Our Mission Statement

To provide services to help educate, elevate & empower whilst also being an advocate & agent to increasing opportunities in society for young people.

Educate young people with knowledge of self and life.
Elevate young people to believe in themselves and be confident in their skin.
Empower them to make healthy choices, enhance their skills and enable them to find their true purpose.

Through the projects we develop and deliver in schools, our aim is to mentor and coach young people to explore and conquer the issues they face in today’s challenging society.

We understand that the youth of today face unachievably high expectations with little to no support, growing up in a society that is in economic chaos, flooded with crime.

Many of our young people are entering the mental health or criminal justice system because they have limited options or have to wait months for any sort of intervention.

We want to help change this narrative.

Our Partners

To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key.

Watch the video to find out more about what our flagship Friday Night Project has achieved in supporting young people in the community in and around Surrey.

Our Team

OUR FOUNDER, Alexia Sibthorpe

Hello, my name is Alexia and I’m the big cheese here at OTYA!

My amazing youth agency was born out of a passion of working with young people, and my lifelong dedication to seeing young people achieve their dreams and ambitions is what continues to drive me today.

I believe that we can unlock our own potential when we work in tune with our mind, body and soul through joyful pursuits such as creative arts, dance, sports and enjoying music.

(FYI - my own personal favourite dance move is the shuffle and I once danced on stage at Glastonbury...)

When young people have the right coaches, mentors and champions alongside them, they stand a better chance of being able to enjoy the best of their emotional wellbeing. I believe in creating a safe space for educated and informed young people – this work is the genius of OTYA.

I deliver workshops in schools and online; creative art sessions, dance and sport workshops. I work 121 and in group mentoring or coaching programmes and I also deliver live youth work sessions on Instagram to engage and inspire young people who are isolated or struggling emotionally.

I’m a knowledgeable and friendly professional with 20+ years of youth work experience behind me – no question is too small and nothing you tell me will shock me (or if it does, I’ll be really good at hiding it!).

So please do get in touch - I really would love to hear from you :)

OUR DANCE DIRECTOR & TEACHER, Bayley-Rio

"Hi, my name is Bayley-Rio, and I'm thrilled to be the lead choreographer and teacher for OTYA in schools across Surrey, as well as leading the online classes nationwide.

I'm a professional street dancer with over 10 years dance experience and training, and a multiple street dance competition winner, including British and World titles.

I've been a qualified dance leader since the age of 15 and have completed a BTEC in Dance, as well as a Dance & Fitness To Music qualification.

Dance has been a huge passion of mine for as long as I can remember, and I can't wait to encourage and support a whole new generation through OTYA - so why not come and join me!

OUR LEAD YOUTH WORKER

Carol Scott

Carol is a qualified level 3 youth worker with 20+ year experience working with young people in youth clubs and the community. Carol's main area of work is behavioural support at Warlingham Sixth Form in Surrey and leads on behaviour and engagement at our de Stafford Friday Night Project and OTYA holiday camps.

Carol is the mother of the group ('Mamma Carol') - she shows compassion for everyone and has such a caring nature. She also has a great sense of humour and is super positive - the young people really respect and appreciate her!

OUR LEAD SPORTS COACH

Louis Hollingsworth

Louis is a qualified football & multisports coach with 15 years experience. He has played for Fulham Football Club, provides personal training packages for private clients, runs behavioural & fitness workshops for young people through a charity in London and develops projects to help young people get fit and healthy physically and mentally.

Louis is vibrant, funny, engaging and builds rapport with young people in a instant - the young people and the tribe love his sense of humour and high vibes!

OUR ASSISTANT FOOTBALL COACH

Jake Facey

Jake has achieved his level 3 football coach training at St Marys University (Chelsea Football's feeder university to the academy) and is undertaking his Master in September.

He has 4 years experience working in schools and community clubs coaching young people aged 5-16 years, and he has a level 2 in mental health awareness, as well as experience in fitness and training.

Jake is our newest member and has settled into the Tribe really well. He has a really fun side and quickly engages with the young people, offering guidance and support when they need it as well as a healthy competitive streak which motivates them to show up and join in.

OUR SUPPORT STAFF

We have a team of bank and occasional staff who work across all of our projects in Surrey.

Freya Thorn & Leah Halpin are our newest recruits and we also have an amazing team of volunteers - Iyla, Megan, Ellie & Karl.

Without these staff and volunteers, we couldn't run the brilliant projects that we do.