Future Communities Fund
Through our visioning work with young people we committed to help create safer communities, where people feel safe and respected and welcomed back into communities when they make mistakes. We partnered with Professor Neal Hazel, University of Salford to scope a new work area that will help us to deliver on this commitment. The research explores what approaches are most effective in supporting young people to re-engage with communities after any involvement with the justice system.
Read the full report
What’s in the report
This report presents the findings of a scoping study conducted between December 2023 and April 2024 to inform the second round of our Future Communities Fund. The study explored effective interventions for supporting young people away from the justice system. The research was a combination of desk-based research and stakeholder consultation. The study highlights the Child First framework, which summarises the research evidence base in youth justice structured around four tenets (ABCD): treating young people As children first, Building pro-social identity through strengths-based approaches, encouraging Collaboration with families, and promoting Diversion from stigma by keeping young people out of the justice system.
Key findings
- Brain development continues into mid-twenties, significantly impacting behaviour and decision-making
- Involvement with the justice system typically creates negative impacts on young people’s development
- Most successful support programmes demonstrate a holistic approach, focusing on the whole person
- Relationship-based approaches that have consistent supportive connections are critical
- Supporting the forming of pro-social identity through constructive activities, positive interactions and taking on new roles can shape a child’s perception of themselves and their place in the world, which then informs behaviour
- Social enterprise models like The Skill Mill show promise in providing work experience and opportunities for young people to form pro-social identities
- Multiple funding sources exist but accessibility is often limited, particularly for smaller organisations
- There is limited availability of unrestricted funding that allows organisations to fully implement ‘Child First’ principles
Key recommendations
Key considerations for funding criteria should include:
- Organisations that can demonstrate they are able to form referral partnerships with statutory criminal justice providers
- Strengths-based ‘constructive’ work that is future-facing and focused on achieving positive outcomes
- Work that is demonstrably ‘co-created’, ‘customised’ (including embracing diversity), ‘consistent’, and ‘co-ordinated’ with other agencies.
- Support that specifically looks to develop pro-social identity
- Interventions with children that are committed to being aligned to the Child First framework
- Interventions that emphasise the importance of ongoing supportive relationships
- Interventions that promote a sense of agency and where progress is reaffirmed and rewarded
The report also recommends that funding to help young people away from criminal justice to re-engage with communities should focus on support for girls and young women, and interventions and social enterprises that create roles for young people that help them develop their pro-social identity.
For Future Communities Fund – round two, we are building on these recommendations and widening the scope to include support for all young people transitioning away from the justice system. You can find the specific funding criteria for Future Communities Fund – round two here, the fund opens to applications on Friday 16 May and closes on Monday 16 June at 12pm (midday).
“With 13,700 young people entering the justice system in 2024 and a 32.5% reoffending rate per year, it’s clear that this is an area of society that needs urgent support and attention. Our visioning study and strategy – both developed with and by young people -drives us in supporting young people to move away from the justice system and re-engage with their community. We’re committed to providing long term, unrestricted funding to organisations that are doing important work in this area, but are struggling to secure sustainable funding.”
Nick Crofts, CEO Co-op Foundation
Resources
- Here are some useful resources:
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