VRU - Provision of Hospital Based Youth Work Services

Since 2014, City Hall has invested in embedding youth workers into London’s hospitals, first in the four Major Trauma Centres (MTCs), and subsequently (in 2018) in eight of London’s Accident & Emergency (A&Es) Units. Since 2023, this programme of work, referred to collectively as hospital-based youth work (HBYW), has been overseen and managed by the VRU, although VRU investment in HBYW extends back to its establishment in 2019. Prior to the VRU, this programme and investment had been overseen and managed by MOPAC within City Hill, aligned to the Mayor’s Police & Crime Plan (PCP). The HBYW programme represents a violence reduction initiative, heavily aligned to the VRU’s own violence reduction strategies, most notably: the trusted relationship between a young person, and their youth worker, as well as the concept of place, reaching young people where they are, and, in this case, leveraging a reachable moment in the lives of young people to break patterns of violence and harm. Indicative Contract Value: £4,633,792 ex VAT for the initial contract period, with a potential extension value of up to £4,633,792. Contract Duration: January 2027 – March 2029 (27 months), with the option to extend for a further 24 months. Service Delivery Period: April 2027 – March 2029, with the option to extend to March 2031 Description of the service The purpose of embedding these youth workers is to support children and young people who have been impacted by violence and exploitation; youth workers are there to offer a relatable stabilising presence in crisis or distress, and help young people cope and recover from the trauma of physical or mental injury and disrupt future patterns of violence and harm The service engages young people aged 11–25 who present at Major Trauma Centres (MTCs) and Accident & Emergency (A&E) departments as victims of violence or exploitation, or who are identified as being at risk of future harm. Youth workers provide emotional and practical support, advocacy, an