Oxygen is a Christian youth work charity that runs a range of youth work projects, targeted at disadvantaged and marginalised young people in and around Kingston upon Thames. We work with young people of all faiths and backgrounds and have a staff team of 11 people (7.5 full time equivalent) and a large network of dedicated volunteers.

Oxygen was started by a group of young people from local churches in 2001 who wanted to see the local churches reach out to their peers. We regularly engage with 250 young people each week but have some contact with at least 4000 each year. 

Our tagline is Believing in Young People because many of the young people we work with lack a sense of self-worth or someone who can see their potential. We seek to ensure that young people feel valued and cared for by addressing their needs and raising their aspirations. Our projects empower and equip young people to overcome the challenges they face due to their specific needs or circumstances, often as a result of material and social deprivation or issues around mental health and self-worth.

Oxygen works in consultation with young people, who inform and shape our delivery, as well as the development of new and innovative projects, designed to respond to local needs. We also manage Kingston Street Pastors, a local branch of a national initiative which sits within Oxygen as one of our major projects. Oxygen is an independent Charitable Incorporated Organization that affiliates to London Youth, The Ascension Trust (Street Pastors) and British Youth for Christ.  We are currently working through London Youth’s Quality Mark Award.