A charity in Redcar has been awarded £36,000 per annum for 3 years to provide mental health support to children and young people in the Redcar and Cleveland area. The funding is being provided by the UK Youth Fund – Thriving Minds, a new programme being delivered by leading national youth work charity UK Youth.

Earlier this year UK Youth, working in partnership with the Julia and Hans Rausing Trust, launched Thriving Minds, an ambitious fund for projects to improve mental health support and provision for young people through youth work. Organisations will be supported for three years, both with funds and a tailored package of extra support including workshops, training and by building communities of best practice. The initial £10m pot provided by Julia and Hans Rausing has been boosted by an additional £1m from the Westminster Foundation.

The LCT works with children, young people, families and vulnerable adults. Our most significant activity is responding to local needs and to the ongoing development of projects and solutions developed in partnership with parents in our target communities, and then further developed with our partners. Using our first-hand knowledge and ongoing consultation with local children, young people and families, we shape our offer to ensure that those most vulnerable and at-risk people are identified, developed and encouraged to participate, access services, become active and transform their lives. LCT provides local people with support and better equips family and community members to support each other, increasing their social inclusion.

In July 2020, the prevalence of mental health problems in 5-22 year olds went up to one in six, up from one in nine in 2017. This comes at a time when support for young people is suffering. Children are waiting up to three years for access to mental health care in some parts of the UK. In the last decade more than 4,500 youth work jobs and 760 youth centres have closed, as over £1bn funding has been cut from the sector.

Ndidi Okezie, Chief Executive of UK Youth said: “Youth workers can spot the signs that a young person is experiencing difficulties and can support them to open up, talk through what they are going through and seek help if they need it. With a youth support system already on its knees post pandemic we know the numbers of young people that need support from a youth worker are only going to rise as we face the biggest cost of living crisis in a generation. UK Youth are delighted to be able to help fund The Link Charitable Trust, one of almost 100 organisations across the UK improving support for young people over the next three years through their incredible work with young people.”

Maureen Hanley, Project Development Worker from The Link Charitable Trust said: “We are delighted to have secured support from the UK Youth Fund – Thriving Minds. As an organisation supporting young people, we have seen first-hand the impact of the pandemic and other issues on the mental health of children and young people. More and more young people are reaching crisis point and turning to us for support. This funding will allow us to provide support to young people aged 14 to 25 years with emotional wellbeing or emerging mental health problems.”

For more information about the UK Youth Fund – Thriving Minds, visit www.ukyouth.org.uk/thriving-minds

For more information about The Link Charitable Trust visit thelinkct.org.uk or follow us on social media.