Launch event to showcase new youth collaboration

A leader in the Solihull community is inviting businesses to attend the Coventry & Solihull Launch of new organisation YOU WM.

YOU WM is a new collaboration of the 11 Youth Organisations in Uniform in the urban West Midlands, including the Army Cadets, Boys ' Brigade, Combined Cadet Forces, Fire Cadets, Girlguiding, Girls Brigade, RAF Air Cadets, Sea Cadets, Scouts, St John Ambulance and the Volunteer Police Cadets).

There is considerable evidence that participation by a young person in a uniformed youth organisation can play a major, and sometimes a life-changing, part in the development of the skills and confidence needed to fulfil their potential and to enable them to play an active role as a citizen in our communities.

Currently some 20,000 youngsters are involved in the urban WM. Many more could benefit, particularly from the more deprived communities, if they knew the benefits and what was available local to them and if there were sufficient adult volunteers to achieve expansion.

YOU WM will support the eleven organisations by adding value in four ways :

• By providing a high quality web portal providing easily accessible information to young people, their parents and carers on what is available to them locally
• By helping to build capacity through advice to attract and develop adult volunteers so the eleven organisations can grow and help even more youngsters
• By supporting collaboration between the eleven for mutual benefit - including sharing of ideas, facilities, competitions, training and promotional events
• By advocacy to raise awareness with our civic, business, faith and community leaders of the benefit of membership of uniformed youth organisations to the youngster and the community

The development of YOU WM has been led by the WM Lieutenancy with support from the West Midlands RFCA and leaders of the eleven organisations, and is based on the successful YOU London which has been running for some years.

George Marsh MBE (pictured), Deputy Lieutenant of West Midlands and lead DL and Chair of YOU WM, is inviting people to join them for their launch on Tuesday 1 March 22 at Coventry College from 6:00-7:30m to meet and talk to leaders and young people from the YOU WM organisations and to hear more about their plans.

George Marsh said: "The 11 Youth Organisations in Uniform play a huge role in helping young people to develop the skills and confidence needed to fulfill their potential in society; YOU WM will support with advocacy, capacity building, web information and promoting collaboration. Do join us at the launch to find out more."

Refreshments will be provided at the event and parking is available.

Please RSVP by 14 February to george@youwm.org.uk , copying our coordinator Gareth Hughes gareth@youwm.org.uk.