Vibe – formerly Knowsley Youth Mutual (KYM) – was officially launched last week with a virtual event involving regional partners.
KYM was created in 2014 following a spin out of the youth service from Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council, becoming the second youth mutual following Epic CIC’s creation in Kensington and Chelsea a year earlier.
Earlier this year, Epic CIC announced it was to be wound down after becoming unsustainable following government funding cuts.
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Vibe will deliver youth work programmes in 10 youth clubs, targeted outreach work and activities at its outdoor education centre for children and young people aged 11-19 year olds, and up to age 25 for people with additional needs and disabilities, across the Knowsley area.
KYM put young people’s views at the heart of its decision-making processes, and Vibe states that working with young people to improve relationships is at its core. It has produced a four-stage theory of change that sets out its ambitions for young people.
Those behind Vibe admit that youth work is at a “crossroads” after funding cuts of £1bn over the past decade, while the needs of young people have continued to grow.
Paul Oginsky, Vibe chief executive, said: “Young people are at the heart of vibrant communities, but both locally and nationally we are at a crossroads. To address this gap, we are delivering this renewed and exciting approach to youth services. We believe in a collaborative approach – sharing our learnings and best practice across programme design, evaluation, curriculum, and staff training.”
Vibe said that during the coronavirus pandemic, its youth workers have continued to offer support in their communities with sessions taking place digitally via Google Hangouts and WhatsApp including Family Night and INC.
Outreach teams have also continued working in key locations across Huyton, Prescot, Kirkby and Stockbridge delivering THinK health and wellbeing services to young people and the Vibe programme teams have delivered activity packs to the families of more than seventy young carers who engage with the organisation's Me Time programme.
