Birmingham Young Volunteers Association Limited
Charity 512568
Overview
Summary
Birmingham Young Volunteers Association Limited appears to be a broad, place-based community anchor rather than a narrowly focused youth-volunteering body. Its stated purpose combines youth development with poverty relief, education, health and recreation, while its activities extend across children, families, adults and older people. The available evidence suggests that a community centre is central to its operating model: a shared physical base through which it provides safe space, practical support and varied services in response to local disadvantage.
Operational geography
Evidence and reasoning
Supporting evidence
Newtown
Confidence: low
The charity identifies the Wallace Lawler Centre as a working name and reports delivering educational and social services at its community centre in Birmingham. The available evidence does not directly establish that this delivery takes place within Newtown Ward; the council notice identifies the Wallace Lawler Centre as a polling station in the ward, but this is not evidence of the charity's operational activity there.
- Charity Commission Register, charity 512568
The charity describes providing educational and social services to children, young people, adults and older people at its community centre in Birmingham; its registered working names include 'Wallace Lawler Centre' and 'BYV Adventure Camps Wallace Lawler Centre'. - Companies House, company 01625819, charges record
The company has two outstanding charges concerning land known as the Wallace Lawler Centre, indicating a continuing property connection beyond a correspondence address. - Birmingham City Council, 2026 Newtown Ward polling-station notice
The notice lists Wallace Lawler Centre as a polling station in Newtown Ward.
Remaining uncertainties
- The Charity Commission records Birmingham City as the charity's reported area of operation, but the available current evidence does not identify active delivery sites, regular programmes or material partnerships elsewhere in the city.
- The charity's stated activity refers to 'local deprived children and families', but does not define the catchment area or show whether people are served from neighbouring wards.
- No current official website content, annual narrative report or project-level material was available to confirm the present programme schedule, any off-site activity, or partnerships extending delivery beyond the Wallace Lawler Centre.
- The evidence supports an operational identity centred on the Wallace Lawler Centre, but does not directly establish delivery within Newtown Ward; the broader Birmingham-wide charitable objects and reported city area should not by themselves be treated as evidence of citywide delivery.
Additional evidence needed
- A current programme timetable, annual report or impact report naming delivery locations and beneficiary catchments.
- Confirmation from the organisation of whether the Wallace Lawler Centre remains its active service base and whether it operates services at additional venues.
- Current information on commissioned work, referral arrangements or formal partnerships that deliver services outside Newtown.
Areas of work
- Amateur Sport
- Arts/culture/heritage/science
- Economic/community Development/employment
- Education/training
- General Charitable Purposes
- Recreation
- The Prevention Or Relief Of Poverty
Who they help
- Children/young People
- Elderly/old People
- People Of A Particular Ethnic Or Racial Origin
- People With Disabilities
How they help
- Provides Advocacy/advice/information
- Provides Buildings/facilities/open Space
- Provides Human Resources
- Provides Services
Discoveries involving this organisation
The Atlas has not published any Discoveries involving this organisation yet.
Observations
A youth-volunteering legacy appears to have broadened into community-centre provision
The organisation may retain an original emphasis on developing young people through voluntary service, but its current role appears wider: using a community centre to support multiple generations facing deprivation.
Why it matters
This helps distinguish its likely role from a conventional volunteer-matching organisation. It may be an accessible local platform where youth development, family support and community activity reinforce one another.
Show evidence
“The charity objects include encouraging young people to participate in voluntary service and providing recreation and leisure facilities primarily for young people.”
Source:Charity Commission“The charity provides educational and social services to children, young people, adults and OAPs at its community centre in Birmingham.”
Source:Organisation
Its physical space may be a core intervention, not merely a venue
The community centre appears to be an important delivery mechanism for creating safety, access and connection alongside formal educational and social services.
Why it matters
Understanding the centre as infrastructure suggests the organisation may have value beyond individual programmes: it could support informal relationships, local visibility and partnership working that are not captured in activity labels.
Show evidence
“The charity aims to provide young people and children a safe place to learn, play and develop life-long skills.”
Source:Organisation“The charity helps by providing buildings, facilities or open space and services.”
Source:Charity Commission
The organisation frames disadvantage as interconnected rather than single-issue
Its approach may link poverty reduction with learning, recreation, life skills and safe social participation, rather than treating financial hardship in isolation.
Why it matters
This indicates potential complementarity with specialist welfare, education, disability and youth organisations: it may provide the everyday setting in which several forms of support can connect.
Show evidence
“The charity focuses on eradicating poverty and disadvantage while providing young people and children a safe place to learn, play and develop life-long skills.”
Source:Organisation“The charity's purposes include education, relief of poverty, arts and culture, amateur sport, community development and recreation.”
Source:Charity Commission
- It is unclear which neighbourhoods, communities or ethnic groups the organisation primarily reaches.
- There is no evidence about current programmes, volunteer involvement, partnerships, scale or outcomes.
- The relationship between its youth-volunteering purpose and its present community-centre activity is not described.
Remaining uncertainties
- Current programme information, beneficiary numbers and the geographic area served.
- Evidence of partnerships, referral routes and use of the community centre by other groups.
- Recent annual reports or impact evidence showing how services affect poverty, skills, wellbeing and participation.
Additional evidence needed
Charity Commission profile
Activities
TO PROVIDE A COMMUNITY SERVICE THAT FULFILS NEEDS OF THE LOCAL DEPRIVED CHILDREN AND FAMILIES TO FOCUS ON ERADICATING POVERTY, DISADVANTAGE AND PROVIDING YOUNG PEOPLE AND CHILDREN A SAFE PLACE TO LEARN, PLAY AND DEVELOP LIFE-LONG SKILLS PROVISION OF A VARIETY OF EDUCATIONAL AND SOCIAL SERVICES TO CHILDREN, YOUNG PEOPLE, ADULTS AND OAPS AT OUR COMMUNITY CENTRE IN BIRMINGHAM.
Charity objects
TO PROMOTE ANY CHARITABLE PURPOSE FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE INHABITANTS OF THE CITY OF BIRMINGHAM WITHOUT DISTINCTION OF SEX OR POLITICAL, RELIGIOUS OR OTHER OPINIONS AND, IN PARTICULAR, THE ADVANCEMENT OF EDUCATION, THE FURTHERANCE OF HEALTH AND THE RELIEF OF POVERTY, DISTRESS AND SICKNESS BY ENCOURAGING YOUNG PEOPLE TO PARTICIPATE IN VOLUNTARY SERVICE SO AS TO DEVELOP THEIR PHYSICAL, MENTAL AND SPIRITUAL CAPACITIES SO THAT THEY MAY GROW TO FULL MATURITY AS INDIVIDUALS AND MEMBERS OF SOCIETY. TO PROVIDE OR ASSIST IN THE PROVISION OF FACILITIES IN THE INTEREST OF SOCIAL WELFARE FOR RECREATION AND OTHER LEISURE TIME OCCUPATION, WITH THE OBJECT OF IMPROVING THE CONDITIONS OF LIFE FOR THE YOUNG PERSONS FOR WHOM SUCH FACILITIES ARE PRIMARILY INTENDED.