St Giles’s work as part of the Bradford SAFE Taskforce has been recognised in guidance published by the Youth Endowment Fund (YEF) to help prevent children’s involvement in violence.
St Giles leads the mentoring element of the Taskforce, which was established in 2022 with funding from the Department of Education to bring together a group of local schools to reduce children’s vulnerability to serious violence.
The YEF’s guidance, published in May 2024, found that:
“Under this bold, new initiative, a range of carefully curated, evidence-informed interventions have been commissioned across 18 schools in the city. These align with the YEF’s new guidance and all have the aim of improving children’s attendance, behaviour and engagement with their education.”
It also found that mentoring programmes, such as the one delivered by St Giles, reduce violence:
“Structured mentoring programmes that foster trusting relationships, raise self-esteem and provide emotional support can make a big difference. Research shows that, on average, they reduce violence by 21% and all offending by 14%.”
The report found that in 2023:
- 1 in 6 children reported being victims of violence in the preceding 12 months.
- 1 in 7 children reported committing violence in the same period.
Continuing, the report said:
“Violence has wider impacts on children’s education. Last year, 20% of children said they had missed school due to feeling unsafe, while 18% said they found it harder to concentrate at school due to violence or the fear of violence. We also know that violence happens in schools, colleges and AP (approved premises.)
In Autumn 2023, 67% of teachers across English primary and secondary schools reported that a physical assault had occurred between children in the previous term. Forty-three per cent reported physical assaults against teachers and staff, 15% reported that a child had brought a weapon into school and 12% reported that a sexual assault had occurred against a child.”
Read the report in full, including its recommendations here (PDF)
Read more about the Bradford SAFE Taskforce here
“The Youth Endowment Fund (YEF) is a charity with a mission that matters. We exist to prevent children and young people from becoming involved in violence. We do this by finding out what works and building a movement to put this knowledge into practice. The charity was established in 2019 with a 10-year, £200 million endowment from the Home Office.”
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