Westfield community school

 A group of young people from Westfield Community School recently travelled to Birmingham to celebrate their achievements at YoUFiestA 2009.

 YoUFA is the youth arm of the national educational charity The University of the First Age (UFA), and they hosted their first ever youth festival ‘YoUFiestA’ at the Town Hall in Birmingham.

The festival involved up to 200 young people, aged 10-18, from across England. Participants included 28 Lead Learners, who have set up and are running Learning Clubs in their schools and local areas, and who attended the national festival with their clubs to showcase their achievements.

The event was developed, organised and led by young people for young people, with adults supporting, but not leading. Their activities were funded by a CYPF Grant (Children, Young People & Families Grant Programme) which is part of the DCSF (Department for Children, Schools & Families).

Commenting on preparations ahead of the festival, a spokesperson for Westfield Community School said: “We are thrilled to be a representing Westfield at the first ever national YoUFiestA in Birmingham, and are looking forward to showcasing our work to young people from all over the country.”

The day long YoUFiestA programme included a series of digital workshops which were combined to create digital art work that was unveiled to all participants at the end of the day.  A new YoUFA website was also launched during the festival, which will enable participants to keep in touch and continue to share their experiences throughout the year.

To date there are eight UFA Learning Clubs running across England, including: Hackney, London x2; Leicester x2; Norfolk; Somerset; Northamptonshire and Derbyshire. The UFA is looking to recruit other areas across the country to develop this programme. Further information can be obtained from UFA Chief Executive, Linda Gregory on 0121 212 9838 or visit www.ufa.org.uk