Major update on new Blackpool Youth & Skills Space
“The plans are approved and we are ready to build. The issue now is funding”
A funding problem has hit ambitious plans for a vital new youth amenity in an area of Blackpool.
The proposals for a new Youth & Skills Space at Layton Methodist Church are approved and ready to move into the construction phase.
However, rising costs have created a final funding gap which must be closed before work can begin.
The project has been developed over the past three years through conversations with young people, families, residents and local partners.
At the recent Layton Youth Forum, young people again highlighted the importance of somewhere welcoming to meet, practical activities to take part in, trusted adults around them and clearer routes into skills, training and work.
The Youth & Skills Space will respond to that remit. It will create a dedicated, accessible base for activities, digital learning, cookery, mentoring, wellbeing support, volunteering and support into training, apprenticeships and employment.
Building on what already works
The project will build on activities already happening through the Forward Project, rather than starting from scratch. Cookery sessions are one example: people learn practical skills, spend time together and build confidence in a friendly setting.
The new space will allow that type of hands-on, relationship-based offer to grow with young people at its centre.
Based at Layton Methodist, the development will form part of an established all-age community hub.
The site already brings together affordable food, learning, wellbeing activity, volunteering and local connection.
The Youth & Skills Space will add a dedicated youth offer and strengthen the wider building for families, community groups, volunteers and partners.
It is designed to complement – not duplicate – existing youth, education and employment support.
Working alongside Blackpool Youth Service, The Platform and other partners, it will offer a trusted local starting point where young people can build confidence, explore interests and be warmly connected into specialist support and opportunities when they are ready.
Part of a wider Layton Together vision
The Youth & Skills Space is the most developed part of a wider Layton Together vision, linking opportunities for young people with emerging ideas around Kingscote Park, a community growing space, volunteering and stronger neighbourhood connections.
Together, these ideas connect youth opportunity, health and wellbeing, community pride, green space and practical learning. The aim is a develop a Layton where people of all ages can take part, contribute and feel that local opportunities are within reach.
Why it matters now
Latest Department for Education local-authority data shows that 7.6% of Blackpool 16- and 17-year-olds were classed as NEET – not in education, employment or training in 2024/25, compared with 3.4% across England.
Including young people whose activity was not known, the figure was 8.9% in Blackpool compared with 5.6% nationally.
The Government’s Young People and Work interim report, published in May 2026 and updated in June, reinforces the case for practical, joined-up support.
It found that 84% of young people who were NEET in its survey wanted a job, education or training – underlining the importance of accessible places that help young people build confidence, skills and connections to opportunity.
What they say
Mark Walmsley, Volunteer Chair, Forward Project and Layton Together, said: “This has come from listening. Young people and residents have told us they want more opportunities close to home, somewhere positive to go and more help to take their next steps.
“We have seen that again through the Youth Forum.”
“The plans are approved and we are ready to build. The issue now is funding.
“Construction costs have increased by around a quarter in the past six months, creating a bigger final gap than expected. We are hugely grateful to our current sponsors, funders and supporters, and to those still considering applications. But we cannot start construction until the remaining funding is secured.”
Support the project
The Forward Project is seeking support from businesses, funding opportunities, organisations and local people.
This could include sponsorship, grant funding, materials, professional expertise, practical help, partnership activity or introductions to organisations that may be able to assist.
For more information or to discuss support, visit: [email protected]