Free Youth Club Opens at Eastleigh Town Community Hub

A new free youth club has opened in Eastleigh, offering weekly sessions for young people aged 11 to 16 at the newly reopened building on Leigh Road that generations of locals know as the Leigh Ballroom.

The ETCH Youth Club runs from the Eastleigh Town Community Hub — the building now known as ETCH. Two sessions run every week: a drop-in session on Thursdays from 6pm to 8.30pm, and a tournament session on Fridays from 5pm to 6pm. Both are completely free to attend, with soft drinks and snacks provided. No booking is required — young people can simply turn up.

Why this matters

Youth provision has been under severe strain across the UK for more than a decade. Clubs have closed, funding has been cut, and teenagers have been left without safe social spaces. Against that backdrop, the launch of ETCH Youth Club is not a small thing — it is a meaningful commitment to the next generation of Eastleigh residents.

Eastleigh Town Council has been clear that ETCH is more than just a drop-in centre. The hub will actively work with local agencies and organisations to improve access to support services for young people and families across the area.

Cllr Gaz Richardson, chair of Eastleigh Town Council, said the council is "investing in facilities and partnerships that will help strengthen our community for years to come."

A building with history

There is something fitting about the fact that this youth club is housed in a building that has served the Eastleigh community in so many forms over the decades — from Army drill hall to dance hall to recording studio. Now it is doing what may be its most important job yet: giving the town's young people somewhere they belong.

If you have a teenager aged between 11 and 16, Thursday and Friday evenings are now well accounted for.