THE Youth Café at Room 13 — the long awaited centre for young people in Okehampton — has opened its doors again after a Christmas break and is looking to build on an encouraging first two months. Youth workers hope to raise the profile of the facility in St James Street and make sure youngsters from Okehampton and surrounding villages are fully aware of just what Room 13 has to offer. As well as a place where young people can meet and relax, the building hosts a range of young people's support services. The youth café opens on Wednesdays between 5.30pm and 7.30pm. Carol Jones, who is part of the Directions service team, said the early signs were promising, with an average of 20 youngsters using the café on the first three Wednesdays it ran. She said the ages of those attending ranged from 12 to 18 and she was hoping to increase numbers while still preserving a broad age range of users. Also making use of the building are Girls At Large (GAL) — a group of teenage girls who meet each Monday between 6.30pm and 8.30pm. The group offers free activities to boost the self- confidence of girls aged 13 to 19, such as fabric and design nights and smoothie making. Carol said the response from young people to the new facility had been very positive: 'We want young people to feel welcome, whether they are coming in to use the services we have here or just want to have a cup of coffee and chill out or play a game of pool.' There are many issues which face young people growing up today and the Directions Youth Enquiry Service is there to offer impartial information and advice, on issues such as sexual health, family problems and self-harm. Upstairs at Room 13 are a number of other agencies. Connexions works with young people aged from 16 to 19 to help them find out all about training and further education opportunities. Y-Smart is a confidential drugs and alcohol abuse service for under 19s, which with the opening of Room 13 now has a full-time worker based in West Devon for the first time. Y-Smart can work with young people in their home to provide targeted prevention and planned treatment services if they wish, although many prefer the anonymity of visiting the St James Street office. Youth offending services are also co-ordinated in the Okehampton office. Pippa St John Cooper, West Devon Youth Service co-ordinator said the opening of a dedicated centre for young people had seen the realisation of a long-held dream. 'I think the town has been desperate for this sort of facility for young people for so long. All the feedback we have had from young people so far has been really positive. It has been a fantastic start,' she said. The team at Room 13 has been boosted recently with the recruitment of a new youth worker Kerry Hickman. Kerry's appointment will enable the youth café to be open to young people for more hours each week.
