ACTION ACTON--YOUTH TRANSITIONS NETWORK
SUMMARY:
The Youth Transitions Network (YTN) is a new Project funded until October 2015 by the Big Lottery.
The project’s operational process has been established and the Project has just started to work with 25 young people referred by criminal justice and care agencies.
We already have experienced Information/Advice/Guidance and tutor staff in post, an Office manager/administrator and a part time Employer Engagement Officer.
We are now recruiting for an experienced, committed Manager to work with the staff group and volunteers and lead and develop the Project .
This is an exciting opportunity to contribute to an innovative model of service delivery for young people needing help in their transition to the community.
Action Acton:
Action Acton runs a variety of projects for disadvantaged and unemployed adults and young people in West London.
Within this Action Acton has a successful track record of delivering Education, Training and Employment services for young and adult offenders.
Operating over three west London boroughs-- Hammersmith & Fulham, Hounslow and Ealing, Action Acton meets its key aims and objectives offering basic skills training, business start-up, and entry to employment and education.
After consulting with young people it was evident that services for young people leaving institutions or care are frequently dependent on being part of the requirements of a young offender sentence or statutory responsibility.
Young people we consulted with stated that they wanted Jobs and Employment- and rated this above wrap- around services and training.
They said they wanted access to an employability service that was available for as long as they needed it, that was ‘roll on roll off’, that could be accessed at any time and that provided 1-2-1 support as well as group provision.
It was evident that young people wanted one advisor to co-ordinate all the services they were referred to as part of their care or release from custody support package.
Young people said that they often needed help to navigate around agency services that they felt were disjointed and difficult to access.
As a result the Youth in Focus ‘Youth Transitions Network’ (YTN) project was devised based on significant and extensive experience of senior Action Acton staff who have delivered strategic projects and practical work with young offenders and care leavers in current and previous posts with statutory and voluntary agencies.
Action Acton, in partnership with Pupil Parent Partnership (PPP) and Platform 51 and other West London youth support agencies and groupsare working together to co-ordinate services for young offenders leaving custody and care leavers.
The project will engage with a minimum of 252 young people over 3 years (across 3 west London boroughs) who are being released from YOI’s and remand centres or with recent experience of custody or leaving care (male and female).
The project will equip them with the ability to initiate and maintain access to core services in the boroughs where they live, as well as build their basic skills confidence and motivation to move into work, education, training and work.
The Youth Transitions Network will enable young people to navigate around the services available to them in West London and empower them to seek out and sustain solutions to issues they face by improving their access to existingservices available to young people.
The project’s practical experience and learning will feed into the Big Lottery Fund national Youth in Focus evaluation programme and will contribute to learning and long term policies related to youth offending, care leavers and youth employment in West London, London, the UK and Europe.