'Our charity helps give young black girls a voice'

"We try to create a big sister, big aunty kind of environment," the founder of a charity which aims to improve the self-esteem of young black girls has said.

Ruth Ogunji said the Blossom Foundation in Manchester had helped "girls that don't normally speak" improve their confidence and "find their voices".

The charity, which receives funding from BBC Children in Need, takes the girls rock climbing and cycling and provides mental health and bereavement support.

Ms Ogunji said her own personal journey had inspired her to set up the charity. This included moving to the UK from Nigeria in her late teens and having to navigate the change of culture with "no support" for her education.

She said she had realised that her own daughter and other black girls were still having similar experiences.

The charity aims "to give them a space where they can be themselves and they are not judged" and they can build life skills, she said.

Some of the girls who have been supported by the charity said it had helped boost their confidence, with one saying it had been like "gaining a family".

One participant of the sessions told BBC North West Tonight: "It's really helped me a lot and now I'm very comfortable when I'm speaking to my friends and my teachers and it's very easy for me to ask for help."

"We always talk about how you need to speak up for yourself but do it in a polite way," another added.

Sarah Adeosun, chair of the foundation's young persons committee, said one parent had messaged her to say how grateful she was for how much her young relative had grown in the time she had been there.

Ms Ogunji added: "Girls that don't normally speak have gone on to do podcasting and have developed a voice and confidence."

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