A youth club has been hailed as a "credit to East Belfast " for its commitment to inclusion after receiving a top sign language award.
On Friday, Ledley Hall Youth Club was given the Makaton Silver Award after seven years of hard work from its team, young people and parents who have worked hard to ensure that it is a welcoming place for people of all abilities.
Michelle Fullerton, lead youth worker at Ledley Hall, said that the team were very proud to receive the Makaton Silver Award and that the special form of sign language was an important way of bringing people together and making sure that everyone is able to be included in youth club activities.
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She said: "It has been a long journey for us over the past seven years as we have worked with the Makaton programme and we are very proud to be the only youth club in Northern Ireland to receive the Silver Award.
"All of our staff and volunteers, along with some parents and young people, are up to a level four standard and Makaton has been a great way for our young people to develop and build relationships with others.
"Some of our young people starting local primary schools are not meeting their targets with regards to speech and language and Makaton has been an invaluable way of bringing them up to a better standard, which boosts their education and learning in years to come.
"It has taken a lot of hard work to get to this point and we plan to continue making Ledley Hall a welcoming and inclusive place for all."
Grant Wetheral, a tutor for the Makaton Charity for 26 years, said that it had been a pleasure to work with Ledley Hall Youth Club and believed that it could go even further.
He also said that they had developed a special Makaton sign for Ledley Hall.
He said: "Over the last seven years I have been working with Michelle and her team and it has been brilliant to see the excellent job they have been doing.
"Their promotion of cross community work and inclusion is leading Ledley Hall to be seen as a model of excellence with other youth clubs from across Northern Ireland wanting to see the work they have been doing, as they go above and beyond in their pursuit of equality and fairness."
Deputy Lord Mayor and East Belfast councillor Michelle Kelly, praised the youth club as it was presented with the award.
She said: "This is a fantastic achievement for Ledley Hall to be the first youth club in Northern Ireland to receive this tremendous award.
"There is a real commitment here to inclusion and diversity and it has shown once again that it is truly a credit to East Belfast."
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