Impact Report 2022-2023
Welcome to OTR’s 2022-23 Impact Report! On this website we will reflect on our achievements, developments and learning from the past year.
In 2022-23 we reached and supported a significant amount of young people across Bristol, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset.
We’ve moved most of our services back to in-person following the pandemic in response to feedback from young people, but also kept some of our offer online. This hybrid model of support allows us to continue to cater to young people who find it difficult to access services face to face.
2022-23 has been a challenging year for many young people and families as they navigate life after lockdown and feel the impact of seismic global events and the cost of living crisis. As a result we have seen young people present with more complex needs and are working hard to offer the best possible support to accommodate this. As always we have been blown away by young people’s strength, resilience and the insightful ways in which they approach conversations about mental health in the context of the wider world.
We’re encouraged that lots of young people feel able and willing to engage with conversations about their mental health with OTR across a range of settings. However, we know that we have more work to do to engage young people who are under-represented in our services and may feel that OTR is not a place for them.
As OTR continues to grow, change and learn as an organisation we will focus our attention on broadening access to our services for young people. In order to do this effectively we recognise we must commit ourselves to continuously improve our understanding of communities that are underserved by OTR and push ourselves to practise more inclusively.
While it’s our young people who guide the direction of our organisation, we couldn’t do what we do without our extraordinary staff team. Through a year of change and challenge, their dedication to our young people has powered incredible impact. Thanks to our now 100-strong staff team, young people across the region have been heard, supported and connected with a community as they transition to adulthood.
Everything that OTR does is underpinned by our organisational beliefs and commitment to supporting young people with their mental health and wellbeing.
We try not to use jargon when speaking about our work, but in case anything needs further explanation, the OTR glossary of terms may help!
headlines from 2022-2023
We are excited to show you how our services have developed over the past year and the learning we will take forward to ensure an even greater impact for young people in the years to come.
At OTR we’re committed to amplifying the voices of young people and want them to help shape the services we offer across Bristol, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset. We’ve been working to give them a bigger say in things whilst helping them develop skills that will set them up for the future.
Our brilliant young volunteers in our Peer Representatives and Peer Navigator programmes have worked hard to ensure that young people are met by other young people from the moment they arrive at OTR, who they can relate to and who understand their experience.This programme won a national award for, Volunteering Social Action at the Children Young People Now Awards! in November 2022 in recognition of its success.
Last year we also launched our new Young Advisors initiative: this year-long program lets young people create and lead projects that tackle important issues impacting them and their peers. Its not just about making a difference – its about giving them skills that will open doors to employment opportunities in the future. As we move into 2023/24 we hope to invest in even more young people so they can shape our services while gearing up for whatever path they choose next!
At OTR we understand that some groups of young people face unique challenges to accessing mental health support, and we’re here to try to bridge those gaps. By offering a wide range of services like our arts, sports, and nature activities, creative hubs as well as targeted support for young people who are care experienced, LGBTQ+ or from racialised communities. We aim to offer a range of approaches that suit young people’s needs.
We’ve strengthened our Whole School Approach offer, supporting our colleagues in education to rethink the way schools approach mental health support. We’re committed to early intervention and recognise that what might seem like poor behaviour in young people could be a sign of deeper struggles. We are committed to working with schools to support them with young people’s mental health and whilst recognising the pressures they are under as a system to achieve this.
Supporting young people to navigate the world of school and education is central to OTR’s work. Our teams of Children’s Wellbeing Practitioners (CWPs), Education Mental Health Practitioners (EMHPs), ensure that low intensity CBT is readily available in schools and community settings to provide early support where it’s needed most. Our paid training programme for CWPs, EMHPs and HiCBT trainees ensures that we are investing in the future workforce for children and supporting increased access to psychological therapies for young people. In 2023 50% of schools across Bristol, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset will have a dedicated worker in schools, a huge achievement in partnership with NHS colleagues!
Our Resilience Lab program runs regularly across Bristol, South Gloucestershire, and North Somerset and equips young individuals with a tool box of tips and tricks; empowering them to take charge of their mental wellbeing. OTR’s mental health champions training has supported young people in South Gloucestershire to become mental health ambassadors in their schools and lend a helping hand to their peers who may need support.
Project Zazi’s Expressions and Masculinity groups continue to provide support for young black people and young people of colour to come together and unpack how societal inequalities might shape perceptions and empower them to embrace their strength and magnificence.
Academic partnerships are a cornerstone of OTR’s drive to improve mental health support for young people. We know that research, co-created alongside young people, is an effective way to do this and have invested in research opportunities accordingly. Our collaboration with the University of Bristol is a prime example, where we’re delving into the world of creative activities as an expressive outlet for young people’s feelings and emotions. This research will help drive innovative approaches in youth support. The University of Bath is another vital partner on our journey. Together, we’re shedding light on the power of social prescribing, showcasing how arts, sports, and nature interventions can pave the way for enhanced connection and wellbeing.
Our partnership with an inner city youth setting aims to evidence that an outreach model for mental health support can remove barriers to access for marginalised youth who might not typically access mental health services. Through these collaborations, we’re sculpting a landscape where young people’s mental health takes centre stage, powered by innovation and driven by partnerships.
In the ever-evolving landscape of youth mental health support in North Somerset, OTR is positively impact the lives of young people. In partnership with the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), our Intensive Outreach Team has successfully expanded its reach into North Somerset. The newly established UCAT service has offered crucial outreach support to young people experiencing mental health crises. In 2022/23 we delivered two sets of six-week Nature Well workshops for young people aged 16-25 in collaboration with the Outdoor College. These sessions sparked enthusiasm for further Nature Walks which took place this summer.
We offered resilience-themed workshops specifically tailored for young individuals transitioning into Year 7, ensuring a smooth and confident journey into secondary school. Creative HUBs have also been successfully established in Worle with plans to further expand our HUB network in the near future, providing safe and welcoming spaces for young people to express themselves.
Our team of qualified and trainee Childrens’ Wellbeing Practitioners (CWPs) and Education Mental Health Practitioners (EMHPs) have been instrumental in offering timely and accessible Low-intensity Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (LiCBT) support within schools. This proactive approach has enabled young people to access essential support when they need it most.
Our psycho-educational groups, grounded in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) principles, have provided invaluable resources through online platforms such as Resilience Lab, Mind Aid, and Shameless.
Recognising the unique needs of young people aged 18-25, our dedicated 18+ worker has been instrumental in offering personalised 1:1 support, bridging the gap for those who often find it challenging to access services. This tailored approach has not only provided much-needed support to individuals in this age group but also underscored the imperative for specialised support tailored to their unique life stage.
As we continue our journey, we remain committed to the well-being of North Somerset’s young people and our mission to provide support that is comprehensive and tailored to their evolving needs.
OTR is busy formalising its operations so we can continue to grow into a larger and more robust organisation. A dedicated focus on enhancing our policies and procedures will ensure we have an effective framework that matches our expansion. Building on the momentum generated by the introduction of our senior leadership team last year, we’re not just growing in size; we’re also evolving in approach. Insights gleaned from staff surveys and reviews have been pivotal, guiding us towards a more equitable, diverse, and inclusive path. Our partnership with EDI consultants Brap is a testament to our commitment to becoming an anti-racist organisation. Moreover, we’re taking steps to ensure that our salaries are more competitive in recognition of the cost of living crisis.
As part of this journey, we’ve also introduced reflective practice for our front-line staff, enabling them to embrace continuous learning and development. With these strategies in place, OTR is poised to develop into an organisation that not only empowers young people but also strives towards continuous learning and improvement.
young people's stories
Sam attended OTR’s yoga sessions. Here’s what they had to say:
I went to OTR hub a couple of weeks ago. I was feeling really down, depressed, so a volunteer there offered me some things i could do to take my mind off what was happening at home and to keep busy. I chose to do yoga because i found it interesting.
The first time i went, i found it a bit funny and i couldn’t stop laughing. The instructor was really good and the atmosphere was really nice, peaceful. I also found the music helpful. I have started to do my homework to that sort of music too.
Last week when we were doing the heart opening i felt really good, then later i burst into tears in the middle of a shop! The instructor had said you could become emotional afterwards, so that was really good. Since i started going, i found it relaxes me, mum even says she sees a difference in me after yoga, i am always smiling – and thats not something that my mum would normally see!
After yoga, i feel happier and even proud of myself that i have actually tried an activity that i wouldn’t have thought of doing if i hadn’t gone to the hub. I think if you feel good afterward then you are doing something good. I am definitely going to continue.
*Sam is not their real name.
Joe was a Peer Mentor and Volunteer. He describes his experiences:
My involvement with OTR has been a personally enriching experience. I feel like it has really taught me to listen closely to people, something which Ive carried over to my life outside of
volunteering, and has increased my sense of compassion and care for others. It has also given me the confidence that I can work professionally with more difficult cases which I would have expected to find overwhelming before. By training for the AQA awards and having great support and guidance from Paul (OTR) I have been able to work in situations that would before have lain outside of my comfort zone. Whats more, I have gained really important skills that will help me in a range of professional settings, working with young peoples mental health.
Ive been really proud of the long standing relationships Ive built with my mentees. In the context of a mental health landscape where 1:1 support most often takes the form of short-term interventions, I think these long term bonds have a really unique power, especially since they are very equal in their power structure. I have learnt loads from my mentees and it has been amazing to see the long-term trajectories of progression and development which I think the OTR mentoring programme has certainly facilitated.
Ellie took part in Sport Works Weightlifting and Climbing groups. This is what they had to say:
I was just looking on the OTR website and I was like, ‘weightlifting, ok, that looks really interesting’. So I ended up signing up for that. I then saw climbing and I was just like, ‘why not, that looks like fun’.
I definitely felt like I had improved confidence, being able to go there and do it, especially as Ive got a health condition that limits what I can do. What I wanted was just to feel like my body was mine again, and it was nice to see that my body can do stuff. Its nice to be able to do something different and watch myself make progress. And the social aspect of climbing was really good because Ive kept going with the same group of people, which has been really nice for me.
I do try to keep that up [the weightlifting]. It is nice to go to the gym and have a sense of ‘I know what Im doing’. Ive actually been able to go and use the free weights section at the gym which is something I just don’t think I would’ve done
before. I do think it has on the whole just really really benefited me in so many ways.
Ive got a new hobby, climbing, thats really cool. That’s something I never really saw myself getting into. I do feel like my mental health is better. I’m less depressed overall and my self-esteem is better, and Im certainly less anxious. And I’m more willing to try new things now that Ive had that positive experience. And I’ve also just opened up into worlds that I didn’t know were out there.
I do feel that finally things are sort of slotting into place. And I do feel that that did begin with OTR. I feel like that has actually got the ball rolling for me, and that has been really powerful. And how its benefited me that could easily benefit someone else, no matter whats going on in their lives.
I feel like there are overarching benefits for everyone in this kind of stuff. And Ill definitely keep an eye out for future OTR projects, because its just been a good thing in my life.
Billy and his family received family therapy at OTR. Billy has Autism and has struggled with his mental health for a number of years. The family were referred to OTR by CAMHS who thought talking therapy could be beneficial. Mum said:
Initially, I had reservations about the therapy, I didn’t think therapy was the right way forward… however I’ve now changed my view on that… I think it fitted our family at the time.
The thing with any therapy is that you don’t always see where it’s going when you start. So you’ve got to complete it to look back and think, oh right, ok, we did get there, but it doesn’t always make sense at the start. I now have come to see how much therapy helped us, looking back, we all benefited hugely.
The sessions provided a neutral, controlled space in which we could be very honest with each other and explore our feelings. It wasn’t like having a family conference, it was much more relaxed than that. It has enabled us to talk about issues that would normally be challenging, without fear.
The most significant benefit for our family has been the improvement in the way we understand each other and communicate based on this understanding, we’re now more aware of how one another would take something… just the understanding between the three of us is massive.
This has also helped with Billy’s mental health because now he understands why someone might react to him in a certain way and he’s exploring his own feelings more. Billy is still experiencing some challenges with his mental health, the therapy was literally just the start, so with the ongoing support Billy has decided to engage with 1-to-1 music therapy at OTR to continue his progress.
*Billy is not his real name.
Amy accessed OTR through engaging with our Link Worker, Isabel. Here are Amy’s grandfather’s words:
Amy was originally referred to CAHMs as she was struggling with anxiety, ADHD and a strong phobia of animals. She lives with her elderly grandparents and mother who has severe learning disabilities. She was due to be starting college but cannot travel alone, has phobias of leaving the house and relies on grandparents for daily self care. Amy was at risk of not being able to attend college.
Isabel, OTR’s Link Engagement Worker, facilitated the family to receive the support they needed and linked Amy to OTR’s High intensity Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) which she attended.
“We were absolutely thrilled to find OTR. At first we were unsure if they could help, but the change has been remarkable an it has made all the difference! Amy can now get to college and back by herself. She has made good friends there and is meeting up with them independently outside of college. We think it is all due to the support she received at OTR. It really has made a tremendous impact and the whole house feels a lot more relaxed! I know she was originally referred to CAMHS, but Isabel helped her find the support she needed at OTR which was what she needed.”
to the stATS!
Total number of young people reached across Bristol, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset:
984
Total number of young people signed-up to a regular or recurring OTR project
2,563
Resilience Lab - interactive workshops designed around self-care.
4,429
8,253
604
Young people supported in schools via our Mental Health Support Team partnership with AWP
Engagement with groups:
104
64
153
783
61
70
868
50
We also recruited 45 Peer Reps and Peer Navigators and spoke to 334 parents/carers at our Hubs/Pop-ups!
Demographics
outcomes
Unique website visitors
(last year 71,074) comprising 62987 from Bristol and South Glos and 9414 from North Somerset.
Total e-newsletter subscribers
Total social media followers
- Instagram - 5,446
- Facebook - 6,013
- Twitter - 32,400
- LinkedIn - 1,963
- YouTube - 215
Diffusion launched open access training where individuals from different organisations and professional backgrounds can book on via our events page and learn alongside each other in an environment of diverse knowledge and expertise.
Diffusion collaborated with the Freedom team to re- design and deliver our “Working Confidently with Gender and Sexuality” training after piloting the training internally it has received positive feedback and continues to grow in popularity externally.
outcomes
What we do know is that courses such as ‘Resilience Lab Train the Trainer’ and the ‘Working Confidently with Gender and Sexuality’ training are very popular and people often book on after recommendations from colleagues. The content is really practical and helps people think about how they can use that within their direct work with children and families and so we feel that the courses raise confidence in areas that internal practitioners have identified as areas they would like to feel more confident in.
I loved it! It felt very in depth and also felt safe to speak about things that you may be ashamed to voice / there wasn't a fear of getting it wrong - which can be the case in some training.
Excellent trainer with clear simple explanation and very useful training.
This was fantastic training, I really enjoyed learning lots of new techniques and methods to be able to deliver this to young people.
What people are saying...
We also recognise the importance that adults play in young people’s lives – parents/carers, teachers, youth workers and other professionals – and here is some feedback from these groups, including some of OTR’s partners:
At Southmead Development Trust we have been working closely with Off The Record since the launch of our young people’s wellbeing service, Link Forward. We connect young people to the support that they need, often around their mental health. In our experience, lots of young people in North Bristol struggle to get into the centre of town to access groups or therapies.
By working with OTR’s engagement, outreach, and community partnerships teams we have been able to deliver many of OTR’s amazing group offers in Southmead itself. This means that our local young people can access support for their mental health in their own community and in spaces that are known and safe to them.
We really value the expertise of OTR’s facilitators in supporting and encouraging our young people who might face additional barriers in accessing mental health support. Parkour at the Greenway centre, in collaboration with Free Your Instinct, has now flourished into three groups a week, Nature Works has been a hit down at The Ranch adventure playground and training SDT Link Workers in Resilience Lab has meant that hundreds of North Bristol young people now get to “make friends with stress”.
Youth Moves is a youth work charity based in South Bristol. We offer various activities across South Bristol including mentoring, open access, schools work, environmental sessions, targeted work and detached.
In 2020 Youth Moves put a successful bid into the lottery for a partnership grant between a group of agencies, with Off The Record being one of the agencies. The grant paid Off The Record to embed a full time well being worker in Youth Moves, to work alongside our team and give young people direct access to the wellbeing service that came with the well being worker.
We are now entering year 3 of our 4-year grant, and Des (OTR) has become an invaluable asset to the team and to young people. As well as providing a much-needed service to the young people of South Bristol who would not access this otherwise, but in addition to this he has become a valuable member of the team and has worked with the team around their own understanding of wellbeing.
We have started to look at putting in a new bid next year for another funding pot and feel that OTR is a key part in this as this partnership has worked so well and had much more impact than we ever thought it would.
Denise Clifford – Head of Youth Work Delivery
Working in partnership with OTR has been a wonderful experience and one we would love to continue. We have been able to cross pollinate ideas and co-facilitate sessions to reaffirm the power of nature and social connection in providing wellbeing benefits and building resilience for young people.
The partnership has demonstrated (very successfully) the benefits of regular sessions with smaller groups over a longer period of time, to ensure the experience is truly youth led – this is something we are definitely exploring further in our work at AfC.
This partnership has enabled us to reach some young people we wouldn’t have reached. It helps us achieve our purpose for longer term engagement. We have supported one young person to co-lead local primary school workshops and it has provided opportunities to work with the same group of young people on another environmental action project, therefore continuing their friendships, wellbeing improvements and impact on local nature and community.
I feel this project has been incredibly successful and humbling to be part of. Max (OTR) is a joy to work and we can’t wait for this partnership with OTR to continue.
money
income
£2,942,268
expenditure
£3,010,276
fundraising
Donations total:
We’d like to take a moment to thank all of our amazing supporters who have embarked upon a variety of events and challenges for OTR. From skydives, to half marathons to bake sales we have seen an array of motivating and inspiring events happen in aid of our services.
Additionally to individuals, schools who fundraise for us, we have seen a real increase in support from local businesses. Many have signed up to partner with OTR, fundraising and organising events, volunteering their expertise and donating their time or products.
A big thank you to all our supporters! Here are some stories we’d like to share:
We spoke with Kaz Self, the vice-chair of Trans Pride South West. She ran the Bath Half for us OTR. Thank you so much Karen!
Tell us about your experience fundraising for OTR in the Bath Half?
The Bath Half is quite a challenge, with a hill at the end of the course! But I have done a few half marathons before, so I understood that I needed to train quite hard and take it easy at the beginning. I did enough training beforehand so that I knew I could complete it, but I was really pleased to take part and finish!
Why is it important to support groups like Freedom at OTR?
It’s important that we have safe and welcoming spaces for queer young people to get the support they need and to get involved. This space needs to be non-judgmental. Many people from our community have faced rejection from family or friends so it’s helpful to meet like-minded individuals. There are links between queer and trans people experiencing poor mental health. This can be caused by many factors such as loneliness, feeling rejected by society, and hearing nasty things in the media that can impact wellbeing.
What motivates you to organise the community projects you’re involved in?
I transitioned late in my life and I discovered it’s OK to be me and I wanted to be visible to people. It’s OK to be trans, to be a role model so other people can see that there are people just like them.
Gemma is a People Development manager at Osborne Clarke law firm and a member of Osbourne Clarke Pride LGBTQ+ network. Their Pride Network has partnered with OTR’s Freedom Project and is fundraising collectively as a Network. Gemma is also personally fundraising for Freedom.
Can you tell us a little about who you are and your connection with OTR?
I have always been passionate about mental health. I grew up with an eating disorder and did not get the support I needed. My school tried to support me but there was no specific training and signposting which meant my eating disorder got a lot worse. It’s really important that young people get the right support at the right time.
Can you tell us a little bit about the fundraising you’re doing for OTR?
My fundraising challenge is to cover 2023 miles by foot to mark this year. That’s on bike, foot and swimming; the 3 disciplines of a Triathlon. My challenges include an Iron Man, Half Marathon, Half Iron man and Marathon, finishing with a marathon run on the 10th October for World Mental Health Day.
I have really enjoyed this challenge, as physical activity is great for your mental wellbeing, being outside and connecting with nature.
Would you recommend partnering with OTR to another organisation?
Young people are the next generation. We have to do everything we can to support young people to put them in the best position they can to succeed.
OTR offers support, services and a safe space for young people from different backgrounds going through different experiences and challenges. They provide services that empower and improve the confidence of the next generation to step into your workforce. I am a People Development Manager, it’s my role to understand how you get the best out of your people. Ensuring they have a voice and tools – OTR provides all of those things through the variety of different services available. I like that about the charity.
Did you run before you did the Bristol Half and does it help with your mental Health?
It massively helps with my mental health, absolutely, when you are running all you can think about is your lungs and your limbs and that’s it! It’s kind of like mindfulness in a weird way, I have never been able to get to grips with mindfulness – the most mindful activity I do is running.
There’s no space for brain mess, everything falls into running, it does me loads of good, I started running in April. I never really liked exercise or sport or running, so I started with the couch to 5k and I just caught the running bug, and worked my way up to do the Bristol Half for OTR.
funders
We’d like to say a huge thank you to new funders who have worked with OTR in the last year and made our work possible:
contracts
We are very pleased to work in partnership with the NHS and integrate the OTR approach to essential services to support young people’s mental health, under contracts commissioned by Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust:
- We manage four Mental Health Schools Teams across Bristol, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset as part of the national initiative to provide low intensity interventions in schools
- OTR teams collaborate to co-deliver the running of a CAMHS Intensive Outreach Service.
- We support transitions work for young people moving from support delivered by Children’s Services to Adult Services.
Other contracts included North Somerset Council – funding for mental health support to specified schools across North Somerset and the NHSE Winter Access Fund which was a contract funding a Young Persons Mental Health support worker to deliver services collaboratively with the Bristol Inner City Primary Care Network.
looking ahead
As we set our sights ahead to 2023/24, OTR gets ready to launch its new strategy, OTR25. We’ve got five priorities that will help guide us toward a future where young people have a greater choice and control over the mental health support they receive.
We’ll start by turning up the volume on young people’s voices. Our plan? Give them the spotlight through our volunteer program, targeted groups and discussion forums. Who better to steer the ship than the young people we’re here to support?
We are looking forward to welcoming our new Peer Reps and Navs to Bristol and South Gloucestershire this Autumn, and our volunteer coordinator in North Somerset will be on the lookout for young people to join our growing peer representatives/navigators team, further strengthening young people’s participation.
We’re committed to developing an offer that has something for everyone. Priority two is making sure our support options are as diverse as the young people who need them.
From 1:1 therapies to drop-ins for LGBTQ+ young people, and from social activism projects for black young men and young men of colour to summer storytelling workshops, we’ll create an even richer offering for young people. Best of all, they will always be free of charge. We will launch brand new services, and we’ll expand our tried and tested services into new localities like North Somerset. We understand the strength of partnerships for targeted work, so we’ll collaborate to make new positive spaces- like our work with Coexist Community Kitchen, a series of cooking sessions designed just for black young women and young women of colour.
What about schools? We’ve got big plans to deliver our Whole School Approach offer through our Mental Health Support Team across Bristol and South Gloucestershire, a wraparound service that empowers schools to offer outstanding mental health support. In North Somerset, we can’t wait to welcome a new MHST who will introduce a new programme of work delivering Mind Aid and Shameless programmes to school settings.
We know that not everyone’s starting from the same point. So, priority three is all about reaching out to those who face extra barriers. OTR will increase its reach to marginalised young people and those experiencing disadvantage. We will focus on young people of colour, care experienced young people, disabled young people, LGBTQ+ young people and those from lower socio–economic backgrounds. These groups are among those most likely to struggle with their mental health but least likely to seek out support. We’ll bring our services to the most marginalised young people alongside our in-house projects- embedding support in schools, community centres and settings they already know and trust.
In Bristol and South Gloucestershire, we will extend our services which focus on marginalised communities. In North Somerset, an area with unique challenges for young people, we’re exploring flexible ways to bring our services to different community spaces.
Creating supportive communities is also high on the agenda. From teams working cross organisationally to build partnerships outside OTR, priority four is all about creating safe spaces where young people can feel heard and supported.
We want young people to feel surrounded by a network of support. So, our approach is holistic. That means reaching beyond our therapies, group sessions and drop ins, and embedding mental health support at home and in the classroom. Our Whole School Approach and our Resilient Parenting programme means that adults are equipped with the tools and understanding they need to support their young people. We also look at existing groups in young people’s communities, and enhance them with mental health support – like our partnership with Trinity in Bristol, combining their music workshops with an OTR practitioner to embed informal support in a creative safe space.
And last but not least, we’re using our influence to shape conversations that help change the way young people’s mental health is spoken about and conceptualised.
Priority five is all about working with our partners, including charities, statutory organisations and universities. We will drive new approaches and ideas within tried and tested models of delivery and evaluation; aiming to push boundaries and strive for change.
We’d like to express our gratitude for all those who continue to support, promote and talk to OTR. We listen to all feedback and strive to be the most collaborative, relevant and young person-led organisation possible. We continue to exist in a challenging societal and political climate which makes the landscape difficult for young people. Continually responding to this takes nuance and hard work, and like any organisation, we’re far from perfect, but we are driven and excited to continue working alongside young people for a better future.