This group comes together every Tuesday evening at their local youth centre. Aged between 12 and 18, they describe themselves as a close-knit group who enjoy “having fun.” Whether they’re cooking meals, baking sweet treats, or playing games like pool, darts and rounders, the group has become more than just a weekly meet-up – it’s a safe space. A place where they can be themselves, without judgement, and where friendships have grown into something that feels like family.
But through the KEY+ Challenge, this group wanted to do more.
They wanted to create something not just for themselves, but for everyone who attends their youth club. They wanted their voices to be heard, to make decisions, and to create opportunities for others – especially for those who don’t always get the chance to experience trips or activities outside of the club.
So, they set themselves a challenge. Their idea? To plan and lead a trip to an escape room in Durham.
They chose an escape room because “it’s a good team activity and we know that it would make everyone work together as a group.” But it wasn’t just about having fun – it was about building something deeper: “It’ll help social skills and communication skills.”
From the very beginning, they saw the KEY+ Challenge as an opportunity not just for themselves, but for others too: “We thought it would be good for everybody because it really makes you think about what you’ve got to do.” And for the older members of the group, there was an added motivation: “We’ve been at the youth club for a couple of years now so we thought it would be good for the younger people to understand what it can be like and learn that that could be them someday.”
Planning the project, however, wasn’t without its challenges. While the group described the experience overall as “mainly just fun” and “enjoyable”, there were moments where things felt more difficult. At times, it was “a little stressful.” One of the biggest challenges was simply getting everyone organised: “Finding out when everyone can go and what days were right for each person.” Even getting people to focus and share their input was tricky: “Getting people to listen and focus on the actual activity, and convincing them to do it.”
But these challenges became part of the learning. Through the process, the group developed valuable skills, particularly around communication and teamwork. They explained that they developed communication “because you’ve got to talk to people and find out what days they can do and if they want to do an escape room.” They also learnt how to compromise: “It’s good because we’ve learnt how to compromise and change the activity to benefit everyone’s needs and what they want to do.”
Taking the lead on their own project was also a new experience, and one that came with both responsibility and pride. As they put it, “It’s quite powerful.” But with that came the reality of leadership: “It’s nice to know that we’ve gotta help everyone else learn new skills but at the same time it’s quite hard on us to make sure everything’s in place… especially considering their age because most of them won’t listen.”
Despite this, they embraced the challenge. They worked together to manage their budget, plan their trip, and ensure that as many people as possible could be included. Reflecting on what they’ve achieve so far, their pride is clear: “Everything we planned within the budget we have” was something they were most proud of. For the group with little prior experience, this also felt like a huge accomplishment: “We’ve not had much experience with it and the amount we’ve got done with the budget and amount of time we’ve had to do it, that’s impressive.”
The emotional journey of the project has been just as significant! Before presenting their idea, they admitted they felt “anxious and stressed”, but once they were given the yes at panel, that quickly turned into something else: “we were relieved and happy.” That shift in confidence is at the heart of their experience.
And for some, there’s been a real sense of enjoyment in stepping up: “I love being in charge.”
What stands out most about this group is their focus on others. Their decision to include the whole youth club wasn’t just practical – it was purposeful. “I think it’s just the fact that it’s not just our activity,” they explained. They wanted to create something lasting: “We won’t be able to come back soon so t’s just a good activity to show them [the younger members] that it can happen even without us there.”
Through KEY+, they haven’t just planned a trip. They’ve developed leadership, build stronger communication, learned how to manage challenges, and discovered what it means to take responsibility – not just for themselves, but for others.
When asked what they would say to other young people thinking about taking on the challenge, their answer was simple: “Go for it.” Because, as they put it, “it’s a really good experience.”
Banner Image Credit: Hudson Bloom via Wikimedia Commons
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The Key