Milton Keynes goes Back in Time and I prove I really can't dance

Last night Brook Milton Keynes went 'back in time' to celebrate 50 years of brilliant Brook work with young people. The fancy dress costumes were absolutely phenomenal (except I let the side down because I couldn't find enough paisley in time). Equally phenomenal was the energy and effort that had gone into organising the party. It was undoubtedly a team effort led with enormous energy by Antonietta Moch (Toni) with boundless support from Hayden Tennant. 

To kick off the evening professional dancers tried to help us master a few steps. Learning some new dance moves was a (bit of a) struggle for me, and certainly gave everyone including myself lots to laugh at.  When did left become right, and when did 'pull towards' mean 'push your partner away and stand on their feet'? The tutor saw me struggling and came to help. She had a proper twirly dress and deftly took the lead - from then on I felt fantastic and we looked a bit more expert.

The team had pulled together a fantastic rolling projection with pictures and images showing Brook's 50 years. It showed just how critical the role Brook has played in transforming attitudes and developing knowledge and best practice for young people both nationally and in Milton Keynes specifically. We will get it on our website soon. It shows just how much has been achieved in 50 short years and just how much more there is still to be done. 

Until we confidently talk about sex, orgasms, masturbation, sexual abuse and exploitation, until we talk about pleasure and all young people know violence is never acceptable in relationships, until everyone knows that gender and sexual bullying is wrong, and until we have a culture that ensures that horrific sexual abuse like that exposed in Rotherham this week cannot happen again we are still swimming upstream and have a huge amount of work.

Against the backdrop of how much there is still to do, it was an honour to see some of the teams, volunteers and community partners working in Milton Keynes. I was so impressed by Jaydun one of the young volunteers who is doing great work to provide young people with no nonsense information as part of his O2 Think Big Social Action project, and the Boots The Chemists team who were absolutely delighted about how the partnership with Brook has helped them to improve their sexual health support in the community. 

It was of course wonderful to be in a room full of people who care about and trust young people and value their developing sexuality enormously. All of them do so much day in day out to ensure all children and young people grow up confident about their gender and sexual identity, about who they are and able to navigate their way through puberty, adolescence and into adulthood. 

In 50 years much has changed. We will need so much more change over the next 50 years if Brook's mission to enable young people to enjoy their sexuality without harm is to be realised.

In 25 years Brook in Milton Keynes has gone from a part time service providing a limited range of services for young people to a big service that sees many thousands of young people each year and works in partnership with schools, colleges and other organisations in the community. All of Brook's work in Milton Keynes operates from a fantastic building that sends a clear message to young people and our partners that we take young people's sexual health and well being really really seriously. 

I raise a glass to Brook being 50, to the team in Milton Keynes doing extraordinary work day in day out with young people, and to Toni and the organising team for a fantastic party.

P.s If you want evidence of dancing, there are some photos on my twitter @simonablake which will probably find their way to the Brook charity website over the next few days. 

Brook in Milton Keynes is 20 years old

Today was a very proud day for Brook. The Brook service in Milton Keynes was 20 years old and today they opened new premises. As I arrived for the launch, my first thought was wow - it was a bright entrance and Brook's logo proudly across the entrance. The building is not on the high street, and it is not down a back alley either. It seemed to be just the right balance - absolutely clear to young people that we respect their desire for somewhere discreet AND that sex is not something dirty and round the back, and sexual health services are there as an important part of the community.

I was asked to speak at the launch and as I was preparing to do so, I was remembering my early experiences of Brook at Milton Keynes over the last ten or fifteen years. My first was meeting one of Milton Keynes' earliest staff Sue on a training course when I had just started working with young people in sexual health. I had never heard anyone talk so passionately, fondly and warmly about young people before. I remember it now so clearly. It made a real impact. And it is what i have learnt over the past three years makes Brook people special in my eyes, and more importantly in the eyes of the hundreds of young people who trust Brook staff day in day out to help them, advise them and support them. The magic ingredient is genuine care.

Then as assessor for Milton Keynes Healthy Schools Programme I saw tremendous partnership working between Brook, Relate and Healthy Schools to get sex and relationships education on the agenda in schools. Respectful partnership working using the skills of the different partners to best effect. And then between appointment and start date I met my Chair for champagne (and lunch). He told me I needed to talk to Jackie because she was running an excellent service, and i needed to visit Brook in Milton Keynes because they had a model that was replicable and needed replicating. Lots. And over the last three and a half years I have seen excellent replicable work being done with boys, in c card scheme, in schools and healthy schools, in colleges, with the chlamydia screening programme and much much more within Milton Keynes. And as evidence of that brilliance, there were so many people from MK at the launch today, partners, stakeholders and supporters from both the statutory and voluntary sector. And over the last two years Brook in Milton Keynes has become Brook East of England as they have won contracts and set up services in Luton and Bedfordshire.

Back to the building, one of the things that really bothers me about many health service buildings is they are a bit dank and dingy, and in need of a bit of health promotion themselves. And in an increasingly consumerist society where you go to shops and get an experience rather than just a clothes rail, we need to make sure that health levels up to fashion or the best computer game store, otherwise we send a message, that four stripes on your shoe, or getting the new X box is more valuable than health, and that to me is a wrong message to give. And it is a message that this building, 624 South Fifth Street certainly isn't going to give young people.

As I said in my speech at the launch, I have no idea exactly who the people were involved in making this building happen, but it was a 7 year journey to get to there, and on behalf of all the young people who have used and will continue to use Brook's services in Milton Keynes thank you to each and every one of them.