New Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson recently announced that breaking down the barriers of opportunity for children and young people will be at the heart of the Department for Education’s work over the next few years. But with 4.3 million children growing up in poverty, accessing hard-to-reach communities will play a critical role in breaking down the barriers for those who need it most.
Social exclusion in children and young people can stem from self-perception issues, a lack of identity or belonging, and feeling unrepresented by community groups or services. Limited career, education, and leisure opportunities further increase the risk of young people disconnecting from their environment as the notion of opportunity becomes far removed from their daily lives.
For Phillipson and the new government to break down barriers for children and young people, they must equip the social care sector with tools and funding for community-centered approaches. Top-down approaches often fail with marginalised communities because the process should be driven by service users. Who better to learn from than young people themselves? A community-centred approach builds trust, reduces inequalities, improves access, and enhances the overall service.
While many young people may be hard to reach through school, tapping into athleticism and creativity opens up new avenues. For a lot of communities, the local football club is as much a part of their identity as their race, religion or gender. Using local teams to engage with young people provides an element of trust that isn’t available through government-led services and other institutions.
Working with local clubs to provide activities, not only gives young people an outlet but it can also provide childcare for parents who might be struggling. This approach extends beyond football. For example, there has been a recent surge in boxing clubs engaging with communities. Research published by Sheffield Hallam University shows that by opening up boxing clubs to marginalised communities, we have been able to bridge divides, noticeably where racial or ethnic tensions are evident.
Tapping into youth creativity can prove to be a dynamic approach to community-centred support. I worked on a project which aimed to engage young people on their terms through graffiti art. Often seen as a troublesome activity, we put a positive spin on the art by applying it to walls and buildings that were already vandalised or in poor condition. The murals reflected young people’s feelings, at the same time as bringing new life to the aesthetic of the area, which in turn garnered appreciation from the community. Additionally, we linked this activity to vocational educational qualifications. This example shows the importance of being reactive, agile and dynamic in engaging hard-to-reach or marginalised young people.
Working with young people has taught me, above all, the importance of establishing authentic, respectful, and engaging relationships. Listening to their needs instead of imposing your own views is crucial. Our role is to support their identity development as they move into adulthood, which involves encouraging them to celebrate their unique qualities and voice their needs. It’s up to us to let young people teach us how to reach them and their peers. Asking for feedback, pinpointing areas for improvement, and involving them in any changes and decision making helps to keep them engaged and creates a sense of purpose.
We must work collectively with the new government to ensure a community-centred approach is prioritised to break down barriers of opportunity for young people. Empathy is the key to success. Young people will often tell us that we can’t possibly understand what it’s like to be them but providing them with opportunities through their interests and identity is the first step to showing them that we want to.
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Paul O’Rourke is managing director of the Next Stage Group.
