Background
The ICBSP Summer programme represents the first stage of an ongoing engagement with the youth in the project communities to address some of the issues that have been identified as hindrances to their development. Therefore the Summer Programmes were hosted with the following objectives:

1. Establish Community Focused recreational activities for the youth

2. Through their participation in varied and stimulating activities; to expose youth to a healthy lifestyle thus encouraging self esteem enhancement and the development of their interpersonal skills

3. Develop and establish cultural programmes such as music, art, dance and drama in order to encourage youth in extracurricular activities

As a part of the project implementation strategy, the ICBSP team has also set the following objectives for the implementation of the Summer Programme:

1. Assess the educational levels of the students who attend the summer school, thereby forming an initial pool of youth for social service intervention.

2. Provide an opportunity for the Community Liaison Officer (CLO) and the Community Committee (CC) to partner in the implementation of activities thereby increasing the strength of the relationship with the CC.

The achievements of the Summer Programme include:

1. Hosting of programmes in the communities of Jones Town, Federal Gardens, Browns Town, Central Village, Lauriston, Shelter Rock and Bucknor.

2. 90% Implementation of planned activities

3. 110% reach of target group (planned reach was 1,180 versus actual reach of 1,311 children and youth) with an approximate 1:1 distribution ratio between the gender groups

4. Collection of 146 reports on which an evaluation has been done

5. Increased engagement of Community Liaison Officers with the Community members as a result of the intervention

6. Increase visibility of the Community Committees that were involved in the implementation of the summer programme especially in Shelter Rock, Bucknor and Central Village.

7. A major output of the summer programme was the collection of school reports from the participants. Of the total attendees, 149 reports were collected. The reports received were mainly from the primary level (6-13 years).

In most project communities, many youth face environmental, social and family conditions that hinder their personal development and successful integration in the economy and society. The behavioural practices of the youth are largely influenced by their environment and when considered in the light of the social, educational and economic challenges faced by youngsters in inner-city communities, this places them at a serious disadvantage. In addition, the breakdown of a strong family structure contributes to their inability to maximise their potential.

The ICBSP Summer programme represents the first stage of an ongoing engagement with the youth in the communities to address some of the issues that have been identified as hindrances to their development. The intervention will seek to:

1. Establish Community Focused recreational activities for the youth

2. Through their participation in varied and stimulating activities; to expose youth to a healthy lifestyle thus encouraging self esteem enhancement and the development of their interpersonal skills

3. Develop and establish cultural programmes such as music, art, dance and drama in order to encourage youth in extracurricular activities

As a part of the project implementation strategy the ICBSP team has also set the following objectives for the implementation of the Summer Programme to communities:

1. Assess the educational levels of the students who attend the summer school, thereby forming an initial pool of youth for social service intervention.

2. D. Provide an opportunity for the CLO and the Community Committee (CC) to partner in the implementation of activities thereby increasing the strength of the relationship with the CC.

All camps were planned and implemented by community-based organisations. The following represents the organisations that participated in the programme of activities:

The majority of the camps were day camps with the exception of Africa, which implemented a residential camp. The planned programmes were youth friendly and focused on sports and education.

All summer schools were generally a success. In all instances, children were able to receive optimal benefit from the exercises and field activities. Most of the children were being exposed to some of the activities and field venues for the first time and displayed great appreciation for the effort being made by the Jamaica Social Investment Fund and the other participating organizers. The very positive feedback from the camps proves that the Inner City communities have welcomed the efforts made to enrich their summer experiences and in all cases are anticipating the coming year's activities.