Kids Kabin

What Kids Kabin does

Kids Kabin is a small North East England children's charity established in 1994 in Walker, Newcastle upon Tyne, by Sister Christine Charlwood. It provides free creative and practical workshops to young people aged 8-13 in disadvantaged neighbourhoods where out-of-school opportunities are limited, delivered through mobile trailer workshops taken directly into streets and communities. Core programme areas include pottery, cookery, woodwork, bike maintenance, filmmaking, nature exploration, and — as of May 2024 — construction skills via the newly launched Construction Academy in Walker. In 2024-2025 the charity engaged 1,983 young people, worked with 29 active volunteers, and collaborated with 18 organisations.

The organisation is structured as a Company Limited by Guarantee (Company Number 04000826) and registered charity (Charity Number 1082896), led by Chief Officer Will Benson since 2001. It operates from a headquarters at 10 Church Walk, Newcastle upon Tyne (NE6 3DW), with expanded operations in Middlesbrough (serving Grove Hill and surrounding areas) and, since 2024, East Durham. Supporting infrastructure includes a five-station community kitchen opened in 2023, a Youth Leadership Programme for ages 12-16, and a Youthwork Apprenticeship pipeline.

The business model is non-commercial. Services are free to beneficiaries; revenue is generated through a diversified mix of grants and donations from institutional funders (National Lottery, Garfield Weston Foundation, North of Tyne Combined Authority), retail community schemes (Tesco Community Grants, Asda Green Tokens, Waitrose), corporate partnerships (EY, Northumbrian Water, Beamish Museum), and corporate team-building "away days." A small amount of project-restricted income has been raised via Crowdfund North of Tyne / Spacehive. There are no disclosed proprietary technology platforms; the underlying delivery model is physical workshop infrastructure (trailers, kitchen, equipment) combined with volunteer labour. Distribution is direct-to-neighbourhood via mobile units and through school partnerships (e.g., Trinity Catholic College, Unity City Academy, Central Walker Primary School).

Name

Kids Kabin

Legal name

Kids Kabin

Website

https://kidskabin.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

North East England children's charity founded in 1994 that delivers free mobile creative and practical workshops (pottery, cookery, woodwork, bike repair, filmmaking, construction) to young people aged 8-13 in disadvantaged communities across Newcastle, Middlesbrough, and East Durham.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth and community charitable services

NAICS

All Other Schools and Instruction (61169), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Kids & Family Learning Workshops (Family Crafts, Junior Maker Classes) (THAJAKAO)

akta.pro secondary industry

Family & Parent Support Services (Parent Coaching, Advocacy) (EDAJALAK)

Keywords

• Youth workshop programs
• Community charity services
• Creative arts education
• Mobile trailer workshops
• Youth skills training

Headquarters

HQ city

Newcastle Upon Tyne

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Donations and Grants: Kids Kabin operates as a registered charity (Number 1082896) relying on donations, grants from foundations, and community funding schemes including Tesco Community Grants, Asda Green Tokens, National Lottery, and corporate donors.
2. Corporate Team Building: Private sector organizations spend 'away days' at Kids Kabin, working on team-building activities and supporting the charity's work through volunteering and donations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Kids Kabin is a North East children's charity that takes mobile trailer workshops directly into neighbourhoods, delivering free creative and practical activities for young people aged 8-13. Core services include pottery, cookery, woodwork, bike maintenance, filmmaking, nature exploration, construction skills (Construction Academy), youth leadership, and a community kitchen. Workshops are delivered on streets, in schools, and during holiday programs across Newcastle upon Tyne, Middlesbrough, and East Durham.

Product overview

Kids Kabin is a North East children's charity established in 1994 that provides creative opportunities to young people aged 8-13 through practical, hands-on activities. The organization operates mobile trailer workshops bringing pottery, cookery, woodwork, and bike maintenance directly to neighbourhoods in Newcastle upon Tyne, Middlesbrough, and East Durham. Core offerings include the Youth Leadership Programme for ages 12-16, the newly launched Construction Academy, a Young Filmmakers Program, nature education partnerships, and bicycle repair workshops. The organization also runs a youthwork apprenticeship program and operates a community kitchen facility opened in 2023.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mobile Trailer Workshops Mobile trailer workshops delivering free practical and creative activities (pottery, cookery, woodwork, bike maintenance) directly into neighbourhoods for young people aged 8-13 across Newcastle upon Tyne, Middlesbrough, and East Durham.
• Construction Academy Construction skills training programme for young people in Walker, Newcastle, expanding Kids Kabin's practical skills offerings to include construction trades.
• Community Kitchen and Cafe A community kitchen facility with five independent cooking areas delivering cookery education, nutrition learning, and cooking skills development to young people and families.
• Youth Leadership Programme A leadership, communication, and organisational skills programme for young people aged 12-16 that trains them to run Kids Kabin workshops, including First Aid certification.
• Young Filmmakers Program Filmmaking workshops in which young people create videos on themed projects (e.g., 'freedom of movement'), working alongside professional filmmakers, with completed films premiered at community screenings.
• Nature and Environment Education Environmental education sessions including nature reserve visits, conservation activities, and biodiversity awareness, often delivered in partnership with organisations such as Northumbrian Water.
• Bicycle Workshop and Repair Bicycle maintenance and repair workshops teaching young people to repair bicycles, including the Big East End Bike Fix project delivering 80 workshop sessions in Byker and Walker.
• Youthwork Apprenticeship An apprenticeship programme providing youthwork training and a pathway into youth work and community development careers, including placements within Kids Kabin teams.
• School Enrichment Workshops Curriculum-enrichment workshops delivered in partnership with secondary schools in North East Education Investment Areas, providing cookery, sewing, craft, and life-skills sessions for Year 7 and 8 students.
• Corporate Team-Building Days Corporate team-building away days where employees volunteer alongside young people on Kids Kabin activities, supporting fundraising and providing CSR-aligned volunteering experiences for organisations such as EY, Northumbrian Water, and others.

Quantifiable outcome

• 1,983 young people participated in 2024-2025
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Northumbria UniversityminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Collaboration with researchers from Northumbria University where Kids Kabin members from Walker worked with friends from North Tyne Youth to design new AI-powered technologies with concepts, sketches, and prototypes.
• North Tyne YouthminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Partner in AI technology design project alongside Northumbria University researchers, exploring ways to connect creative practice over long distances.
• Redesdale Archaeology Group (RAG)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Archaeologists worked with Kids Kabin members to think about ways to make and decode clues from things young people make, exploring hidden meaning similar to how archaeologists work.
• The Good Cave ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2025Filmmakers Christo and Svetlana of The Good Cave Project worked alongside young people during summer 2025 to create films on the theme of 'freedom of movement', producing 'Child of the Sky' and 'Kids Kabin Fever'.
• Youth Focus: North EastcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2025Partnership led to Kids Kabin Middlesbrough team participating in a secondary school enrichment project in Education Investment Areas, with sessions at Trinity Catholic College and Unity City Academy.
• Northumbrian WatercoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Partnership for nature exploration activities at Northumbrian Water's nature reserve in Howdon, Wallsend. Young people from Pottery Bank participated in birdwatching, bug hotel construction, and conservation learning. Northumbrian Water staff also donated 14 bikes built by their IS team.
• Recyke y'bikecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Kids Kabin partners with Recyke y'bike, another local charity that refurbishes and resells donated bicycles, to bring regular bike repair workshops to the streets of Byker and Walker. The Big East End Bike Fix project delivered 80 workshop sessions with Recyke y'bike supporting young mechanics to learn bike repair skills.
• Beamish MuseumminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2022Dovetails project partnership with Beamish Museum and University of Northumbria where Cowgate members created a wooden bench with carved panels for the Beamish Men's Group.
• University of NorthumbriaminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2022University partner in Dovetails project with Beamish Museum, exploring creativity and communication across generations.
• VBites / Heather MillsminorOthersHeather Mills, founder of VBites plant-based food company, donated hundreds of ready meals (approximately 300,000 tins worth £825,000) to support Kids Kabin families with nutritious food.
• Bukas Palad FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFormer volunteer Sari Suplido now runs monthly creative sessions in Metro Manila with this foundation as part of an after-school tutoring program for underprivileged kids.
• Bahay Maria Home for GirlsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFormer volunteer Sari Suplido runs monthly creative sessions at this orphanage in Metro Manila, Philippines, sharing Kids Kabin methods and approaches.
• Klasrum Ni MingminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFormer volunteer Sari Suplido partners with this after-school tutoring program in Metro Manila, bringing Kids Kabin's creative approach to disadvantaged children.
• Off The Grid Adventures CICminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAdventure company partnered with Kids Kabin, with young people from Walker participating in paddleboarding sessions organized by the partnership.
• Northumberland Wildlife TrustminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRecognised at the 2024 AGM as an organisation that has gone the extra mile in support of Kids Kabin over the previous 12 months.
• Ernst & Young (EY)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSix EY volunteers spent a team-building day at Kids Kabin, painting the trailer shed and helping run school workshops with Central Walker Primary School.
• Radio TynesideminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal radio station that featured Kids Kabin on air, with interviews played on Richard Finch's tea-time show to raise awareness.
• o3eminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTeam building experts who facilitated corporate event at Durham Cricket Club where Northumbrian Water staff built bikes for Kids Kabin.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Spurgeons: Spurgeons is a UK children's charity delivering family support, early help, and youth services across the country. Its regional service delivery through schools and community settings in the East of England and Midlands parallels Kids Kabin's local-anchor approach.
• The Prince's Trust: The Prince's Trust is the UK's largest youth-focused charity, offering programs that build confidence, skills, and pathways for disadvantaged 11-30 year olds. It shares Kids Kabin's mission of practical skill-building for young people in underserved areas but operates at much greater scale across the UK.
• Action for Children: Action for Children is one of the UK's largest children's charities, providing fostering, education, and family support services nationwide. It shares Kids Kabin's children-and-youth mission but operates at significantly greater scale through a broader service portfolio including residential care.
• Catch22: Catch22 is a UK social business delivering education, employability, and justice services for young people and vulnerable adults. Its community-based youth engagement work and partnership with local authorities align with Kids Kabin's community delivery model, though Catch22 operates a much broader service portfolio.
• The Children's Society: The Children's Society is a long-established UK charity supporting vulnerable children through advocacy, direct services, and young people's programs. Its regional practitioner presence in the North East shares geographic overlap with Kids Kabin and a comparable children-first mission.

Direct peers

• Create (arts charity): Create is a UK charity that delivers creative arts workshops directly to disadvantaged children in schools, hospitals, and community settings. Like Kids Kabin, it operates a hands-on workshop model targeting children in underserved areas, with a comparable mission of building confidence through practical creative engagement.
• Groundwork UK: Groundwork is a federation of environmental and community charities running practical outdoor learning, conservation, and neighborhood regeneration programs — often engaging disadvantaged young people in hands-on projects. Its youth-facing community delivery model and partnership-led funding structure closely mirror Kids Kabin's approach.
• CHICKS (Country Holidays for Children): CHICKS is a UK charity providing free respite breaks and enriching activities to disadvantaged children. While delivery differs (residential holidays vs. street workshops), the comparable focus on free, practical enrichment for vulnerable 8-13 year olds and reliance on similar donor bases make it a meaningful operational peer.

Others

• Recyke y'bike: Recyke y'bike is a Newcastle-based bicycle refurbishment charity that Kids Kabin partners with for the Big East End Bike Fix project. As a closely allied regional nonprofit in similar funding ecosystems and North East geography, it provides a relevant peer for collaborative funding and operational comparison rather than direct competition.

Emerging players

• National Youth Theatre: The National Youth Theatre delivers performing-arts training and creative programs to young people across the UK. Its focus on creative skill development, paid/free access pathways, and producer-style commissions for emerging artists provide a partial overlap with Kids Kabin's Young Filmmakers program.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@kidskabin8829
• Facebookfacebook.com/kidskabinnortheast?locale=en_GB
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kids-kabin
• Xx.com/KidsKabin

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Kids Kabin