New Buddy Bench at the Club

One of the foundations of the Boys and Girls Club is inclusion. Our new Buddy Bench helps teach children about inclusion and kindness.

The concept of Buddy Benches originated in Germany has become a world wide practice at schools and youth programs with thousands of Buddy Benches installed in youth spaces in more than 13 countries.

The Boys and Girls Club of Cape Breton's Buddy Bench was donated by the Kiwanis Club of Sydney in memory of Colleen Collins. The Kiwanis Club support many community initiatives and causes and the Club is very fortunate to be the recipient of this generous donation.

The idea of the Buddy Bench is that any child who feels lonely, isolated, or just doesn't want to participate in the activity their friends are doing, can sit on the bench and it signals other children to engage with them, sit and chat, or ask them to play.

Having a Buddy Bench teaches children empathy, encourages community building, and fosters inclusion and kindness. Values the Boys and Girls Club works to instil in every child.