CYPN reports that the Paul Hamlyn Foundation [PHF] as part of the organisation’s six strategic priorities wants to “support the development and growth of organisations investing in young people and positive change”.

To this end, youth work organisations will have access to two new funds – a Youth Fund and a Growth Fund. The Youth Fund, which will provide funding of between £10,000 and £60,000, is intended to help organisations by covering a proportion of core operating costs. The foundation said it expects to make up to 30 awards a year through the fund. The Growth Fund will provide funding and support to help organisations identify and implement practical steps to growth. It will be launched later this year and is by invitation only.

On the PHF website the purpose of the Youth Fund is set out as follows:

The Youth Fund will provide core funding to organisations within the youth sector and outside. This is a direct response to what we heard from you in our strategy consultation – that in order to achieve greatest positive impact in the lives of young people you work with or for, you need to achieve a balance of stability, continuity and flexibility.

The Fund will be restricted to organisations which have the potential to grow their impact by:

Replicating a programme or service
Widening the reach of an idea or innovation
Spreading a technology or skill
Advancing policy or enhancing its implementation
We also want to support those organisations which work with young people in a way that recognises and builds on their strengths and potential – what some call ‘asset based’, ‘strength based’ or ‘advantaged thinking’ approaches. So, we will only fund those already taking or embarking on this approach.

Finally, we will only fund organisations whose main purpose is about helping those in the most precarious positions, where making the transition to adult independence is most challenging, and those who are most vulnerable. The following list sets out some of the circumstances in which we think asset-based approaches might better enable young people to survive and thrive.

Poverty and lack of income
Unemployment and poor employment prospects or insecure attachment to the labour market
Discrimination, for example on the basis of race or ethnicity, gender, sexuality or religion
Being stigmatised by others, including the media
Experience of abuse, victimisation or exploitation
Homelessness
Trouble with the law and involvement in the criminal justice system
Becoming a parent at a young age and lacking support
Lacking support with mental health and wellbeing
Lacking support to manage having a learning disability
Experience of the care system or kinship care, family mental health or addiction problems
Struggling with addiction or a stigmatising health condition

Any thoughts on the possibilities opened up by this funding when any and every penny seems priceless, yet carries a price? The emphasis on core funding and continuity seems refreshing.