Targeted youth support: redesigning services - more things to do and places to go for at-risk young people

Issue

There were limited things to do and places to go for young people at risk of poor outcomes in Derby City.

Background

Derby City has been working hard to ensure its children and young people achieve the five Every Child Matters outcomes. A recent Ofsted report judged its provision for young people as good.

There were, however, pockets in the authority where young people were not being identified and engaged as fully and inclusively as elsewhere. These areas needed to provide more appropriate things for young people to do and places to go.

An integrated children's services project including the implementation of the common assessment framework (CAF) and the lead professional had been running as a pilot in Derby for over a year before targeted youth support (TYS) came along.

Actions prompted by TYS

Because of the integrated children's services project, a multi-disciplinary, multi-service locality team was already in operation in the TYS pathfinder area of Derby. The authority joined the two initiatives together as it is key to ensure that TYS adds value on a holistic level and that it does not just duplicate what others are doing. The TYS change process has kept things workable, positive and focused.

The TYS change process has brought together a wide range of services, including youth services, Connexions, the voluntary sector and faith organisations, in workshops and in a solution-focused change team. This has allowed all of the services and agencies involved to take collective ownership of the issue.

The process has also introduced a structured method for engaging with young people, particularly those not involved in previous consultations, which included disabled young people. The method was used to find out exactly what the needs of these young people were and to develop solutions.
 
The focus of the TYS change team is on these needs. Its work includes helping young people:

• Build self esteem
  
  
• Feel safe
  
  
• Improve their public image
  
  
• Engage in the delivery and design of appropriate things to do and places to go
  
  
• Apply for funding from the youth opportunity fund (particularly disadvantaged young people)

Benefits and results

The change team has identified gaps in existing services, and developed ideas and solutions around things to do and places to go by capitalising on the youth opportunity fund and by improving the Youth Links information service for young people. A particular focus is the needs of hard to reach and disabled young people.

By working together in a change team, agencies have developed a shared understanding of who the hard to reach young people in the area are. This has enabled the teams to examine the real issues in-depth and to develop practical solutions and a shared delivery plan. It has identified three main ways to improve the provision of things to do and places to go:

• Improving the image and profile of young people, including celebrating young people's achievements and setting up a talent show.
  
  
• Reviewing and revising the youth opportunity fund action plan to better meet the needs of the hard to reach and disadvantaged
  
  
• Agencies collectively agreeing and identifying new places to go and things to do incorporating them into the children and young people's plan

When I first got involved in TYS it looked like a very complicated initiative. However, the change process has provided us with a very practical structure and enabled agencies to review and audit their strategies and seek a collective solution to improve outcomes of young people, says Jasvir Bahth, from the children and young people's service and TYS team.

The local authority

Derby City is an urban local authority, split into five geographical areas. Its TYS project is focused on the most challenging of these areas. Its statistical neighbours include Birmingham, Blackburn with Darwen, Bradford, Luton, Middlesbrough, Nottingham, Oldham, Rochdale, Slough and Southampton.

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