Wellingborough community hub offers free music classes

A community hub is providing free music lessons to young people to help them learn how to create and produce their own music.

Kamlesh Parmar, 42, received lottery funding to create a new music studio on Hemmingwell housing estate in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire.

The studio opened in the summer for children aged 12-16.

Mr Parmar said he wanted to create "a safe space to express thoughts and feelings".

Mr Parmar also works with a Northamptonshire Police-led project called My Back Yard (MY:BK:YD) that aims to combat gang-related crime and violence and point youngsters towards more positive choices and employment.

The courses run for seven weeks and are taught by Mr Parmar and Reuben Harris, 37, a student from the University of Northampton.

They provide step-by-step tutorials and work to find out what each student's interests were, "whether song writing or producing", Mr Parmar said.

Mr Parmar, who runs non-profit organisation The Compound in Wellingborough, received almost £10,000 from the National Lottery Community Fund.

The money was used to build a professional music studio at Hemmingwell Community and Skills Centre in Wellingborough, offering free lessons for young people living on Hemmingwell estate.

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