Youthcom believes:
Our parish youth centres have a long tradition of providing a ministry of caring for the younger members of our parish communities. As young people grow and develop, they are becoming increasingly aware of their identity, their gifts and their talents, but they are also experiencing the confusion of living with the issues of adolescence.

Our parish youth centres reach out to young people at a time when they are searching for a way of life which supports their personal, social and spiritual development.

Parish youth centres both promote the participation of young people in the life, mission and work of the parish and of the wider community, and are a concrete expression of the parish community reaching out to its young people. Underpinning our parish youth centres is the belief that young people have gifts and talents, that not only can contribute to the building of the faith community, but that also enable them to play a full and active part in the building of a just and equitable society.

Young people are more likely to gain a sense of identity with the parish community if they feel welcomed, and if parish structures enable them to exercise a responsible role in the life of that community. Young people will also develop a commitment within a community if given the opportunity to be actually involved in it. Our youth centres are a valuable means of making this ideal a reality. Thus young people are involved at all levels within our parish youth centre; as members, as young leaders and as members of the management committee. Within such a welcoming and inclusive environment, young people are seen not only to be recipients of a service, but as partners in the building up of the youth centre.

Our parish youth centres are a unique opportunity of reaching the younger members of the parish community and bringing them more fully into the life of the parish. Through the programmes, activities and ethos of the centre, the leaders guide and support young people and act as mentors and role models in their personal, social and spiritual development. Through the skill and dedication of the youth workers, the parish is able to reach young people who are in danger of being at-risk, and offer much needed care and support. It is essential that the workers are supported in their task by both the clergy and wider parish community and are assured of their place at the heart of parish life. Only with such support will the youth centre and its workers achieve its full potential as a pastoral resource to the parish.

Bridges in Belfast serve both as a means of dividing as well as well of uniting people in various parts of the city. Youthcom has been awarded funding of £500,000 by the International Fund for Ireland and the Department of Foreign Affairs in Dublin, for an innovative 3 year cross-community capacity building programme which aims to unite young people from communities traditionally on either side of these bridges.

Crossing the Bridges aims to unite young people from what have been traditionally hard line Republican and Loyalist areas. The programme will involve young people from four loyalist communities and young people from four nationalist communities primarily in East and West of Belfast. The project was formally launched at the Big Wheel, beside Belfast City Hall, by Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Dermot Ahern on Thursday 10 April.

Crossing the Bridges is a follow up to the East Meets West programme which ran for 18 months between young people from the Corpus Christi Youth Centre, Ballymurphy and young people from the Tullycarnet estate.

The aim of the project is to enable young people to secure the information and skills necessary to enable them to actively participate in peace building, both within their own communities, and also between communities on either side of the sectarian divide.

Among the key elements of this youth programme are the participation of young people in An Gaisce(President's Award)/ Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award; a Youth Leadership Award; a 15 mile expedition; cultural diversity celebrations; anti-sectarian workshops and a Community Relations Conference.

Mr Brian McKee, Director of Youthcom stated: "There is the expectation that after their participation and training achieved through this programme, the adult volunteers and young people will pass on their own skills to others, take active participation in future cross community events and activities, and actively promote the shared and integral vision of the project to other community groups. This project is a wonderful example of young people from communities most affected by conflict playing their part in the creation of a new and shared future for us all."

Click here for photographs of launch