Loss of Glasgow youth hub ‘could drive youngsters into life of crime’

Johnny Hendry, one of Glasgow’s most experienced youth workers, fears vital hubs are being lost across the city because of increasing pressures on budgets.

He ran a successful Thursday night youth club in Govan for over 20 years, but recently had to relocate after the community centre where it was based was demolished to make way for new housing.

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(Image: Mark Gibson)

Johnny, 69, has devoted his life to helping youngsters living in the city’s most deprived areas strive to fulfil their potential instead of falling into a life of gang culture or addiction.

Speaking exclusively to the Glasgow Times, he said: “I’m absolutely dumbfounded that the club’s base was demolished, especially when you could see how hugely beneficial the facility was to the youngsters coming through the doors.

“It helped and encouraged generations of teenagers, but it will no longer be on their doorstep. I’m talking about kids who were heading down the wrong path, taking drugs, drinking alcohol and getting into trouble with the police. Coming to the club provided them with the education and social skills to go into the world of work or to look to study at university. It gave them the drive and determination to improve their lives and the sad thing is if hubs like this one don’t exist then even more kids will fall through the cracks.”

Johnny, who works for Aberlour, Scotland’s biggest children’s charity, says the importance of youth clubs cannot be overestimated.

He says they provide a destination away from drink, drugs, violence and crime while also building a crucial support network for young people seeking direction.

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Johnny, who works with teens in schools and on the streets, said: “The actual activities provided at a club are only the tip of the iceberg.

“A pool table and a couple of TVs might get people through the doors, but it’s not why they stay. The clubs are a meeting place, a focal point. It can take time, but the young people learn to trust us and their peers who attend.”

(Image: Mark F Gibson)

(Image: Mark F Gibson)

Johnny says the loss of the club’s original base has made keeping people coming more difficult.

He added: “After the building was flattened we had to move further away and out of the neighbourhood. It’s only a mile or so, but to young people that’s like the other side of the world. The bigger concern is that the same thing is happening across Glasgow and up and down the country at a time when so many young people are struggling.

“We know what they need to thrive but we’re not providing it. And worse, where we have been providing it, we’re taking it away.”

Johnny also says that youth hubs are often a safe haven for those whose home life might be blighted by social issues like poverty, addiction or domestic violence.

He added: “Many of the young people we see don’t have another trusted adult in their lives to listen to them and encourage them.

“They will ask for advice, for support. We will help them apply for jobs and find work. Just being there for them at a dark time can make all the difference in the world.

“We build relationships that last long after they become adults. They drop in to keep in touch and we’re now seeing their children coming in. Clubs like ours are needed more than ever, but are finding it more difficult than ever to survive.”

Govan lost far more than a building when the youth club was demolished to make way for housing, according to one former member.

(Image: Mark Gibson)

Alan Pollock grew up in the neighbourhood and says Johnny should be hailed a hero for his decades of life-changing dedication to others.

Alan was a 16-year-old karate champion when he first attended the club and, now 32, still believes it was a pivotal moment in his life.

Alan said: “Johnny is a legend in Govan and it is impossible to overstate what he has achieved and how many lives he has changed.

“The club has had a huge impact on so many young people and that needs to be properly understood and recognised. To see the base flattened saddened all those who went there, it’s a massive loss for the whole community.

“It wasn’t just four walls and a roof, it was a safety net, a place where young people could find help and encouragement when it was missing elsewhere.

“It literally changed my life and, over the years, there have been hundreds if not thousands of others like me.”

(Image: Mark F Gibson)

Alan, who now works as a karate instructor, had just won a world championship in his age group when he first attended the club in 2008.

He explained: “At the time, I was hoping to get to Tokyo to defend my title but the cost looked like being prohibitive.

“I just remember Johnny being totally engaged as soon as he heard about it, getting sponsorship, publicity, just doing everything he possibly could to help.

“In the end, I made it to Tokyo and retained my title, but my respect and gratitude to Johnny and Aberlour goes far beyond that.

“He helped me in all sorts of ways. I wrote my first CV with his help and was coached for my first interview there.

“Johnny wasn’t just doing it for me, he would do it for every young person that came through the door. He is a force of nature and, when it comes to young people needing help, he never stops.

“Sometimes life can change in an instant and walking into that club changed everything for me and loads of young people like me.

“To see it gone, and to think all that support and encouragement won’t be so easily available to young people growing up there today, is beyond grim. We need far more clubs like that not fewer and far more people like Johnny.”