On 10 May 2012 at 1:05pm brixtonbelle wrote:
Apart from the Nutty Wizard and the Friday night youth club at Southover church, what is there for teenagers to do in the evenings in Lewes ? (I'm not talking sporting or after school clubs here).
Are there any 'club' nights or (for want of a better word) disco-type events, or band nights ? I know someone tried to set one up down on the industrial estate, but haven't heard anything since. Would be great for that age group to have something in town. Do the Con club put any bands on that will allow 14+ ?
My son has tried to get into a couple of gigs locally but been turned away (maybe because of licensing /alcohol laws ?). Would be great if he didn't have to travel to Brighton with all the associated hassles of getting home fairly late at night.
Seems like the traditional 'disco' that many of us grew up with in small towns/ suburbs across the country no longer exists, which is a shame.
On 10 May 2012 at 1:43pm tyler wrote:
there i nothing in lewes for that age group i think they should sort something out to get all the youngsters of the streets and keep them out of trouble
On 10 May 2012 at 4:24pm Cliffite wrote:
There wasn't anything when I was growing up either, yet we managed to entertain ourselves without causing nuisance or damage to property.
On 10 May 2012 at 5:42pm Annette Curtin-Twitcher wrote:
They can stay indoors and do their homework or read a book like I used to.
Or watch DVDs, network via Facebook et al, surf the net, download music, play computer games, choose from any one of god knows how many tv channels or tidy their rooms.
Most of those options weren't even invented when I was a teen. Even when I was a bit older and misspent a few years drinking cheap wine and smoking dope in a bus shelter, we never caused any trouble or did any damage.
On 10 May 2012 at 6:05pm Pete wrote:
...or join a rugby or football club and train 2 nights a week and then play on a Saturday. Or cricket, or athletics, the list is endless......
What about cubs or scouts or girl guides, or army cadets or ATC. These are the sort of activities I did when I was young - we didn't have a TV until I was 15 !!! and then it was only black and blinkin' white !
On 10 May 2012 at 6:25pm Lord Landport wrote:
Boys club, Landport road, Monday eves.
The building is generally available all week....why not start a youth club up there yourself if you're that desperate.
On 10 May 2012 at 6:43pm Lewes Lad wrote:
I,ve lived in Lewes all my life, Now I'm in my Forties and there has never been anything to do in Lewes! There wasn't the trouble with teenagers that we have now in Lewes. Yes we got drunk, smoked weed but never sprayed places with paint or damaged cars. It goes deeper than having things to do.....
On 11 May 2012 at 8:09am Annette Curtin-Twitcher wrote:
Liking your idea Pete - get them good and knackered so they too tired to get up to mischief.
Not sure it would work so well on teenage girls, who want to be cool. Sweaty and muddy is not a good look! Or on the geeky or rebellious ones.
On 11 May 2012 at 2:35pm Brixtonbelle wrote:
Seems no one really read my OP and I feel quite cross about some of the responses which seem like a wilful misreading of a genuine enquiry. (yes, I know, I'm being naive about how this forum works and should know better)
1. I'm not complaining about the behaviour of teens in Lewes - most of the ones I know are exceedinlgy well behaved and apart from the regular accusations about car vandalism on this forum, (usually blamed on customers of the Landsdowne/ drunks), there doesn't appear to be ANY evidence that teens are running riot in Lewes. If there is - do please provide the figures and sources.
2. Pete - I specifically said I wasn't looking into sports clubs/ creative clubs which I know exist and which my kids are already involved in. In my experience a lot of kids start to drop out of these activities once they hit the 14-18 age group (for whatever reason) and become more independent about what they want to do/ engage in. This is the age they move away from their parents and become principally influenced by their peer group, so they often don't want to join things at the behest of their parents (seriously uncool), or continue activities that have parental involvement.
3. ACT - I'm not interested in locking my kids up indoors with tv / computer/ games consoles as their only source of entertainment - do you REALLY think that's a good idea ? Would you lock a dog up all day and night ? I don't think so. (yes they do read books and they do do their homework).
4. Lord Landport - yes I am interested in setting something up for teenagers, but don't have much experience or knowledge of the club dj's/ current 'in' bands. It might be something like a late evening juice bar with music -- but that's why I'm starting to canvas opinion.
I'd love to hear any more positive responses to my OP than the ones that blame teenagers for every ill but don't suggest any solutions.
What I'm really interested in is a place for teenagers to go, hang out, hear music, dance, relax, interact on a social level. When i was younger we could get into pubs by the time we were 15-16 and usually learned to drink responsibly - that's not happening for kids today with the inevitable consequence of kids buying bottles of cheap vodka in tesco and then getting absolutely drunk down the fields. There were also regular discos/ clubs and gigs that we went to. It seems the teenagers of today have nowhere to go in Lewes like that and I just feel it's better to provide alternatives for them.
On 12 May 2012 at 8:48am Pete wrote:
First time I heard of the Army Cadets and ATC called a club !! Seriously BB, if you're looking to "integrate" your kids into society, they've just got to get out there and mingle. Also, I know you say that you don't have experience setting up clubs for the 14+, but, isn't this a good opportunity for you and the kids to investigate how this is done ? and then do it ?
On 12 May 2012 at 3:44pm Brixtonbelle wrote:
My kids are fully 'integrated' (think yiu misquoted me) into society and very well adjusted, thanks Pete, with lots of friends and good respectful relations with adults.
I used to run gigs and comedy/theatre nights, so it is an opportunity for me - just wondered if there is a need/ desire for it for teens in Lewes, which given local school numbers, could total about 4000 in the immediate area.
On 19 May 2012 at 4:32pm boredteen wrote:
Generally I think what this thread is insinuating is that teenagers are going mental in Lewes at the moment- but are any of you stopping to ask where the proof of this is? Yes, I'm sure more crime is being committed and generally the streets are more popular at night, but this is largely nothing to do with us teenagers of Lewes. The fact is that most nights when I walk through Lewes (aka after church or from a friend's house) I encounter many drunken, loutish ADULTS causing trouble in the streets.
However, while I reject the premise I accept the conclusion; young people need more things to do. Obviously, if we are bored out of our minds and don't fancy doing copious amounts of revision in the evening, we will turn to something else. Unfortunately, more often than not, that something happens to be meeting friends and consumption of alcohol. Even in this situation though, rarely have I seen things get out of hand.
We need more music! More gigs etc. would liven up the social life for teens in the area, who thus wouldn't feel the need to binge drink every weekend.
On 29 Aug 2015 at 8:31pm Marion wrote:
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