Chevin help tenant set up Somali Group
A Chevin tenant has been successful in setting up the Leeds Somali Centre. Mr Nur along with a friend, identified that although the schools were good, many of the Somali youngsters were struggling to get a full grasp of the language and this was affecting their ability to pick up skills in maths and the sciences
Mr Nur approached Chevin Housing to see if they could help him start up some classes for youngsters. Glenn Burton, Community Development Officer was quick to help out in the first instance by providing the group with a constitution and child protection policy.
Chevin were also able to help out with some funding for the cost of room hire to run classes, explain the CRB process and cover the costs of CRB checks
The group now has around 30 pupils aged between 7-15years attending classes four afternoons a week. Three volunteer Somali tutors teach the youngsters English and Maths and they have ambitions to expand further into adult training. The lessons not only benefit the youngsters but also their parents and other family members. Many of the adults only have basic English and it is clear that a two way learning process is happening at home.
Mr Hussein Nur said ''Most of our community are new to the area and to help with learning we decided to set up after school classes run by volunteers. We appreciate the help we have had from Chevin to get us to this stage. All of the children really enjoy coming to the classes and the results are starting to show in school. The project is now registered with the Centre for Supplementary Education and has achieved bronze level and we are hoping to gain Silver in the near future.
Glenn Burton, Community Development Officer at Chevin said ‘'The group are well organised and just needed some help to start up. Their activities are very much of value to the young people of the area and are a good example of what the community can do in terms of self help given some support. Chevin's support has been complemented by working with West Yorkshire Police and Leeds City Council 'Prevent' Project.
Photographed: Youngsters at the classes learning English, Maths and Science.
