Benwell Victoria ABC

As some of you may or may not know, I am involved in a community boxing gym called Jobes Gym which is the home of Benwell Victoria ABC. Alongside Matty Jobes, our head coach, we serve as directors of this incredible gym. Jobes Gym is a non-profit registered charity, dedicated to making a positive impact in our community.

This little North East Club, situated in the heart of Benwell, is powered by a team of passionate volunteers. They do so much for the local youths, providing them with a safe place to train, learn new skills, and make new friends. At Jobes, we don't just teach the art of boxing; we instil values such as good manners, respect, and empathy in our squad, with the aim of improving the wider local community.

Matty started the gym in 2014 as a place to train professional boxers. However, youngsters from the area started to turn up at the site in Benwell, and asked if they could join in.

So we opened up the doors to them and started holding training sessions at low prices, just enough to cover the cost of rent.

We then went on to establish the Benwell Victoria Amateur Boxing Club, which welcomes young people of all abilities and backgrounds, including those with complex needs and disabilities.

Since then the gym has went on offer an abundance of support to the local community including;

• Free weekly sessions for 11 – 19 year olds.

• Free girls only sessions for 11 – 19 year olds.

• Free half term clubs where a hot meal is provided

• Supporting Youth Offending Teams (YOT)

• Working with people in recovery.

• Supporting veterans and those still in service.

• Providing education on the dangers of knife crime and drugs.

• Recognised as a “Safe Place” by local authorities, where anyone who feels threatened, endangered or simply needs someone to talk to seek refuge.

The gym has been recognised for all it’s work in the community by winning multiple awards including the Chronicles Unsung Sporting Champion award!

As well as the positive impact the gym has had on the wider community, Matty has had great success in taking local talent and developing them into skilled boxers creating 12 Tyne Tees & Wear champions and 6 National champions, not to mention the success in the professional arena creating multiple Northern Area Champions..

Our club is funded purely by grants, fundraising, and donations. Unfortunately our current gym has fallen into a state of disrepair and due to our landlord tripling our rent we urgently need to raise funds to keep the doors open or hopefully find a new facility in the Westend of Newcastle which is fit for purpose. Due to the popularity of the gym a lot of our equipment has seen better days and needs replacing also.

At Jobes we lead by example, one of the key lessons we teach the kids is the importance of stepping out of your comfort zone to discover your true potential. To that end, despite my aversion to running and never running further than 6 miles, I trained and completed the Benidorm half marathon (13.1 miles) on November 23, 2024, and I am set to run the Manchester Marathon (26.2 miles) on April 27 all with the aim to raise funds for the club..

The money we raise will go towards helping the team at Jobes keep the doors open and continue their vital work in the community.

Any donations will be greatly appreciated by everyone at Jobes.

Thank you for your support.