Our history

YMCA Sutton Coldfield is an independent charity originally set up in 1900 to provide support where it was most needed in the community. Our service began as a youth club in the local town hall but evolved during the First World War, when we opened our doors to troops based in Sutton Park providing them with tea, support and leisure activities. 

Today, we transform the lives of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children and young people in North Birmingham.  

We provide support and respite for disabled children and to young carers, some as young as 5 years old.  We prevent loneliness and isolation in adults with physical and learning disabilities. We house young people and care leavers with nowhere else to go. We deliver life coaching, youth clubs and intense family support for disengaged young people from deprived areas of Sutton Coldfield. We also work with young men suffering from mental health issues in response to the growing need. On average, our work reaches over 1000 young people each year.

We are completely self-funded and rely heavily on help from the local community to continue our work. Whilst we are affiliated to YMCA England & Wales, we are responsible for generating every penny of our own income and we are an independently registered charity.

We have a vision of a world where all children and young people are able to fulfil their capacity to; love and be loved; to achieve and enable achievement; to experience joy and inspire joy in others; to belong and contribute to the creation of an inclusive society.

Our Mission and Values

Our mission is simple; we strive to inspire children and young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to realise their potential. 

We offer support where there is none. We listen and encourage when others can’t. We house young people with nowhere else to go. We provide holidays and residential trips that would otherwise be impossible. We prevent loneliness for people that feel isolated. 

We actively listen to the community and we set up projects where there is a local need. We are an inclusive organisation and we tailor our approach to individual family circumstances. 

Inspired by our Christian values, we ensure that young people, children and their families within the local community are at the heart of everything we do:

  • Inspiration: We believe that all children and young people can be an inspiration and be inspired, no matter what their circumstances.
  • Inclusiveness: We believe that all children and young people have equal worth and equal rights, and that everyone is  entitled to belong and participate
  • Excellence: We believe that all children and young people deserve the best and we strive to reflect that in everything that we do.