To wander around central Cambridge with its glorious, immaculate historic colleges and brilliantly-lit boutiques of designer goods, it’s hard to imagine that a few miles away in the town of Wisbech, there are some of the most deprived wards in England, with 22% of children living in poverty. Add to that the fact that one third of the population are immigrants, drawn here mainly from Eastern Europe for the low paid, seasonal agricultural work and you have a recipe for disadvantage, lack of opportunity and tensions with the settled population.

Over the last ten years, a dedicated team at the Rosmini Centre has been working to offer advice and support, provide opportunities and raise aspirations across all communities and cultures with a wide range of educational, fun activities. Late last year the Centre was awarded three years of funding from the Evelyn Trust to recruit and train ten extra volunteers from the migrant communities who will go on to engage and mentor 200 children and young people from local families.

“The critical objective for us is inclusivity,” explains Anita Grodkiewicz, Centre Development Manager. “All our experiences in the arts, music, theatre, sports, outdoor activities, are open to all, whatever background you’re from and whatever language you speak. We are trying to break down barriers, reduce isolation, embrace multiculturalism and, more importantly, make that a normal part of everyday life. Wisbech is a multicultural community and we want to celebrate the benefits of that for everyone. At Christmas, for example, we may put on a traditional English panto, but also offer some polish theatre and a Lithuanian pantomime.

“We offer educational and cultural trips throughout the year, encouraging the children and families to tell us what they want to see and what activities they want to get involved in. Of course, as we engage children and families in what we offer, we’re able to help and signpost them on a huge range of issues, from child care, to GP registration, healthy lifestyles, etc. Whatever challenge is brought to us, we work with that family to find solutions, involving statutory services, schools etc – whatever’s necessary.”

As the Rosmini Centre has been established for a decade, they are now starting to see some of the long term fruits of their labours.

“We have certainly raised aspirations in some of our talented young people and it’s fantastic when we see a child join in as a client, develop into a volunteer over time and then take training courses with us as next steps towards a career in youth work, or sports coaching. That’s so fulfilling for us and exactly the kind of outcome we dream about. We’ve worked with more than 850 young people over the last year, all of whom are struggling with parental addiction, low incomes, etc, but our evaluation shows they have been supported to do more, try new experiences and engage with all the cultures in our wider community.”

To find out more about the Rosmini Centre’s invaluable work, go to www.rosminicentrewisbech.org