Posted 07/01/2021

Swan’s Foyers Selected for National Youth Mental Health Pilot

Swan’s Accredited Foyers have been selected to take part in the pilot 'Connecting Minds' programme. Heather Court and Dove Cott House join just two other Accredited Foyers on the three-month programme which is funded through the National Lottery Community Fund and delivered by a youth-led social enterprise called ‘States of Mind’, with expert support from learning and innovation partner InspireChilli.

The 'Connecting Minds' programme centres around an online resource with two staff facilitators and five peer influencers (Ambassadors) who will be benefit from a personal budget and who are trained to assist the young people living in the Foyers by accessing project funding to be used to help improve mental health and well-being . A further five residents will also benefit from 'Connecting Minds' by accessing a personal budget. The programme will develop practical resources, approaches and an evidence base that supports the youth homelessness sector’s response to mental health and well-being during the present pandemic and post-Covid.

The Foyers are being supported in this project by Swan’s Resident Involvement and Community Development Team who are assisting the Foyers to source IT equipment that will help to facilitate the 'Connecting Minds' programme as well as enable the young people to benefit from Swan’s new Virtual College and other learning programmes.

Pete Morely-Watts, Executive Director of Customer Experience said “Swan is dedicated to enabling our young Foyer residents to grow and develop into the best version of themselves. Being selected to deliver the pilot 'Connecting Minds' programme demonstrates our commitment to improving the lives and futures of our own residents and also those of all the other young people who will benefit from the contributions this project is going to make to the entire youth homelessness sector’s response to mental health and well-being.”