What Is There For Kids?

[Mr Darn]

Thought i'd start this little can of worms as its something thats close to me being a father...

i have my children moaning at me day after day about 'havin Nowt ta dee' and thought it would be a good idea for us to let each other know about the free, and not so free things kids can do these days.

things like:

youth clubs

parks

football and sport organisations

etc etc

also, anyone agree that bedlington has nothing in the way of recreational facilities?

would a sports center be used here? (hides!!!)

hell, i'd settle for a macdonnalds even!

why is it bedlington is overlooked for so many things?

lets hear your vews!

oh, and can we have a shortcut for the yellow ball with black arrow on it? i cant find it under the 'show all' link!

[Andy Millne]

can we have a shortcut for the yellow ball with black arrow on it? i cant find it under the 'show all' link!

You mean you would like to use it as an emoticon? like these?

They are generally there to illustrate emotions. I will add it only if you can come up with a suitable emotion it will illustrate.

[Mr Darn]

You mean you would like to use it as an emoticon? like these?

They are generally there to illustrate emotions. I will add it only if you can come up with a suitable emotion it will illustrate.

was gonna use it as a list bullet.

ie:

places we want to see:

->swimming pools

->youth organisations

->etc etc

dont matter if you dont want to, just an idea!

[bedlington resident]

why is it bedlington is overlooked for so many things?

Bedlington is overlooked because it is part of Wansbeck. Count up how many councillors Ashington has - more than enough to out number the rest of the Wansbeck councillors, so they get their own way over everything.

Bedlington councillors don't stand a chance of getting anything through, even if they wanted to.

[Malcolm Robinson]

Bedlington is overlooked because it is part of Wansbeck. Count up how many councillors Ashington has - more than enough to out number the rest of the Wansbeck councillors, so they get their own way over everything.

Bedlington councillors don't stand a chance of getting anything through, even if they wanted to.

That might not be quite as simple as it sounds. When I lived in Bedlignton if you took the old Bedlingtonshire area there was enough political muscle in councillor numbers to get things changed. The fact that they never did may well be another thread! It seemed to me towing a single party line was much more important than representing their electorate! Something to ask about next time there is a knock at the door off anyone begging votes!

[KevScott]

That might not be quite as simple as it sounds. When I lived in Bedlignton if you took the old Bedlingtonshire area there was enough political muscle in councillor numbers to get things changed. The fact that they never did may well be another thread! It seemed to me towing a single party line was much more important than representing their electorate! Something to ask about next time there is a knock at the door off anyone begging votes!

Christ, this has been an argument since I was a kid(yeah I admit that wasnt to long ago in the past) But the lack of recreational facilities in Bedlington has simply crippled the Town in my opinion. Being the only thing to do is drink....and even the night life in my opinion has gone down hill dramatically..

As for Wansbeck council.....well, Im sure my thoughts arent suitable for such a forum :-D

[threegee]

I've just spoken to (Labour Leader) Councillor Alan Douglas in the last half hour, and he's promised to address some of the issues about the Town that are raised here.

His comment on the "Bedlington wants it's independence back" issue: "There's no way in a million years that this is going to happen!"

[BedlingtonLass]

I've just spoken to (Labour Leader) Councillor Alan Douglas in the last half hour, and he's promised to address some of the issues about the Town that are raised here.

His comment on the "Bedlington wants it's independence back" issue: "There's no way in a million years that this is going to happen!"

Alan is usually right, he knows when and if something can change, i agree with my mr tho definately nothing for kids in bedlington, if we want to do some activity with them it usually means we have to leave bedlington

[rachael]

i am so glad that this issue was brought up, as a teenager who lives in bedlington, i agree there is absolutely nothing for us here. i have to spend money travelling to different places every day just for something to do.

many people have tried to get the council to build something in bedlington for youths, but they always come back with the same answer.."we havent got the land"

what are they talking about? of course theres land in bedlington for a youth centre/sports centre/leisure centre or whatever to be built! bedlington is basically surrounded by fields and land. there were talks of a leisure centre being built, but no, they had to build another police station. what was wrong with the one we already had?

[bedlington bears]

Hi there Mr Darn,

At Bedlington Bears Day Nursery on Forster Avenue we run an 'Out of Schools Club'. We do fun educational activities and artwork. In warmer weather we go out and do things like kite-flying, when we get some snow this year we'll be out sledging. Next spring/summer we'll be growing organic vegetables in our new garden.

We can take your child to school in the morning, and pick them up again after school. After tea we can offer help with homework, or your child may prefer to play board games, X-box games, construction games, or quiet reading (ha! the quiet stuff doesn't happen much).

Cost - £2.80 per hour including breakfast, afternoon tea, pick-up and drop-off.

Tel: 01670 820888

Wendy at Bedlington Bears

Thought i'd start this little can of worms as its something thats close to me being a father...

i have my children moaning at me day after day about 'havin Nowt ta dee' and thought it would be a good idea for us to let each other know about the free, and not so free things kids can do these days.

things like:

youth clubs

parks

football and sport organisations

etc etc

also, anyone agree that bedlington has nothing in the way of recreational facilities?

would a sports center be used here? (hides!!!)

hell, i'd settle for a macdonnalds even!

why is it bedlington is overlooked for so many things?

lets hear your vews!

oh, and can we have a shortcut for the yellow ball with black arrow on it? i cant find it under the 'show all' link!

[Malcolm Robinson]

i

what are they talking about? of course theres land in bedlington for a youth centre/sports centre/leisure centre or whatever to be built! bedlington is basically surrounded by fields and land. there were talks of a leisure centre being built, but no, they had to build another police station. what was wrong with the one we already had?

A few years ago some Bedlington Forum members and others tried to get something done for the youngsters in the town. Our idea was a purpose built unit, sort of youth club, but with some sporting facilities thrown in. (Tried to kill two birds with one stone!) We identified several parcels of council owned land in the town and also found funding. The snag was that WDC would not countenance a new build. The reason, they had to cover any shortfall in running expenses, not withstanding construction costs, and with a limited budget I could see their point. Another snag was that we wanted the land for a quid or equal partnership. Council have to, by law, get best value for any land sales etc and our argument was that our idea represented best value for the land even with no money changing hands as pure financial gain was never mentioned as being the criteria. Of course the resulting stalemate was plain for anyone to see! It was also suggested at the time, by WDC, Bedlington might be getting a small multi use sports facility which we could adopt into and possibly have a section for youth use. I guess that never got off the ground reading current comments!

So if anyone expects WDC to build a dedicated facility you are dreaming, the only way to do it is to do it yourselves. A good starting point would be to go along to a Forum meeting and get it back on the agenda. It isn’t easy but it isn’t impossible!

[Joe Rooney]

A few years ago some Bedlington Forum members and others tried to get something done for the youngsters in the town. Our idea was a purpose built unit, sort of youth club, but with some sporting facilities thrown in. (Tried to kill two birds with one stone!) We identified several parcels of council owned land in the town and also found funding. The snag was that WDC would not countenance a new build. The reason, they had to cover any shortfall in running expenses, not withstanding construction costs, and with a limited budget I could see their point. Another snag was that we wanted the land for a quid or equal partnership. Council have to, by law, get best value for any land sales etc and our argument was that our idea represented best value for the land even with no money changing hands as pure financial gain was never mentioned as being the criteria. Of course the resulting stalemate was plain for anyone to see! It was also suggested at the time, by WDC, Bedlington might be getting a small multi use sports facility which we could adopt into and possibly have a section for youth use. I guess that never got off the ground reading current comments!

So if anyone expects WDC to build a dedicated facility you are dreaming, yourselves. the only way to do it is to do it A good starting point would be to go along to a Forum meeting and get it back on the agenda. It isn’t easy but it isn’t impossible!

Ah reality! I agree wholeheartedly with Malcolm. I f the council didn't own the land, somebody would, and I haven't seen anyone giving away land freely, no matter how good the purpose.

Of course I am completely ignorant of todays reality in Bedlington. But for as long as I remember, it was always so. They had the YMCA, but that was restricted in various ways, especially economic. There was the odd football team, a boy scout troop, and little else, so most of us played on our own, or sat home moping, the choice was ours. The parents might try, but they had enough to handle, just surviving, and feeding the kids.

In Canada there is a great deal of cooperative effort, neighbourhood groups, church groups, parent groups,

mostly self financed, but internally motivated. They all seem to be very energetic in attracting attention from local municipalities, and local politicians pay a fair bit of attention to their views and needs.

Most towns and cities have a reasonable number of Ice Rinks, public swimming pools, civic sports facilities,

(some quite lavish), In many areas, school facilities are available for social, sports and other childrens activities. But the key is that these are almost always initiated by groups of local people with local needs in mind.

I learned early in life, that if you want something, you had better make it happen, usually with the help of your neighbours, but without if needs be!

As for politicians, (of any stripe!) They will only respond to Money, self interest, group pressure, public shame, or a lot of determined local parents who want better for their kids, and who have long memories, and no mythology of political adherence.

I wish you all well, but what Malcolm says is true, wishes and dreams don't change a thing. That takes determination, and work!

[Gary Partis]

I spend the first 12 years of my life living in Ashington, then the next 10 years in Bedlington (and came back again for a couple of years in my mid/late 20s).

Neither had much to offer. Ashington Sports Centre, when you are pre-teenage was expensive. My mates and I spent our time playing football & cricket in peoples park. Plus the occasional tresspass over Ashington Pit's land!

Bedlington had a YMCA which I used to train at (Karate). Nothing else; until I became officially an under-age drinker and spent time in the numerous bars!

I guess the same can be said for most small/medium towns across the country. The provisions for kids are minimal.

[Aren't these smilies cool!]

I also doubt there is a conspiracy at WDC; that would be soooo uncool; and Bedlington councillors would make the situation known if there was something underhand.

I suspect it's purely the (miss)spend of public money on useless projects; and when has the council ever consulted children and ask for their ideas?

Now that is a potential vote winner for any budding councillor.....

[sizsells]

Lets face facts here..... for years Bedlington has been the poor relation of WDC and this is,nt the first time there has been complaints voiced by the council tax payers / voters of Bedlington our local "councillors" and "politicians" past and present have stood by and watched it happen, it,s an absolute disgrace, Bedlington should be a vibrant market town along the lines of Morpeth and attracting people with cash to spend here in our "town".... However don,t hold your breath as we can all be safley assured we will keep paying our taxes and giving our votes and NOTHING will get done as it has been for decades the only difference being stop paying your council tax and your in big trouble but change the way you vote well could that put the cat among the pigeons ?

[Hamburger Pimp]

There are plenty of bus shelters. Today's kids love bus shelters.

[Denzel]

Unfortunately Bedlington opted out of 'self rule' (I mean the term in its' loosest possible sense) in the late 70's, and became part of Wansbeck. This means that we now operate under the remit of Ashington (Charlton brothers bla, bla, bla). Come year end, any budget that is left goes to Ashington or Newbiggin.