Ken Wright
No Name Club Conference
4, Oct 2010 - 09:00

Around 150 teenagers and 50 adults from the West and North West No Name Clubs are gathering in Castlebar this weekend for a conference that will focus on key issues affecting teenagers and their health.

No Name Club, the national youth organisation, has organised the conference to engage with teenagers and discuss health issues through a series of workshops that will focus on alcohol awareness, drug awareness, mental health, offensive behaviour, road safety and healthy eating (featuring a live cookery demonstration). The event will take place at the Welcome Inn Hotel, Castlebar this Saturday, October 2nd, and run from 10.30am to 7pm.

Representatives from the HSE, Road Safety Authority, Western Drugs Taskforce and An Garda Síochána will engage with the teenagers.

Con Nolan, No Name Club Chief Executive Officer says: "The No Name Club believes it is very important to engage with teenagers and help them to address issues that directly relate to them. By educating and informing them we hope that this will help them make positive lifestyle decisions and allow them to lead better lives as they move into adulthood."

Around 150 teenagers and 50 adults are expected to attend the conference and among those participating will be Noel Brett, Chief Executive of the Road Safety Authority (RSA). He will launch an exciting new initiative between the No Name Club and the RSA at the event. To conclude a day that will feature six workshops, I102-104FM DJ Fergal Darcy will DJ at a disco to finish off the conference.

No Name Clubs provide activities and events that promote positive lifestyle options for teenagers aged 15+ and do so in settings that are supervised and free from the influences of alcohol or other drugs. Over 40 clubs are located around the country and the organisation is very well established in the West and North West with 13 clubs in Mayo, five in Galway, two in Donegal, one in Roscommon and one in Sligo.  Those attending the conference come from the No Name Clubs in the region.

No Name Club is a National Voluntary Youth Organisation founded in 1978 and has 43 clubs throughout the country. No Name Clubs are run by and for young people aged 15 years + who come together in a safe and lively environment where there's fun, friendship and enjoyment without the pressure of alcohol or other drugs. No Name Clubs were founded to provide an alternative to pub culture for young people in Ireland. They demonstrate a lifestyle in which the use of alcohol or drugs is seen as unnecessary to the enjoyment of a happy, cheerful and fulfilling social life for young people. Over the last 30 years, thousands of young people have valued their involvement in a programme of activities that allow them to enjoy themselves socially with their peers in a safe and friendly environment, free from the dangers and influences of alcohol and drugs. At present there are over 15,000 young people involved with No Name Clubs throughout the country.