Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, we have seen changes in ways of working across the sectors in which Cordis Bright specialises. Sometimes these changes have resulted from new ways of working during lockdowns and restrictions, which have proved useful to maintain and mainstream (e.g., online multi-agency meetings that would previously have taken place in person). In other cases, different services and pathways have developed in response to changing needs or to challenges exacerbated by the pandemic and its fallout.

We have evaluated a number of programmes aiming to develop and implement support to people who have been negatively impacted by the pandemic. One such programme is the Covid-19 response to under-represented children Pathfinder, funded by the Youth Justice Board and delivered in Brent and Newham by local authorities working in partnership with the voluntary and community sector and other key organisations in the local system.

The Pathfinders aimed to provide support to children and young people from racially minoritised communities who were negatively affected by Covid-19, and to promote improvements within local systems to better enable them to support these young people in the future. They included: 1-to-1 mentoring and counselling; group-based and universal wellbeing and transition support in schools, and training for local staff in topics such as cultural humility and trauma-informed approaches.

We’re delighted to be contributing to a webinar to share learning from the Pathfinders, which is being jointly run by the YJB and Brent and Newham local authorities. Brent and Newham colleagues will give an overview of their programmes, outcomes, learning and next steps. We will then then highlight some key evaluation findings on reach and impact, as well as recommendations for future similar programmes.

The webinar will take place Tuesday, 26 September 13:00-15:00. You can find more information and register at Eventbrite here.

You can read more about other developments by downloading the Pulse below.