New surf club established in Cornwall to be run by young people with mental health difficulties

The first surf club in Cornwall to be run by and for young people with mental health issues has got underway with the help of a £2,000 start-up grant from the charity sported.

The Wave Project Surf Club will be run by young people with mental health issues, with support from their parents and volunteers from the Wave Project. They will form the management committee and raise funds to pay for ongoing equipment and expenses. The idea came from a group of young people themselves who took part in a series of free six-week surfing courses organised by the Wave Project last summer.

Now, thanks to a £2,000 grant from Sport for Development experts sported., they are able to set up their own club, buy their own kit and go surfing whenever they want.

Wave Project manager Joe Taylor said: "It is completely inspiring that this group of young people came forward and wanted to set up and run this club for themselves.
It demonstrates how much more confident and positive they became during the six weeks they spent surfing with the Wave Project - particularly when you consider that some of them had never been on a board before. Now they will be running their own club, raising their own funds and choosing how to spend the money."

Julian Wills, the regional manager for sported. in the South West, commented: "We are delighted to be funding this project. It's fantastic that the club are developing opportunities for young people with mental and emotional health issues, and using the sport of surfing to overcome some of the challenges that these young people face. "