Youth workers to be trained to support young victims of unreported crime

The Trusted Youth Allies project is to be rolled out in Croydon, Enfield, Newham, Lambeth and Southwark, and is being delivered by the charity Groundwork London.

The focus is on supporting young people who are not reporting the crime against them.

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These five areas were chosen as areas that have “high youth victimisation and low trust in the police” and are therefore “more unlikely to report crime”, according to the Mayor of London’s office.

“I'm determined to do everything I can to keep young people safe,” added Khan.

“This new pilot in key London boroughs seeks to give young people the chance to speak to a trusted adult when they or someone they know becomes or is at risk of being a victim of crime.”

He added that the pilot builds on work through his Violence Reduction Unit on the importance of the relationship between young people and trusted adults.

Groundwork London is to work with a network of 150 trusted adults during the pilot, which runs until summer 2024. This also includes teachers, faith group leaders and youth justice workers.

“In recognising that a significant number of young victims of crime remain silent, our mission at the Trusted Youth Allies is clear: to empower trusted adults with essential skills like active listening and emotional support so every young person who needs help has someone to talk to,” said Groundwork London programme manager Obadiah Emaru.

“Together we can listen, support and empower to ensure that no young person faces the challenges of crime alone.” 

Among organisations supporting the pilot is crime reporting service Crimestoppers. It’s London regional manager Alexa Loukas said it was important to train youth workers and other children’s professionals in “breaking down the barriers around ‘snitching’ and building young people’s confidence to speak up”.