 We are really pleased to announce that our new Head of Networks and Practice Development, Steve Hillman, joined us last week. Steve will lead the Centre’s work in supporting its regional and thematic networks to lead on and shape the evidence and impact agenda, and to develop evaluation practice locally. Steve will also lead on developing and integrating Project Oracle’s offer through the Centre, following the merger with the Centre in August 2018.
Steve has 18 years’ experience in the youth sector. Prior to joining the Centre, Steve was Director of Policy and Impact at the Foyer Federation, a youth housing and personal development charity. Whilst at the Foyer Federation Steve led on developing a Theory of Change for the UK Foyer network, and developed a revised impact measurement model that was aligned to the Foyer Federation’s Quality Assurance process. The Foyer Federation was also one of the Centre's ‘early adopters’ and as a result Steve has been engaging with and supporting the Centre's work since its foundation. Steve is very much looking forward to getting out to see the Networks and sharing his experience of how working with the Centre can have a transformative impact on organisations and their outcomes for young people. As part of its work to take forward the legacy of Project Oracle, the Centre is beginning new work with Local Cultural Education Partnerships (LCEPs) in the North West. Over the next few months, we’ll be working with five Merseyside LCEPs to support them in developing an LCEP-wide theory of change and a common outcomes framework that will enable them to gather and use evidence collectively. This work is being jointly funded by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation and Curious Minds, the Arts Bridge organisation in the Northwest.
The creation of LCEPs coincides with a push for more rigour around understanding impact in the cultural education sector. A key challenge for the voluntary and community sector, in particular small organisations, is developing their role in the partnerships and meeting the challenge of providing robust but proportionate evidence of the change they are making. Curious Minds believes there is value in co-producing a theory of change for each of the LCEPs. This can set them up to provide more robust evidence of the change that is occurring as a result of the partnership activities. Ensuring that representatives of the voluntary and community sector in each area are a key part of the process can strengthen their involvement in the LCEPs and, at the same time, build the capacity of organisations across the North West. This potentially can be a model for developing these partnerships in other areas. We hope that through this new project, members of the partnership will be able to recognise how they can contribute to a growing body of evidence about cultural education in a meaningful way. If you would like to learn more about this, get in touch with Mary McKaskill. In May this year, the Centre began working with the Local Government Association to update the Catalyst Framework of Outcomes for Young People (originally published in 2012) in line with LGA’s Bright Futures: Our Vision for Youth Services. We spent the summer working with our network leads, talking to commissioners, elected members and practitioners, and are now coming to the end of a first phase of work to update the original ‘clusters of capabilities’ and set the new framework in context. The final draft framework will be launched at the National Children and Adult Services Conference in Manchester next week.
We’re really pleased to announce that LGA has decided to support a second phase of the work, enabling us to continue working with the Centre’s network leads to support the process of putting the framework into practice. We’ll also be working closely with the NYA as part of the second phase, aligning with their forthcoming revised commissioning guidance and thinking through the implications of the new framework. The Framework will be published on our website next week, and we will also share more details about our plans for phase two. For more information, please contact Steve Hillman.  The Centre for Youth Impact is committed to working collaboratively to progress thinking and practice in impact measurement in youth work and provision for young people. Our vision is for all young people to have access to high quality programmes and services that improve their life chances. We believe that embedded approaches to more meaningful impact measurement are critical in achieving our vision.
Our networks are at the heart of how we work. The Head of Networks and Practice Development will be responsible for developing and strengthening these relationships and our wider networks, and leading the support that we offer to youth sector practitioners and managers across the UK (further details on our existing networks can be found here). The Head of Networks and Practice Development will form part of the Centre’s Senior Leadership Team, and will contribute both capacity and expertise to the Centre’s small, dynamic team. We are looking for an outstanding candidate who is imaginative and agile, with strong interest and high-level skills in evaluation and capacity building for social sector organisations. You will need to have an appetite for understanding and navigating complexity, with an inquisitive mind and interest in youth-focused public policy and system dynamics. We take a coaching approach to all of our work, so skills and experience in this area will be a distinct advantage. We’re looking for someone with the relevant skills, knowledge and experience who wants to make a difference to the life chances of young people, and the organisations that exist to support them. If all of the above sounds appealing, then please send a copy of your CV and a covering letter (up to 800 words) that states how you meet the requirements set out in the person specification by email to sarah.rose@youthimpact.uk, with the subject line ‘Head of Networks and PD application’. The deadline for receipt of your applications is 5pm Monday 8 October 2018. Applications received after this deadline will not be considered. Interviews will take place on Wednesday 17 October 2018. If you have any questions about the role, please email Bethia McNeil (bethia.mcneil@youthimpact.uk) to arrange an informal conversation. Please see the supporting document for the job description and person specification. The Centre for Youth Impact and Project Oracle are delighted to announce that they have joined forces.
Project Oracle will operate from within the Centre, leveraging its excellent work and reputation while allowing it to continue its work on validations, training and evaluation placements in London, and beyond, through the Centre’s networks. Project Oracle has evolved continuously to achieve its mission. Emerging from a project at the Greater London Authority, Project Oracle Evidence Hub started life as a partnership between The Social Innovation Partnership and London Metropolitan University, led by founding Co-Directors Professor Georgie Parry-Crooke and Stephen Bediako. Then in 2016, Project Oracle became an independent registered charity led by Sue Holloway. Now the joining of Project Oracle with The Centre for Youth Impact creates the opportunity to develop a stronger, combined offer for the youth sector in the UK. Bethia McNeil, Director of the Centre for Youth Impact, says: “I am delighted that the Centre for Youth Impact and Project Oracle have been able to take this opportunity to bring the two organisations together to strengthen our support and commitment to high quality youth work and provision for young people across the UK. The Centre and Project Oracle have long been closely aligned through our respective values and we can now move forward with translating this into a clear and accessible support role to the sector”. The coming together of the Centre and Project Oracle creates the space in which to integrate the expertise and partnerships of the two organisations at a time when the quality and reach of youth work and provision for young people has arguably never been so critical. By joining forces, Project Oracle and the Centre for Youth Impact can better support all those working with and for young people. Notes:
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Email: hello@youthimpact.uk The Centre for Youth Impact is a company limited by guarantee (No.10640742) and a registered charity in England and Wales (No. 1178148) Copyright © 2018 The Centre for Youth Impact. |
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