An Andover youth group is hoping to hit the ground running after the pandemic with hopes to provide a space for the town’s young people.

SMA Youth, based at Harris Hall on Church Close, is currently operating almost entirely online due to the pandemic, with a range of activities from quizzes to discussions.

Following the pandemic, the group hopes to eventually be able to open a youth space available for young people to come to across the week, providing a service similar to that of The Junction, which closed some years ago.

SMA Youth was founded in 2019 and is run by Ben Darkin, the youth pastor at St Mary’s Church. He said the group had an “amazing first year with a promising future” before the pandemic started.

He said: “Though none of us anticipated what this last year would have looked like, we’re so pleased to continue doing our throughout lockdown and are looking forward to the days ahead.”

Despite not being able to meet in-person, the group has managed to run a variety of activities online for young people across town, including both secular and faith-based groups. Activities have included Zoom quizzes, games nights, and one-to-one support.

The club is continuing to innovate, and is soon to launch a mid-week discussion session, where the group watches a video around a topic that affects young people, such as anxiety, before opening the floor to discussion.

SMA Youth is looking forward to getting back to running physical services as soon as it is safe to do so, with a variety of activities which were planned just before the pandemic having been on hold for almost a year.

Chief among these is a youth club, with the group having begun to renovate the Harris Hall with new toilet facilities, repainting, upgraded wi-fi and a gaming room in anticipation of the day they can start.

“Using the Harris Hall, we’d love to create a great space for young people to come and socialise, make new friends, and get support,” said Ben. “This could be the beginning of a bigger picture where we hope to be considered a safe and fun space for young people to come along to throughout the week, not just on a Friday evening.”

Alongside their current activities, which are likely to go back to being run in-person, SMA Youth also plans to do outreach work in areas such as Augusta Park and the Roman Way Skate Park, as well as potentially host after school clubs for students.

“We are really passionate about the young people of Andover and long to see them realise their potential and thrive,” said Ben.

“We aim to have something for everyone, providing safe and fun spaces for young people, where they’ll be able to make new friends, talk through current issues and have opportunities to explore faith if they want. All young people are welcome!”

To find out more, you can visit @sma_youth on Facebook or Instagram.