Term’s almost over, and the summer holidays are about to kick in. Some young people may be having a well-deserved rest before moving onto work, college or university, others might be anticipating a year ahead full of exams.
Either way school’s (almost) out for summer, so we’re taking the opportunity to focus on the work and impact our Young People’s Services have across the Recovery Focus Group.
The Recovery Focus Group is made up of some incredible charities and services doing important specialist work helping young people experiencing mental ill health, domestic abuse and the harms caused by alcohol, drugs and gambling.
We have always been proud of our group approach and how it allows us to support people affected by a multitude of experiences, as well as the ability it gives our charities and staff to learn from each other's expertise. All our services might be unique, but every single one works towards the same goal of inspiring recovery for the people we support.
What kind of support for young people do our charities offer?
Aquarius offers support to young people affected by alcohol, drugs and gambling. This could be from a parent/carer or family members substance use, or their own. Our Aquarius young people’s services are there for 1:1 or group support for the young person and their family, allowing young people to take control of their life and boost their self-confidence. The services also offer drop-in sessions for young people who would like to learn more about the impacts of drugs and alcohol, and have a safe, free and confidential space to talk through their concerns.
Richmond Fellowship’s Castle Service offers supported living to young people with mental ill health in Cambridge aged 16-25. The young people work with one of our recovery workers to develop a support plan that works for them. The service gives young people the confidence and resources to move onto permanent living and support themselves. We’ll be hearing from them a little more this week.
Our Domestic Abuse services, which are a division of Richmond Fellowship, have two specialist types of support for young people.
Our Children’s Therapy helps children and young people to address the emotional impact of domestic abuse. In a safe, consistent and confidential space young people can process difficult and confusing experiences.
Our Domestic Abuse services deliver a specialist programme called YUVA. The programme works with young people aged 11-18 who have been using aggressive and threatening behaviour towards their parents/carers and in their close relationships. YUVA helps young people to look at their abusive behaviour and find safe, non-abusive alternatives. YUVA also provides support to the parents/primary caregivers of these young people, helping them to find ways of reducing the escalation of conflict in the family and to take steps to make themselves and their families safer.
What can you expect to see from us this week?
- We’ll be hearing from staff and people we support across the group about their support and work with young people.
- Over on our Group social media accounts we’ll be talking a bit more about our services that support young people, we’ll also be sharing testimonials from young people and families.
- Our Aquarius Bedfordshire Young People’s Service will be sharing a personal story from a young person they supported in their service, with a blog over on the Aquarius website.
- The Richmond Fellowship Castle Service, will be highlighting some impactful case studies about the people they have supported and sharing more about their new partnership over on the Richmond Fellowship website.
- We’ll also be hearing from one of our DVIP YUVA Practitioners. They’ll be sharing a bit more about their role and how they work with young people using abuse towards their family or partner.
There is so much incredible work to highlight and celebrate for our Young People’s Week from our specialist services across England. There are even more powerful recovery stories to hear and share. We look forward to seeing the week unfold, highlighting the important work of our Young People’s Services, and recognising the impact the Recovery Focus partners have as a collective.
Make sure you follow Recovery Focus, Aquarius and Richmond Fellowship on Twitter and like the Aquarius and Richmond Fellowship Facebook pages. Keep an eye on #RFYoungPeople to keep up to date with the week.
Want to donate to one of our Young People’s Services? Check out our fundraising page here.