Case Study 1

Introduction:

The Aspiring Champions project delivered by Youth Cymru supports high-risk young men who are homeless, or at risk of homelessness and have been involved in the criminal justice system.

Our aim with this project is to intensively support these young men with mentorship that provides advice, guidance, confidence, support, and someone to talk to in a non-judgemental and impartial way.

The project also provides them with what they need to survive in the ‘real world’ and create stability for these young men to move into their homes.

Here’s a recent journey of one young male who
has benefited from this programme:

This young man has either been in care or prison, so his skills and confidence are limited. Since leaving prison, he has been allocated a flat where he will live independently for the first time, which is a huge transition. He also has a health condition, so he is more immature than most which adds further challenges to his everyday life whilst living independently.  

Initially, he was very difficult to engage with so our mentors at Youth Cymru quickly realised to improve engagement, we would need to discover his passions and interests to develop a common ground and build confidence. It worked. Soon a relationship was formed, and this individual continued to demonstrate willingness to accept our mentorship and improve his daily life. 

Youth Cymru also collaborated with other agencies to understand how we could quickly deliver the best value to this individual.

To begin with, our mentors had the following responsibilities: 

  • Fixing a bike and going through a maintenance routine 
  • Education around hygiene, both personal and his home 
  • Money and budgeting 
  • Occasional fun activities

Our mentors also support with transport to and from work, which provides the valuable opportunity to check in and ensure he has everything he needs from us at Youth Cymru and other support agencies. Once home, we work together to break down any upcoming responsibilities, explore any potential challenges and further areas for support.