The story starts in 1990 when it wasn’t unusual to find up to 200 young people just hanging around on the streets of Stroud on Friday and Saturday nights.
Stroud Town Council did a survey of these young people to find out what they’d like to be provided for them in the town, and other than a cinema, the most popular answer was a drop-in coffee bar - somewhere where they could just go without having to buy anything; somewhere where they could feel safe and get help if they needed it.
Enter Brendan Conboy and Andy Morris – two Christian volunteer youth workers who decided to do something about this need. They rented a property on the corner of Gloucester Street and Bath Street and with a small group of helpers, six months’ hard work and a huge step of faith, ‘The Door’ opened in September 1991.
It soon became clear that the needs of Stroud’s young people didn’t stop at having a coffee bar, and over the next few years our activities expanded to include trips and events, a youth counselling service and practical training for unemployed and excluded young people. By 1996 we had employed our first full time worker, by 2001 we had bought our building and in 2002 we expanded our training courses by renting the building next door.
The project continued to go from strength to strength. 2002 also saw the first annual Undiscovered Youth Talent Contest, and in 2006 we launched our Light at the Door mentoring service. Now the services provided by The Door are delivered by 9 professional staff and 40 volunteers. In our 18-year history we have seen over 3,000 young people.
But while all our activities have expanded, our buildings haven’t. We want to help thousands more young people, which is why we’ve launched the Push The Door Appeal to raise money for a bigger building. Now it’s time for the next leap of faith…. and this one is the biggest ever!
