At Inspire’s Hadleigh Youth Centre, a powerful new initiative has just wrapped up. Vibrance was a six-week programme created to uplift young girls as they navigate the pressures of growing up.
Led by youth worker Alyx, Vibrance focused on a range of important topics, including self-esteem and confidence, body empowerment, online safety, friendships, healthy relationships, and even the growing influence of AI and social media.
“It’s hard for girls to love themselves,” Alyx said. “Social media is a huge thing now, body shapes are a trend now, and that really affects how young girls see themselves.
“I wanted them to come away from this course feeling empowered, like they can say no when they need to, but most of all, I wanted them to like themselves.”
The course gave the girls space to explore challenging issues and to be heard, in a fun and interactive environment. The results have been overwhelmingly positive.
One participant shared: “I really enjoyed being listened to.” Another said: “We talked about some really important, hard stuff, but did it in a non-judgemental and fun way.”
Alyx says the heart of Vibrance is helping young girls recognise their individuality and strength.
“A lot of our young people struggle with comparing themselves to others. I just want them to see that they are individuals, and that they are all great,” she said.
Girls that took part in the course were also gifted an incredible goody bag from Lush.
Annabel, from Ipswich’s Lush story explained why it was so important to support the initiative saying: “Inspire is such a good charity to support, and it’s so lucky that we can.
“I know there’s a lot of young people from underprivileged families who might not have access to products like this and it’s lovely to be able to do it. I’m so glad that I can do it for our shop. If a simple thing can bring them happiness then we love to be able to support it.”
