"Change begins now", announced Sir Keir Starmer on July 5th last year.  

Amongst the top priorities he declared, was a commitment to reduce crime by preventing teenagers from being swept onto the “escalator” to prison. 

It was a promise aligned with the kind of ‘Change’ already outlined in Labour’s manifesto, which pledged to “intervene earlier to stop young people being drawn into crime” through the creation of a new Young Futures programme. This initiative would establish a network of community hubs staffed with youth workers, mental health professionals, and careers advisers, all aimed at supporting young people’s mental health and steering them away from criminal pathways. 

A year on, the Government has reaffirmed its commitment. Although a detailed timeline has yet to be published - with officials stating they “will set out more details in due course” - they have announced that the rollout will begin with a series of “early adopter” pilots designed to inform and shape the programme’s long-term development. 

However, the lack of any substantial progress to date has frustrated practitioners. The big question now is whether the allocated £95 million – funded through the extension of VAT and business rates to private schools - is enough to do the job. 

The way I see it, is that on its own, of course, it isn’t. But there is another way; a way of stretching the money and expanding the delivery. 

The core issue – the one that sits behind them all – is poverty, and its intergenerational impacts.  Four of the government’s five key missions - halving serious violent crime; breaking down barriers to opportunity and ambition for children and young people; building an accessible, future-ready NHS that ensures longer, healthier lives for all - are fundamentally rooted in investing in the next generation. 

Put differently, the only way to halve youth violence is to double down on inclusion. 

It's the impact of poverty that compounds other difficulties for children and hugely increases their vulnerability of early contact with the criminal justice system. Neuro-diverse and developmentally traumatised children are hugely over-represented in the youth justice system.  

A child with special educational needs will not necessarily be at risk of going on to commit a crime. However, the intersection of poverty and potential developmental trauma can intensify their challenges and heighten that risk. When these challenges are layered on top of one another, a child’s vulnerability is multiplied disproportionately.  

Add in the lack of resource in schools to be able to offer the bespoke care that such children and their families need to thrive, and all too often exclusion becomes what a school sees as the only option. 

The school to prison pipeline – detention, suspension, loss of hope, permanent exclusion, exploitation, criminalisation, prison and reoffending – is a disaster, for the child involved, for the family, and for the economy, which every child either becomes a contributor or cost to. 

How do we move away from exclusion and move towards a system strong enough to offer bespoke support to every child?  

The government’s commitment of nationally rolling out free breakfast clubs to primary schools, especially in disadvantaged areas, is a help. But I believe there is much more that can be done to support schools to mitigate the effects of poverty. As the Minister for the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), Lisa Nandy declared, ‘By harnessing the dynamism, innovation and trusted reach of civil society organisations, we can boost growth and deliver better outcomes for communities right across the country’.  

Mission-driven government is essential – but so too is the task of inspiring and enabling a mission driven society; one that empowers local charities, grassroots movements and faith groups, to work alongside schools, local authorities and government in a more imaginative, collaborative and less bureaucratic approach to creating hope for every young person. It must be properly funded, but nothing other than this will work, however many noughts are thrown in at the end of the budget figure. 

Last year, as Labour was elected, Oasis decided to get started immediately, so we could contribute to and help shape the Young Futures programme before the policy details were finalised. 

With a vision to transform the life-chances of children struggling in mainstream education, and too often falling into crime, we opened Oasis St Martin’s Village in South London, as an unofficial Young Futures hub pilot.  

Working to support local schools, parents and the whole community, the aim of St Martin’s is to prevent any children from being off rolled from mainstream education. Our village partners, a network of local community charities and organisations, work together to offer a relational approach to support, learning and engagement. Delivered in a multitude of ways, from music, catering and horticulture to photography, film production and sport, Oasis St Martin’s never loses sight of numeracy and literacy. On top of this we’ve added in a multidisciplinary NHS health team, plus advice and support services for parents.  

We do this because we know that behind every struggling child is an overwhelmed parent or carer, and behind every overwhelmed parent or carer is a lack of community. The whole ecosystem of a child’s life matters. 

Declining birth rates have led to school closures nationwide, leaving behind underutilised or empty public buildings.  

By working together - local councils, educational trusts, and charities - we could repurpose underused buildings to replicate and enhance the model we’ve pioneered at Oasis St Martin’s Village. This approach could help tackle deep-rooted inequalities by reducing barriers to education, creating access for vulnerable, excluded, and persistently absent young people, and offer new pathways right in the heart of their communities. 

Then all you need are the salaries for a ‘Village’ director and administrator, whose tasks are to develop the infrastructure and a set of partnerships with local charities. 

What goes first is a child’s engagement, then their attainment, then their attendance. And that’s the beginning of the school to prison pipeline.  But by working together we can create some extraordinary young futures. 

Steve’s reflections were also shared in a shorter form in Schools Week.