Redthread is a youth work charity working to empower at-risk, disadvantaged young people away from violence and crime. Its Youth Violence Intervention Programme embeds highly-trained youth workers in the emergency departments of hospitals where they meet victims of violence aged 11-25. They provide a skilled intervention that utilises what Redthread calls a ‘teachable moment’: a powerful opportunity for reflection and reassessment in moments of crisis. This increases belief in a positive future and engagement with beneficial services.
Redthread works to encourage a Public Health approach to youth violence. As a founding member of HIVE, UK’s Hospital-based Interrupting Violence Exchange, it shares best practice and understanding of the challenges faced by young people. It provides secretariat for the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Knife Crime (alongside Barnardo’s) where it ensures that the voices of young people are heard and their needs are considered in wider debates around policy change and youth violence.
The SFF’s unrestricted grant is helping Redthread develop its new strategy, including developing new models to help it reach more young people in communities across the UK.