Thames Gateway Youth Zone | OnSide Youth Zones

About OnSide Youth Zone Thames Gateway

OnSide Youth Zone Thames Gateway will be built in central Tilbury, near bus stops and within easy walking distance of Tilbury Town Train Station.

Tilbury will be home to the fifth Youth Zone in the South-East, the project is supported by Thurrock Council, Tilbury’s Towns Fund Board and local business and philanthropic leaders. It will provide local young people with affordable access (£5 annual membership and 50p entry fee) to over 20 fantastic activities every session.

Young people will be involved throughout the process of developing the Youth Zone, it’s interior design, and to recruit the key staff who will run it.

OnSide Youth Zone Thames Gateway, set to open in 2027 will be open every day of the week, every week of the year, and staffed by skilled and dedicated youth workers who truly believe in young people.

OnSide Youth Zone Thames Gateway FAQs

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What will be in OnSide Youth Zone Thames Gateway?

a 2-court indoor sports hall
Indoor climbing wall
Fitness Suite with state-of-the-art gym equipment
Boxing and martial arts room
Performing arts studio
Music suite with instruments and recording equipment
Large open plan recreation area
Project rooms, including arts, crafts and fashion
Film and multi-media facilities
Teaching/mentoring kitchen
Café serving hot nutritious meals costing no more than £1
Multi-use games area/kick pitch with flood lights
Breakout room to include activities such as employability workshops, general and gender specific health/youth issue topics/projects and youth participation.

Young People's Development Group Updates

The Young People’s Development Group (YPDG) is a group of local young people who meet every week, supported by a youth worker, to help shape what the Youth Zone will become. Below are some YPDG updates:

There are 10 members aged 11 – 16
The group includes young people from the surrounding areas including Grays, Tilbury, Horndon on the Hill and Chadwell St Mary
A number of members attended the Youth Zone’s Site Celebration in June and delivered speeches, sharing why they’re so excited about the Youth Zone and the difference it will make. Read more about the Site Celebration here.
They’ve worked with a branding agency on the youth-facing element of OnSide Youth Zone Thames Gateway’s brand
The young people have recently worked on the designs of a section of the site’s hoardings, which have now been installed

Building updates

We’ll be giving regular updates on the status of the Youth Zone’s construction. Here’s what’s happening at the moment:

The Youth Zone structure is taking shape and its construction is now more visible. The steel frames and the precast stairs have now been installed and the ground floor insulation has been laid.
The next phase is the installation of the floors at the different levels. This may lead to work overruns in the evenings, but to reduce the noise and overrun times we will complete it with a manual finish instead of the usual power-float finish.
A major focus for us and our contractors (Piperhill) is the health and safety of staff and the community. There are traffic marshals in place to manage deliveries and there has been in excess of 3000 incident free man hours on site.

Looking after the green space – the landscape design for the green space around the Youth Zone includes:
- Meadow grass
- New tree planting
- A new pond for water attenuation and habitat creation

These measures will increase biodiversity and improve the ecological value of the site.

If you would like to know more about supporting OnSide Youth Zone Thames Gateway, please contact:

info@onsideyouthzonethamesgateway.org

We are seeking the support of those who love Thurrock and want to make a positive difference in the area, whose endorsement and generous support will truly help us change the lives of young people.

HAVE A LOOK AT OUR OTHER YOUTH ZONES

Supporters gather at Youth Zone’s Site Celebration

4th June 2026 by OnSide

On 3 June, local supporters, partners and young people came together for the OnSide Youth Zone Thames Gateway Site Celebration event, to get an exciting…

Construction underway for Thurrock’s new Youth Zone

24th March 2026 by OnSide

Construction has begun on Thurrock’s new OnSide Youth Zone, the state-of-the-art youth centre due to open in Tilbury in 2027. This is an exciting moment for the charity, which is part of national charity OnSide’s network of Youth Zones, and created in partnership with Tilbury…

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and see for yourself the difference we make.

Whether you are interested in supporting your local Youth Zone or want to understand how your community project can work with us to create a better future for the young people of our area we’d recommend that you come and see us in person!

We look forward to welcoming you into the OnSide Network.

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OnSide Youth Zone Thames Gateway