Levelling the Playing Field is to give children inside HMP/YOI Wetherby the opportunity to learn climbing both during their jail terms and as part of their resettlement into the community.
The new partnership with ClimbUnity, the British Mountaineering Council, prison education provider Novus and Wetherby prison in West Yorkshire is part of a wider project to engage young prison residents in sport and physical activity, then link them up with relevant, local opportunities to develop that positive engagement after their release.
Climbing instruction will be delivered by Climb Unity, a non-profit initiative run by climbing clothing company 3rd Rock which aims to increase diversity in the sport by offering free climbing coaching to ethnically diverse participants.
Their coaching team, led by GB team coach Rachel Carr (pictured left), will teach prison residents how to effectively use an indoor climbing wall. Coaches will also tutor prison staff in how to lead climbing sessions themselves.
It is envisaged that prison residents will also gain qualifications to assist others to use the wall too. This will give them skills they will be able to use after their release, in order to take up volunteering roles or gain qualifications and employment, which will give their lives purpose and structure and reduce their chances of reoffending.
Resettlement sessions in the community for those who wish to pursue the sport will take place at The Depot Climbing Centre in Sheffield. Later expansion is planned to Rock Over Climbing in Manchester.
All sessions in custody and in the community will operate as part of Levelling the Playing Field and participants will also be able to access other sessions run by our Levelling the Playing Field local delivery partners. (Young people from our partners Reach Up Youth in Sheffield have already experienced a session with Rachel at The Depot Climbing Centre - see pic below)
Rachel, who has vast elite-level competitive and coaching experience, is an ambassador for 3rd Rock and helped start the Climb Unity initiative. She will lead most of the sessions in HMP/YOI Wetherby and the resettlement sessions in the community.
“Climbing isn’t as inclusive or diverse as it should be,” she said. “The principle behind Climb Unity is to get young people from ethnically diverse communities interested in climbing and get them experienced enough to qualify as coaches, so it starts a cycle of other ethnic minorities being attracted into the sport.
“Partnering with Levelling the Playing Field, Novus and HMO/YOI Wetherby will help us accelerate this process so it becomes a complete circle, with participants and qualified coaches from ethnically diverse communities running the initiative by themselves.”
New climbing walls continue to be built despite the Covid-19 pandemic and the sport’s inclusion in the Tokyo Olympics is expected to lead to further growth in its popularity.
“Climbing is a vast industry with many opportunities stemming from participation,” said Rob Bishop, Partnerships Manager at the British Mountaineering Council (BMC), who are funding the delivery of the project. “We will provide great opportunities for former prison residents to continue to enjoy climbing as well as educate others to enjoy it too.”
Rudro Sen, Levelling the Playing Field Project Manager, said: “This exciting partnership will give young people in the youth estate a firm structure, motivation and support which will greatly help the resettlement process and reduce the chances of them reoffending.
“It’s part of a network of partnerships we’re building (with Novus and the Secure Estate) between youth justice settings and specialist sport providers. They help forge a smoother transition between secure establishments and the community which we know is so crucial for keeping former secure estate residents on a positive path.”
Main pic: Jonathan J. Castellon on Unsplash