01 March 2021
Summary: One Flow – One Brent has received £744,000 through the Mayor of London’s Violence Reduction Unit, thanks to a consortium bid backed by MTVH MyEnds programme
London’s Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) has announced £6m of investment to provide local communities direct funding and support to develop local neighbourhood interventions to tackle violence, and MTVH residents in Brent, North West London are set to benefit.
The VRU’s ‘MyEnds’ programme has been developed to put communities at the forefront of tackling violence by giving them the support they need to deliver locally designed interventions in areas of the capital that are affected by high and sustained levels of violence.
One Flow – One Brent has been successful in receiving £744,000 funding through the programme to support young people in Brent. A unique consortium worked together on the bid, bringing together the Young Brent Foundation, local young people and three of the country’s largest housing associations – MTVH, Hyde and Catalyst.
The consortium was formed based on existing place-based work with young people that live on three large estates in Brent – Chalkhill, Church End and Stonebridge. The additional resources and ongoing support from VRU’s MyEnds programme will enable young people to lead, influence and devise solutions that will positively impact on the lives of 3,000 young people, their families and wider community over the next three years.
Developing local networks and trusted relationships is key to enabling young people to lead, influence and inform the design of future projects and services. The young people will be supported by the extensive expertise of the Young Brent Foundation, grass roots membership organisations, local youth workers and housing associations via on the ground teams.
At MTVH, we believe collaboration is key to tackling social inequalities. With the support of the Young Brent Foundation, housing providers, the local authority and the VRU, young people will influence neighbourhood planning and services and the wider youth and community offer for Brent. Working with this range of different partners, who are motivated to work together towards a common goal, young people will be able to use their lived experiences and collective voice to address the structural change needed to tackle the drivers of violence.
Jean Marc (22) from Chalkhill Estate Youth Steering Team said:
“When we found out that we won the bid, I was so excited. I felt like finally we are going to start seeing some real change around here and that the younger generation won’t have to struggle the same way I did. Hopefully this funding will provide a safe haven to keep the young people engaged in positive activities. Finally, this funding provides hope, that the young people of Brent have not been forgotten and can achieve their personal aspirations.”
MTVH’s Head of Strategic Partnership and National Delivery, Sarah Willis said:
“We are delighted to be working as part of the One Flow One Brent MyEnds programme to support the amplification of young people’s voices and to enable them to be supported to lead and develop solutions that can create positive outcomes for young people and communities.
“Collaboration is one of our values at MTVH and it is key to tackling social inequalities. Only through working with a range of different partners that have different perspectives, but who are motivated to work together towards a common goal, can we hope to solve big societal challenges like the rising levels of violence that impact young people and communities.”
The One Flow-One Brent programme will include:
- Youth Community Connectors: these will be developed on each estate to facilitate listening and ensure youth voice is at the heart of a public health approach.
- Youth-led solutions: working with and training young people in project co-design, research skills and peer support.
- Trauma informed: adopting an approach that will include peer to peer mentoring.
- Community listening: informing and shaping family involvement and interventions.
- New decision-making structures, which will work with young people on the physical development of their neighbourhoods and solutions to violence impacting communities.
- 121 tailored advice and support to residents on a range of issues that prevent them from living well.
- Community based services that enable our residents to feel safe and to thrive.
- Grants for individuals to remove barriers and for organisations to deliver services that residents need in their communities.
- Playing our part in a wider civil society context through strategic partnerships to tackle the inequalities that many communities face cultural competency: developing a mindset that is inclusive and proactive in relation to meeting the needs all young people.