Catch22

We’re incredibly proud to have been one of KeolisAmey Docklands charity partners over the past two years 💙 Together, we’ve seen how collective effort from fundraising events and food donations to marathon miles and volunteering , can create meaningful change across our communities. The support received has helped Community Links continue delivering vital services across East London, including supporting thousands of people through finance, benefits, and debt advice. This also includes important work tackling violence against women and girls, alongside initiatives such as self-defence classes that help people feel safer and more empowered within their communities. Thank you to everyone at KeolisAmey Docklands for your partnership, generosity, and commitment throughout this journey. It’s been wonderful working together, and we look forward to seeing the impact your next charity partnerships will make.

When knife crime is only addressed once a young person reaches the courtroom it means too many opportunities to prevent harm have already been missed. In a new blog for the The Magistrates' Association, Catch22’s Director of Young People and Families Emma Norman CMgr MCMI explores how knife-related offences are the end point of a much longer journey shaped by vulnerability. Trauma, poverty, school exclusion, and unmet mental health needs are all too familiar risk factors that leave children vulnerable to exploitation and violence. As our Drawing the Line campaign has continued to emphasise, children and young people who are at risk need better, aligned prevention strategies in place to spot the signs earlier and provide appropriate help and support. Our frontline delivery shows that prosecution alone does not break cycles of harm, and magistrates have an important role to play within the context of the wider system. A joined-up approach is essential for the protection of young people and to draw a line under knife crime and exploitation. Read the full blog: https://lnkd.in/eNefZKKs #DrawingtheLine #KnifeCrime

Two years ago, the Victims and Prisoners Act became law. It promised to give the Victims' Code real force, and to strengthen the support victims can rely on. But two years on and many victims still haven't seen these changes come into force. There are real life consequences to this inaction. A 2023 Victim Support survey found 60% of victims didn't receive a clear explanation of what to expect after reporting a crime, and 44% weren't offered the chance to make a Victim Personal Statement. Separate research found that only 27% recalled being referred to specialist support. For too many victims, these rights exist only on paper. That's why we've joined Victim Support, the NSPCC, SafeLives, The Children's Society, Action for Children and The Centre of expertise on child sexual abuse (CSA Centre) in writing to the new Victims' Minister with a clear ask: commence Sections 6-15 of the Act now. That means two things, without further delay: ▶️ Enforce the Victims' Code, so agencies are properly held to account for delivering victims' rights. ▶️ Bring in the joint commissioning duty, so police, health and local authorities collaborate to fund and strengthen support for victims of domestic abuse, sexual violence and other serious violence. This legislation holds real promise, but until it's brought into force, that promise remains unfulfilled. Victims and Survivors deserve to have their rights enforced. Read the joint letter: https://lnkd.in/eux3HWAF

Excited to be part of this and looking forward to connecting with so many inspiring founders, builders, and changemakers at #LTW26 🚀 Huge credit to the team and Emma Williams at GoodTech Ventures for bringing together people using technology to drive meaningful impact. See you there!

Alan Milburn’s interim report is clear: young people are not “soft”, they’re navigating a system that too often fails them. We welcome the call for a full system reset. In our employability programmes, we see how anxiety, low confidence and fragmented support limit life chances. While investments like Youth Hubs and Young Futures Hubs are positive, delivery remains inconsistent, creating a postcode lottery that compounds disadvantage. The report rightly highlights stark inequalities we see in our service delivery everyday. Young people with SEND are 80% more likely to be NEET. Care-experienced young people face rates of 26% vs 11%. And for those in contact with the justice system, we see a clear cycle: being NEET increases the risk of offending, and justice involvement pushes employment further out of reach.   In approaching a reset of the system, we strongly encourage government to take a people‑centred, place‑based approach - as set out in our evidence submission: https://lnkd.in/ejEy3hC8   Through programmes like the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) funded Liverpool Trailblazer and West Midlands Jobs Guarantee, we’re already showing what works: joined-up, place-based approaches and tailored, relationship-led support.     This includes scaling programmes modelled on Catch22’s employability work: small cohorts, one-to-one coaching, work experience and sustained in-work mentoring. We recently announced that our Energise programme alone has supported 1,000 young people into jobs. The Milburn Review has rightly shone a spotlight on a serious challenge affecting young people and wider economic growth. But we already know what works; tailored, relationship based support built on local strategic approaches can give young people the boost they need to launch their careers. #NEET #MilburnReview #YouthEmployment

We’re proud to have reached a major milestone: 1,000 people supported into jobs through our Energise Employability programme. 🎉 That’s 1,000 individuals building careers, strengthening their communities, and contributing to the UK’s growing economy. Energise is an employability programme that connects those with barriers into work with targeted training and on-going in work support. At Catch22, we know that employment is about more than income. We know that when people are in careers, they have a sense of purpose in life, good people around them, and a place that fosters a sense of community. Supported by Shell UK, Energise is designed to open up opportunities in the fast-growing clean energy sector, supporting people across the UK with the skills, training, and pathways they need to succeed. This milestone reflects the potential that’s unlocked when the right support meets real opportunity. We're looking forward to the future of the programme and how we continue to get more people into fulfilling jobs! #YouthEmployment #Employment #NEET

One of the three principles behind our Reducing Reoffending campaign is Connection in the community: Rooted locally. Connected nationally. Here's what that means in practice. The greatest strength of community sentences is that they give people the opportunity to rebuild their lives in the places they live. For this to work, it’s crucial that people are connected to the right support, at the right time, in the right place. Many of the people we work with don't know what's available locally or don't feel confident enough to reach out. Our role is to bridge that gap. We embed workers in communities, build partnerships with grassroots organisations, and make active connections for people on probation. Our Community Partner Network, currently made up of over 290 organisations which strengthens local capacity rather than duplicate it. We work alongside prisons, probation, and community providers so that by the time someone completes their licence period, they are part of a community. An example is our Youth2Adulthood mentoring service in Newham, which collaborates closely with probation and a wide range of local partners. It brings multiple agencies together under one roof, ensuring that young people can access support from employment guidance to health services, and beyond. Our goal is that even when our involvement with a person ends the support doesn’t. We believe that a sense of belonging is one of the most powerful protective factors against reoffending. If you'd like to learn more about our work, if you'd like to learn more about our work, join our Community Partner Network: https://lnkd.in/eNugB2Vi or get in touch at justice@catch-22.org.uk. #ReduceReoffending

In May, we submitted our response to the Department for Education SEND White Paper consultation, “Every child achieving and thriving.” We strongly welcome the ambition to fix a system that too often leaves children without the support they need, particularly the focus on early identification, teacher training, and increased resources. Getting this right has the potential to transform outcomes for young people. However, delivery will be key. Greater clarity is needed on the role of Alternative Provision, how families can meaningfully shape support, and how social, emotional and mental health needs will be understood and addressed in practice. As a provider working with children and young people every day, we see both what works and where gaps remain. We look forward to continuing to work with government, to help build a SEND system that is inclusive, equitable, and effective from the start. Please read our blog for more detail: https://lnkd.in/e5bxGtWa

We’re incredibly proud to share that Catch22 has been named Not-for-profit of the Year at the British Data Awards 🎉 This recognition reflects a huge organisational shift in how we use data to better support the people we serve. From having no central data function just a few years ago, we’ve built a unified, organisation-wide data platform across 130+ services, transforming how we understand outcomes, make decisions and deliver impact. This transformation has been delivered alongside day-to-day frontline operations, ensuring services continued uninterrupted while unlocking powerful new insights. Today, reporting that once took days now takes minutes, and we’re able to connect data across 160,000 service users to drive smarter, more effective support. As our Director of Evidence and Insights, Magid E. put it: “A small and mighty team at Catch22 has delivered an enterprise-wide data transformation programme while still providing day-to-day value for our incredible frontline practitioners. I’m very proud of what the team has achieved and very excited for what we’ll do in the future.” Data is now a core part of our Mission 2030 strategy and this award is a testament to what’s possible when you invest in the right foundations.

As an organisation committed to designing and delivering services that build resilience and aspiration in people, we also believe it's important to challenge when systems and structures do the opposite. We joined the Children's Coalition for Online Safety because we see the impact of harmful digital environments on children and young people every day. We strongly support the principles outlined in this joint statement, led by 5Rights and NSPCC, that children need safer digital spaces by design, not simply exclusion from the internet as it currently exists. Real online safety means creating a healthier online environment from the outset and holding tech companies accountable for the systems they build. Read our joint statement: https://lnkd.in/dEsthmYD