Gavin Williamson, MP for South Staffordshire, visited KOSSMIC at Ounsdale High School, an activity programme run by volunteers during the summer holidays.
Wombourne’s KOSSMIC (Kids of South Staffordshire Making It Count) project ran four weeks of activities for 10 to 16 year olds during the summer holidays. As well as a wide variety of activities the group organised visits to local attractions such as Drayton Manor.
The scheme took place on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays at Ounsdale High School. Funding helps the charity to offer drop-in sessions where youngsters can socialise, play games such as pool or archery and try activities including drama and dance. Young people can also train to act as mentors to younger children in the group.
Gavin has previously praised the work of KOSSMIC, which was set up in 1998, to the Prime Minister who wrote to the organisers praising their hard work.
Whilst visiting KOSSMIC Gavin learned about T3 Staffordshire, a service that helps inform young people about substance misuse, who were there to discuss the dangers of the abuse of alcohol and drugs and their outreach programme that operates around the area.
Commenting on his visit Gavin said: "It’s a fantastic charity which provides facilities to a lot of young people living in the area and it is always great to see all the hard work and the community coming together once again to support this project and to see young people enjoying themselves.
“I’m proud to see the group promote the role young people play in our communities and KOSSMIC gives youngsters enjoyable opportunities to learn new skills and build their confidence. I was particularly pleased to see that KOSSMIC has volunteers of a variety of ages working with young people, which I believe is especially valuable for the whole community.”