Youth clubs play a vital role in communities, giving young people a safe space to socialise, learn new skills, and have fun. Whether you are running a weekly session or planning a one-off event, getting it right means understanding what young people actually want and putting proper safeguarding in place.
Involve young people in planning
The single most important piece of advice for anyone organising a youth event is this: involve the young people in the planning. Adults planning events for teenagers without consulting them almost always get it wrong. What adults think young people want and what they actually want are often very different things.
Set up a youth committee or steering group. Give them genuine decision-making power over the theme, activities, and format. Your role as an adult organiser is to facilitate, manage risk, and handle logistics. Their role is to shape the event so that their peers will actually turn up.
This approach also develops valuable skills in the young people involved: teamwork, budgeting, problem-solving, and communication. It turns event planning into a youth development opportunity in its own right.
Safeguarding requirements
Safeguarding is the foundation of all youth work. Every youth event must have:
- DBS-checked volunteers and staff. All adults in positions of responsibility must have an Enhanced DBS check. For regulated activity (unsupervised work with children), a check against the Barred Lists is also required
- Appropriate ratios. The recommended adult-to-young-person ratio depends on the activity and the age group. As a general guideline, 1:8 for 8 to 12 year olds and 1:10 for 13 to 17 year olds, with a minimum of two adults present at all times regardless of group size
- A safeguarding policy. This should be written, shared with all volunteers, and available to parents on request
- A designated safeguarding lead. One person should be clearly identified as the safeguarding lead and know the referral process for your local authority
- Parental consent forms. Collect these for every young person attending, including emergency contact details, medical information, and photo consent
- A registration system. Know who is in the building at all times. Sign in and sign out every participant
Risk assessments
Every activity needs a risk assessment. This does not need to be a bureaucratic exercise. A simple table listing the hazard, who is at risk, the likelihood and severity, and the control measures in place is sufficient. Common hazards at youth events include:
- Physical activity injuries (trips, collisions, equipment failures)
- Fire safety (particularly in older buildings)
- Allergic reactions to food or craft materials
- Safeguarding incidents
- Unauthorised access or departure from the venue
Complete risk assessments before the event and share them with all volunteers. Keep copies on file.
Activity ideas that work
The best youth club events combine structure with freedom. Young people want to socialise on their own terms, but they also appreciate organised activities that give the evening a shape. Here are formats that consistently work:
Regular sessions
- Games nights -- Table tennis, pool, board games, video game tournaments
- Creative workshops -- Art, music production, photography, film-making, coding
- Sports sessions -- Five-a-side football, basketball, dodgeball, martial arts tasters
- Cooking sessions -- Teach basic cooking skills with equipment the young people can use
- Drop-in social -- A safe space with music, snacks, and the freedom to just hang out
Special events
- Talent shows -- Always popular. Give young people a stage and they will rise to it
- Themed discos or parties -- Halloween, end of term, summer celebration
- Trips and residentials -- Bowling, climbing walls, theme parks, camping weekends
- Community projects -- Litter picks, mural painting, fundraising for a cause they care about
Funding youth events
Youth clubs and events can access a range of funding sources:
- Local council youth grants -- Most local authorities have funding pots specifically for youth provision. Check your council's grants page
- National Lottery Community Fund -- Awards grants from £300 upwards for community projects, including youth work
- BBC Children in Need -- Funds organisations working with disadvantaged children and young people
- Youth Music -- Funds music-making projects for young people facing barriers
- Local community foundations -- Most areas have a community foundation that manages local grant-giving trusts
- Crowdfunding and local fundraising -- Sometimes the simplest route, especially for one-off events
When applying for grants, involve the young people in the application. Funders want to see genuine youth participation, not adults deciding what young people need.
Venues
Purpose-built youth centres are ideal but increasingly rare due to funding cuts. Alternatives include community centres, church halls, school halls (available in the evenings and at weekends), sports centres, and even outdoor spaces in summer.
The venue needs to feel like a space that belongs to the young people, not a space they are borrowing. Small touches make a difference: let them choose the music, rearrange the furniture, and personalise the space during sessions. A welcoming environment where young people feel ownership is more important than expensive facilities.
Engaging harder-to-reach young people
The young people who most need youth provision are often the hardest to engage. They may not respond to traditional promotion, may be wary of structured settings, and may have had negative experiences with authority figures.
Outreach is key. Go to where young people already are, whether that is parks, shopping centres, or online spaces. Use peer recruitment: young people who already attend can bring their friends. Offer taster sessions with no commitment required. Remove barriers to participation: no membership fees, no dress code, no requirement to join in with activities.
Detached youth work, where trained youth workers engage with young people in public spaces, is one of the most effective ways to connect with those who will not walk into a youth club. If your organisation has the capacity, consider adding outreach to your programme. For tips on reaching new audiences, see our guide on promoting events on a budget.
Measuring impact
Funders and stakeholders want to know that your youth events are making a difference. Collect data on attendance, demographics, and participant feedback. Use simple outcome tools: ask young people at the start and end of a programme to rate their confidence, wellbeing, or skills on a scale. Track how many new young people attend and how many return.
Qualitative feedback matters too. Ask young people what the sessions mean to them and collect quotes (with consent). A single powerful quote from a young person about how the youth club has helped them is worth more than a page of statistics.
Building a sustainable programme
One-off events are valuable, but a regular, reliable programme has a deeper impact. Young people need consistency. If you say you will be open every Thursday, be open every Thursday. Build a team of volunteers large enough to cover absences. Develop a diverse funding base so that the loss of one grant does not shut everything down.
Connect with your local youth partnership or council of voluntary service. They can signpost you to training, funding, and networks of other youth organisations. You do not have to do this alone.
