Therapeutic Youth Work pilot supports young people through sport

StreetGames has launched a new pilot called Therapeutic Youth Work through Sports Practice, a fresh approach to supporting young people's mental health and wellbeing through sport and physical activity.

The recently published National Youth Strategy tells us something striking: we have the most digitally connected generation in history, and also the most isolated. At the same time, Sport England is sharpening its focus on young people from low-income and underserved communities over the next five years, making this a particularly timely development.

Therapeutic Youth Work through Sports Practice is a young-person-centred, trauma-informed and healing-centred way of working that places the connections among physical, mental, and social health at the centre. Crucially, it's community-based rather than clinical, designed to meet young people where they are.

The approach uses the concept of REACH to challenge the idea that some young people are simply "hard to reach", recognising the label ignores the real and complex reasons why someone might not engage with sport or wellbeing services. REACH stands for Relationships, Environments, Activities, Conversations and Healing. It encourages practitioners to reflect on their own attitudes and approaches, and how those can open or close doors for young people.

Pilots have already taken place in Gateshead and Stoke, with the next one coming to Warrington in July. Feedback from participants has been very positive, with many describing the training as perspective-changing and impactful. StreetGames is working with broader partnerships to create more opportunities for their network to access this training, so it's worth keeping an eye out for local opportunities through your regional team.

To learn more, read the full article on the StreetGames website and explore the role of therapeutic youth work in a piece published in Youth and Policy by StreetGames North West Place Director, Sally Carr MBE.

Image credit: Kelly Sikkema, Unsplash.