to break down barriers to physical activity. Initiatives like the Pier-to-Peer Sisterhood and #iwill Ambassador Programme equip young women to lead. Conferences like What About the Boys spotlight the gender specific needs of young men.
This work is global, too. UYA has partnered with youth organisations in Zambia to co-develop training and share best practice and building global solidarity among young changemakers.
The question isn’t whether young people are ready to lead.
It’s whether the rest of us are ready to follow.
This article was co-written by Deborah Terras, CEO of United Youth Alliance, and young people from the Coastal Social Action groups. It reflects our shared belief: that youth work is a space where young people don’t just participate they lead.
