About us

The Centre for Youth Impact brings together practitioners, funders and policy makers to improve services and support for young people across the UK

The Centre was founded in 2014, through a partnership between NCVYS, Project Oracle and the Dartington Service Design Lab, to support everyone working with and for young people. In 2017, the Centre became an independent charity and in 2018, it acquired Project Oracle Children and Youth Evidence Hub.

From the outset our vision has been for all young people in the UK have access to high quality services that support their social and emotional learning. 

To achieve this vision, we work collaboratively with partners across the UK youth sector to develop shared approaches to learning, evaluation and continuous improvement.
                  
We exist because:                    

                    
●    It’s tough being young in the UK, and outcomes for young people are both poor and inconsistent.
●    The youth sector lacks a shared understanding of how it can best improve outcomes for young people. 
●    Expensive bespoke responses and increased competition in the evaluation ‘industry’ is adding to the problem.
                                              

By uniting practitioners, funders and policymakers we can create exceptional services for young people across the UK.
                        
The Centre supports this movement by offering:

●    Training and coaching for youth sector practitioners.
●    Resources and information for anyone involved with young people’s outcomes.    
●    A place to debate, facilitate and lead the change that will make the youth sector better and better.

Extending from the Centre’s mission, we define four ‘impact behaviours’ that reflect our values and guide how we work. 

In pursuit of a transformative vision for the sector, we will be:

 

Considered

We are thoughtful and curious, not dogmatic. 

We start with asking good questions rather than deflecting the questions of others. 

We ask ‘evidence of what, and for whom?’ rather than applying blanket standards. 

We are comfortable with uncertainty but strive towards practical progress. 

We are rigorous and credible: an independent and balanced voice with a wide field of vision.

Collaborative

We believe that we are stronger together than acting alone.

We actively work with others to contribute to the collective pursuit of understanding impact and improving quality. 

We share learning openly rather than protect it.

We are proactive in seeking relationships rather than waiting to be ‘invited in’.

Challenging

We are audacious.

We believe that there is a better way, and are committed to shaping and embracing it.

We challenge ourselves and others to think and act differently in response to evidence.

We generate actionable insights that help prioritise better decisions through learning and reflection, rather than trying to ‘prove’ or validate preconceived conclusions.

We are receptive.

We are willing to shift and reframe our own perspective.

Supportive

We build human and trusting relationships that are empathetic to people’s position and perspective.

We create approaches to evaluation and impact assessment that are owned by practitioners and embedded into the fabric and culture of organisations rather than being outsourced, bolted or ‘layered’ on.

We recognise both the practical and emotional foundations of evaluation and assessment.