Since 1990, opening up the outdoors and the Duke of Edinburgh's Award to young people, including those with additional needs.
Cramlington Voluntary Youth Project (CVYP) was founded in 1990 and focuses on the social and personal development of young people.
Founded in 1990, Cramlington Voluntary Youth Project (CVYP) sets out to enhance the social and personal development of young people. It is open to all young people aged 8 to 25, and is specifically aimed at those with special or additional needs aged 11 to 25, especially young people with autism, Down's syndrome, ADHD and physical disabilities, including wheelchair users and the visually impaired.
Alongside this, CVYP runs fully developed services for junior and senior young carers, refugees and many more, welcoming young people who might otherwise find few places designed with them in mind.
The project is renowned for its outdoor activities and is a registered centre for the delivery of the Duke of Edinburgh's Award and the John Muir Awards. Determined to address a lack of suitable outdoor facilities for young people in Cramlington, CVYP transformed a disused cottage in Kielder Forest into the action-packed Chirdon Head Expedition Centre.
The centre offers walking and expeditions, camp craft, mountain biking with its own bike track, archery, conservation tasks and a range of team-building games. Inside, there are alternative programme spaces and meeting rooms, an education suite, and café and workshop areas for delivering targeted work.
“The Trust came in at a crucial stage, allowing us to open on time with a Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award Residential and an opening by HRH The Earl of Wessex.”
Rob Hall MBE, Executive Manager, CVYP
The Trust helped CVYP open the Chirdon Head Expedition Centre in Kielder Forest, which was officially opened by HRH The Earl of Wessex, Chairman of the Trustees of the Duke of Edinburgh's International Award Foundation. John and Greg Reece attended the opening.
The timing of a grant can matter as much as its size, and the Trust's came in at a crucial stage, helping the centre open on time with a Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award Residential. Thanks to that support, CVYP now has an outdoor facility its participants and partner organisations can call their own, opening up some of the finest areas of natural beauty in Northumberland to all young people, whatever their needs.
“We have some of the best areas of natural beauty in the world on our doorstep in Northumberland, and I hope we can continue to support organisations like CVYP who aim to make these areas accessible to all.”
John Reece, Reece Family Trust
We fund grassroots organisations across the North East that help people live healthier, happier lives.