A Bolton gym is working with the Bolton Youth Offending Team to help young people find structure, discipline and purpose through fitness, while steering them away from crime and anti-social behaviour.
At Optimal Performance Centre in Egerton, Curtis Morgan and Jamie Kessebeh are using sport, mentoring and lived experience to give teenagers a positive outlet and demonstrate that there are alternatives to offending.
The initiative is run through Optimal Hybrid Academy CIC, which Curtis launched as a way of giving back to the community and supporting young people facing challenges similar to those he experienced growing up.
For Curtis, the project is deeply personal.
He explained: “This means a lot to me because of my own background.
“As a teenager I spent time in secure units, juvenile institutions and young offender environments.
“My life could have gone in a completely different direction.”
Having experienced the justice system first-hand, Curtis believes he is able to connect with young people who may be struggling to see a positive future for themselves.
He hopes that by sharing his own journey and introducing them to fitness, he can help them build confidence, resilience and healthier routines.
Optimal Performance Centre is working with the Bolton Youth Offending Team (Image: Curtis Morgan)
“I find fitness helps you massively.
“It gives you structure, it helps your physical health and mental health and even life lessons.
“You find problems that you can solve in the gym.”
Curtis was keen to emphasise that the gym is for everyone, with sessions designed to be inclusive and welcoming to everyone regardless of their background.
Working alongside him is Jamie Kessebeh, who believes intervening during the teenage years can have a lasting impact.
He said many young people simply need somewhere safe to go, supportive role models and a sense of routine.
“I think for a lad like that, what we’re looking for is to give him the routine, give him the stability.
“At that age that’s when they start getting into little bits of trouble, they start smoking weed, they start making little fires and doing this and that.
“There’s not many places where they can come where it’s warm inside and they can train.”
Jamie said one of the programme’s greatest strengths is Curtis’ ability to show young people that change is possible.
“He’ll be humble but I can tell in the kids’ faces.
“When you’ve got Curtis who is a lived example, I think it’s the most important thing that we’ve got really, is they can see that he’s done this and you can turn your life around.”
The gym hosts a range of activities designed to engage young people and provide positive alternatives outside school hours.
Optimal Performance Centre in Egerton hosts free sessions for young people (Image: Jamie Kessebeh)
These include free children’s fitness classes on Saturdays, Hyrox Teens sessions on Thursdays, Youth Challenge classes on Fridays and boxing sessions on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
Curtis said he has already seen encouraging signs from some of the young people referred through the Youth Offending Team, with participants embracing the sessions and beginning to make small but meaningful changes.
Talking about one experience, he said: “One of them came with a balaclava rolled up on his head so I asked him why he had it on and spoke to him.
“He said he was coming next week so I said not to bring his balaclava.
“He came last Friday and he didn’t have it on his head.”
Optimal Performance Centre in Egerton (Image: NQ)
While it may seem like a small step, Curtis believes those moments demonstrate how positive influences and consistent guidance can help young people make better choices.
For him and Jamie, the aim is not simply to improve physical fitness but to create an environment where young people feel welcome, valued and capable of building a different future.
By combining fitness with mentoring and lived experience, the pair hope the programme can continue to support these young people to help them develop confidence, routine and aspirations that extend beyond the gym itself.