On the 8th September 2018, 40 brave people are taking the plunge and abseiling down The Spinnaker Tower. Several of them already volunteer for Off the Record as support workers or counsellor. You can support individuals with their fundraising efforts or you can give a donation to everyone on the event page, or if you would like to come along and support from the ground, all cheering will be greatly appreciated!

The 40 people abseiling is a celebration and support of Off the Record reaching it's 40th birthday, it's an amazing milestone for any charity, and celebrates 40 years of providing a safe space and support for local young people. 

The charity provides a safe space for young people to overcome problems, gain self confidence and self awareness and to find ways to get their lives back on track. Our services have expanded to include not only a safe place and 1:1 counselling but also group work and support for young carers. 

The money raised from this day will allow us to develop our services to provide further support - we would like to increase the hours of our drop in so that we can be there when young people are in crisis, and to develop our team and resources to provide more online and phone support, to reach those who are unable or struggling to visit the service. 

Fundraising of this type is fundamental to the charity - as statutory funding has recently been cut and continues to be, the need for the service is increasing. With rates of depression and anxiety in teenagers increasing 70% over the past 25 years, and 1 in 5 young people referred to statutory mental health services were being turned away. 

Therefore we need to actively raise as much as possible to sustain the charity into the future.