Our Mission & Vision
We believe young people are incredible!
We believe every young person in Birmingham should have access to local youth work—places where they can have fun, build community, make a difference, and thrive.
As part of the Birmingham Youth Work Partnership, we are an independent network of youth workers and organizations, deeply passionate about empowering Birmingham's youth. Rooted in Birmingham for the long term, we are united by a shared commitment to help local youth work organizations connect, grow, and sustain their impact.
While we operate independently, we work collaboratively with local stakeholders to enhance youth engagement. We advocate for strong, accessible youth work across Birmingham—amplifying the voices of young people and the organizations that support them.
Together, we champion better provision, greater investment, and wider recognition of the vital role youth work plays in our communities.
What We Are Here to Do
BYWP exists to reclaim, reimagine, and champion youth and community work in Birmingham. We aim to restore its philosophical foundations, build the conditions for Birmingham and youth work to thrive, and ensure every young person in the city has access to the quality youth work they are entitled to.
About Our Values
We believe in local youth work access for every young person in Birmingham.
We are committed to working together with others to strengthen youth work in Birmingham and the voices of young people.
We are committed to working together with others to strengthen youth work in Birmingham and the voices of young people.
Protecting and Advancing Professional Practice from Introduction to Youth Work to JNC and professional qualifications: The Birmingham Youth Work Partnership (BYWP), through diverse and accessible pathways, empowers Birmingham's youth by underpinning good practice. It works to protect the integrity of youth and community work, upholding it
Protecting and Advancing Professional Practice from Introduction to Youth Work to JNC and professional qualifications: The Birmingham Youth Work Partnership (BYWP), through diverse and accessible pathways, empowers Birmingham's youth by underpinning good practice. It works to protect the integrity of youth and community work, upholding its values, ethics, philosophy, and National Occupational Standards, while also demystifying the profession without diminishing it. By focusing on youth engagement, BYWP ensures that the profession remains both relevant and respected.
We are committed to working together with others to strengthen youth work in Birmingham and the voices of young people.
We are committed to working together with others to strengthen youth work in Birmingham and the voices of young people.
We are committed to working together with others to strengthen youth work in Birmingham and the voices of young people.
Shifting Power Toward Communities and Young People: The Birmingham Youth Work Partnership (BYWP) is not a top-down structure. We encourage curiosity, adventure, and fun in all of us. It is built on the conviction that communities and young people should not be done to; they should be equipped, heard, and involved as agents of change. This
Shifting Power Toward Communities and Young People: The Birmingham Youth Work Partnership (BYWP) is not a top-down structure. We encourage curiosity, adventure, and fun in all of us. It is built on the conviction that communities and young people should not be done to; they should be equipped, heard, and involved as agents of change. This focus on empowering Birmingham's youth means redistributing resources, creating genuine co-production, and ensuring that voice and power operate at every level: from the young person on the street corner to the strategic partnerships shaping the city through effective youth engagement.
We love youth work and working with young people.
We champion partnership with young people to shape lives and communities.
We champion partnership with young people to shape lives and communities.
Champions of the values of youth work are often invisible, misunderstood, or reduced to crisis management, knife crime, and antisocial behaviour, which overshadows the important role of the Birmingham Youth Work Partnership. This partnership exists to champion the narrative of youth work for everyone. We articulate what youth work is, wha
Champions of the values of youth work are often invisible, misunderstood, or reduced to crisis management, knife crime, and antisocial behaviour, which overshadows the important role of the Birmingham Youth Work Partnership. This partnership exists to champion the narrative of youth work for everyone. We articulate what youth work is, what it does, and why it matters—not just to funders and commissioners, but to communities, young people, schools, and the city itself. By empowering Birmingham's youth, we advocate for an approach that is relational, voluntary, asset-based, and genuinely transformative, where young people feel safe, loved, and respected.
We champion partnership with young people to shape lives and communities.
We champion partnership with young people to shape lives and communities.
We champion partnership with young people to shape lives and communities.
Building a Unified Vision for Youth Work in Birmingham; The Birmingham Youth Work Partnership (BYWP) fosters a shared language, standard, and ambition for what youth work in Birmingham looks like and means. BYWP provides that common foundation not by imposing uniformity, but by holding a citywide vision that respects and amplifies local p
Building a Unified Vision for Youth Work in Birmingham; The Birmingham Youth Work Partnership (BYWP) fosters a shared language, standard, and ambition for what youth work in Birmingham looks like and means. BYWP provides that common foundation not by imposing uniformity, but by holding a citywide vision that respects and amplifies local practice. We are building something that, when Birmingham says it invests in young people, the words are backed by infrastructure, values, and action. Empowering Birmingham's youth is at the heart of our mission. Connecting and Strengthening the Sector: The voluntary and community youth work sector in Birmingham is rich with talent, passion, and local knowledge but it has operated in silos. BYWP builds the connective tissue: mapping what exists, linking organisations across the city, and creating a shared infrastructure, practices, and resources that allow for youth engagement while enabling practitioners and projects to learn from, support, and amplify one another. We expand the 'back garden' not just for young people, but for the sector itself.