Cardiff Rugby Community Foundation has joined forces with Barry RFC and Boys and Girls Clubs of Wales to launch a brand new youth club at the Reservoir Field.

The grand opening last week welcomed 15 local children through the doors and has gone from strength-to-strength, with more than 40 in attendance this week.

After an initial delay due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there were smiles all round with the facilities at Barry RFC including game consoles, table tennis tables, pool tables and much more.

Rugby officer Ben McCarthy, who has been at the heart of the launch, said: “The launch of our first youth club as a Community Foundation has been really important for us and is another great way of interacting with local kids from around the region.

“We want to offer a fun and safe place for local children to spend their evenings, in the company of their friends and we recognised that there are very few options for children outside of school.

“It’s been fantastic to link up with both the local rugby club and the BGC and we’re really pleased with the set-up at Barry RFC. Hopefully it provides the community with a beacon for children to reside in and, ultimately, get them involved with their local rugby club.

“It’s been an encouraging start and we’ll only see growth in popularity over the next few weeks. Hopefully that means we’ll be able to open more frequently and have a growing positive influence on the local children in our region.

“As a Foundation, we continue to explore ways to grow across the board and this is another key part of our mission to inspire, engage and improve opportunities for all people within our community. Hopefully we’ll be able to expand this programme to various corners of the region in future.”

The Reservoir Youth Club is open between 6.30pm and 8.00pm every Wednesday for children aged 12-16. For more information, please contact ben.mccarthy@cardiffrugby.wales