You can call Childline on 0800 1111 for help and advice about a wide range of issues, talk to a counsellor online.
You can send Childline an email or post on the message boards. www.childline.org.uk

Try the link to www.teenagehealthfreak.org which is a great site that gives advice on all sorts of topics that young people have to deal with.

www.thinkitthrough.org.uk is useful for young people troubled by certain issues affecting teenagers.

Are you a young person with something to say? Check out the link to Northern Ireland Youth Forum at www.niyf.org

For interactive health information aimed at 5 to 7 year olds, go to www.welltown.gov.uk/

If you are aged between 7 and 11 years of age, why not try the interactive journey through the health Galaxy by clicking on www.galaxy-h.gov.uk/

For those between 11 and 14 years old, check out the lifebytes site at www.lifebytes.gov.uk

www.need2know.co.uk/need2know/health is especially for young adults between the ages of 14 to 16

Information, support and advice for children up to 4 years of age and their families contact Clan Mor Sure Start 90327755 or call into the Maureen Sheehan Centre. www.clanmorsurestart.org.uk

VOYPIC (Voices Of Young People in Care) is an organisation that works throughout Northern Ireland, one which is outside of Social Services and works for children and young people in Residential Care, Foster Care, Leaving and Aftercare or any child or young person who has an experience of care. www.voypic.org/

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June 2010
The Falls Youth Providers Youth Awards for 2010 were held in the grand surroundings of the Great Hall in Belfast City Hall on Monday 28^th June.

There was a terrific turnout of young people, parents, carers & community workers from the area.

Everyone was treated to some entertaining interludes which included Irish dancers, the Hip-Hop dancers, St Peter’s dance group (mini blues brothers!) and St Peter’s Drama & singing groups.

Jim Girvan, Gerry Adams, and Danny Power highlighted the positive and talented aspects of the young people from the Falls in their speeches while the ceremony itself was co-hosted by David McComb from Clan Mor Sure Start alongside Courtney McDonagh of Divis Youth Project.

Congratulations to all those who were nominated in the following categories:

1.       Education – won by Rachel Black (nominated by Roden St Youth club)

2.       Sport – won by Nicole Meli (nominated by Immaculata boxing club)

3.       Health & Wellbeing – won by Leah Hyndman (nominated by Ulster Cancer Foundation & Clan Mor Sure Start

4.       Citizenship – won by Gerard Marley (nominated by Greater Falls Full Service Community)

5.       Leadership – won by Joseph Fitzpatrick (nominated by St Peter’s Youth Centre)

6.       Participation – won by Shannon Murray (nominated by West Belfast Area Project)

7.       Culture & Arts – won by Caoilfhionn McKee McElkerney (Divis Youth Project)

8.       Training – won by Courtney McDonagh (Divis Youth Project)

January 2010
St. Peter's Immaculata Youth Centre is re-opening it's doors after major refurbishment. The official opening will take place on Wednesday 20th January. The new youth leader in charge is Andrea Johnston who will continue the working partnership established with the Falls Youth Providers in catering for the young people of the Falls ward.

Post Event Report:
The Falls Youth Providers Youth Awards was held as planned below on Tuesday 23rd June 2009.
Well over 100 people were there to see the following young people be presented with their awards:
Training Award; Declan Moore. Culture & Arts Award; Margaret-Anne Mclaughlin. Sport Award; Chloe Callaghan. Citizenship Award; Gerard Fitzpatrick. Education Award; Nicole Craig. Health & Well Being Award; Mary Burns. Participation Award (Jnr); Mark McCloskey. Participation Award (Snr); Kiely Hanna.
This year's Dedication to Youth Development Award was presented to Gerard 'Chip' Fusco - a very popular winner.
Camogie star Jane Adams gave an inspirational speech and read the names of those young people from the area who completed the recent 'Between the Bridges' fun run. Local MLA Fra McCann was at hand to present the medals and remarked that he recognised most of the participants as having run past him during the race!!
The audience was treated to several intervals of entertainment including a song from Nadine Magew, a piece of anti-sectarian drama 'There's More to Life Than Football', a DVD 'Smicked Out' made by the young people of the area and finally, some Irish Dancing. Phew!

YOUTH AWARDS 2009...The 3rd annual Falls Youth Providers Youth Awards takes place in St Mary's Teacher Training College on Tuesday 23rd June at 7.00pm.
These awards are a showcase of the talented, conscientious, community-orientated & hard working young people that live in our area. The 7 categories this year include Sporting; Health & Well Being; Education; Training; Citizenship; Participation; Culture & Arts. Winners will be selected by a panel of independant judges from nominations received from local youth & community workers. Specially commissioned crystal awards will be presented on the night and guest speaker will be Rossa Captain and Camogie Allstar Jane Adams. Free tickets for this special night are available from the H.E.A.R.T. Project. Call Jim on 90310346. 

SUMMER SCHEME 2009...The Falls Youth Providers are once again coordinating the summer scheme programmes available in the Falls area for 2009. This approach provides a variety of safe, supervised and coordinated activities which are available to children and young people in between the ages of 0 and 25 years. The organisations involved include Clan Mor Sure Start, The Welcome Trust, Falls Residents Association, Falls Leisure Centre & The H.E.A.R.T. Project. Registration days for the  following groups...Divis Youth Project, Roden Street, Divis Community Centre, Divis Play Group, St. Peters Youth Club are listed in the diary. (see end June / early July)
A detailed booklet of all events and times will be launched at the Youth Awards (see below) and distributed to all homes within the Falls area. Copies will also be available from the H.E.A.R.T. Project in the Maureen Sheehan Centre. 

HEALTHIER PACKED LUNCHES - The British Nutrition Foundation www.nutrition.org.uk are one of several organisations offering ideas for healthier packed lunches for all occasions for children (5 - 11 years). The leaflet is available to dowload for free in pdf format, and the following information has been taken from their website. 
The key to a healthy packed lunch whether for school, a picnic, or just a day out is getting the right balance and choosing a wide variety of foods, which will help provide all the nutrients children need to grow and to be healthy.
A healthy packed lunch should include:
* A good portion of starchy food e.g. wholegrain roll, tortilla wrap, pitta pocket, pasta or rice salad.
* A portion of lean meat, fish or alternative, e.g. chicken, ham, beef, tuna, egg, beans or hummus.
* Plenty of fruit and vegetables e.g. an apple, satsuma, handful of cherry tomatoes or carrot sticks, small tub of fruit salad or small box of raisins.
* A portion of semi-skimmed milk or other dairy food e.g. reduced fat, cheese, yoghurt or fromage frais
* A drink e.g. fruit juice, semi-skimmed milk, yoghurt drink or a bottle of water.

Other tips to give you ideas and inspiration:-
* Try different breads or other starchy foods for variety such as pitta pockets, tortilla wraps, crispbread, pasta or rice salad.
* Use spread sparingly and go for reduced fat spread or reduced calorie mayonnaise
* Include brightly coloured fruit and vegetables like cherry tomatoes, sticks of pepper, carrot or cucumber, satsuma, grapes or fruit salad.
* Add salad to sandwiches and chopped vegetables to salads.
* Try a variety of different drinks e.g. unsweetened fruit juice, bottle of water, semi-skimmed milk, yoghurt or milk drink.
*All this healthy food can be complimented by some foods young people really enjoy. Treats such as malt bread, banana loaf, fruit scone, a small packet of crisps or a chocolate biscuit can be included from time to time for variety and appeal.
For further information and ideas for healthy eating, check out our healthy eating section and have a look at the British Nutrition Foundation website.

Post Event Report:
The TRI 4UR HEART event took place in the Falls Leisure Centre on World Heart Day. The young participants were put through their paces by spin coach James before moving onto the run, then finishing with a swim. Most of the girls seemed to enjoy the spin class while the boys were keen on the run and swim. After the event, a short presentation of certificates was made by the Lord Mayor Tom Hartley and Bernie McNally, Director of Children's Services from the Belfast Trust. Both Tom and Bernie encouraged the importance of physical activity and healthy eating which are two proven factors in helping to maintain a healthy heart.
Ballygowan kindly supplied all participants with a sports cap water bottle, whilst the North Down Group's contribution of bananas and apples were a great energy boost to all those involved.

TRI 4 ur HEART on World Heart Day, Sunday 28th September 2008...
This is the chance to raise awareness and help people better understand their personal risk for cardiovascular disease. Helping young people understand this by promoting a healthy lifestyle is key to their future health. To coincide with The World Heart Federation's promotion of World Heart Day, the H.E.A.R.T. Project and Falls Leisure Centre are organising a unique event for young people (14 to 17 years) of the Greater Falls area.
The TRI 4 ur HEART event will offer young people a chance to participate in a mini tri-athlon within the confines of the leisure centre. It is not a race against each other, but a chance to assess their own physical endurance. So grouped by age and gender, the young people will CYCLE 15mins, RUN 15mins, SWIM 10 mins. Certificates of completion will be awarded to all participants after the event. Some pre event 'training' will take place. Please contact Siobhan or Jim at the H.E.A.R.T. Project for further details and/or registration form. 
Check out theWorld HEart Federation website at www.world-heart-federation.org/

The Falls Youth Providers held its second annual Youth Achievement Awards at Stormont on Monday 23rd June 2008. This prestigious event was attended by young people and their guests who were welcomed into Stormont by the Mayor of Belfast, Mr Tom Hartley. Sixty three young people were nomintaed for this year's awards which included Sport, Culture, Health & Well-Being, Citizenship, Participation, Training & Education.
The event was chaired by David McComb from Clan Mor Sure Start who said 'it is a great honour to be chairing this event and to see so many young people being rewarded for all their hard work.'
In her welcoming remarks, Jackie Brennan from the Falls Youth Providers said 'it is great to showcase the talent, excellence and achievement of young people from the Falls Area. All the young people nominated for an award should be very proud of their achievement.'
The main speaker, Gerry Adams MP MLA said 'we must not forget that the vast majority of people from the Falls Area, especially our young people, have a positive contribution to bring to society. This awards ceremony shows the talents, excellence, commitment, dedication and most of all the spirit of the Falls Area.
Adding to the awards this year, a special presentation was given to Martin Voyle as the inaugural winner of the 'dedication to youth development' award.

The FALLS SUMMER SCHEME 2008 will be launched on the night of the YOUTH ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS on 23rd June at the Long Hall in Stormont.
All the local community groups including the H.E.A.R.T. Project are offering a great selection of activities for young people to participate in through July and August. If you have something to add to the scheme ring Jim at the H.E.A.R.T. Project before 6th May.
For more further information on the activities offered by the Falls Youth Providers phone 90310346.

Young People's Friday Night Football at the Falls
All over 12's welcome at this activity held in the Falls Leisure Centre every Friday night from 9pm to 10pm. Improve your skills and have some fun.
Contact Jim at the H.E.A.R.T. Project for more details on 90310346