August 2020 - Update from our CEO, Susie Besant
One-Eighty’s response to COVID-19 - continuing to support vulnerable young people across Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire
One-Eighty is committed to supporting vulnerable young people in Oxfordshire and neighbouring counties. This remains our core ethos and motivates everything we do, and have continued to do, despite the continued uncertainty of COVID-19. We have the skills, built over more than nine-years using a proven and award-winning model of service delivery that supports and positively impacts some of these disadvantaged and vulnerable young people.
As we try to understand and navigate the updates from the Government about returning to a ‘new norm’ and try to manage the variety of responses and effects this has on everything and everyone related to our organisaiton, One-Eighty is, more than ever, an essential service for these vulnerable young people.
Under my leadership, and with the support of Trustees and our staff team, One-Eighty have remained open since the outbreak of the pandemic and lockdown in March. We have managed to do this as a result of our incredibly committed, motivated and passionate team who want to continue supporting vulnerable young people despite facing their own personal challenges during this unprecedented time. Our mission and values have remained at the heart of what we do, and continue to inspire us to work innovatively to enable more young people to be supported. Ensuring that staff and young people’s safety is at the forefront of our priorities, we have been working in partnership with Social Care, SEN and the Virtual Schools (in both Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire), amongst other LA groups and partners, to identify those at greatest risk and have been offering tailored support packages to address their needs.
Below you will see some of the key reponses to COVID-19 that One-Eighty has delivered over the past three months.
In striving to be the leading organisation delivering long-term sustainable behavioural, educational and social change, as well as developing preventative mental health support services, One-Eighty has been further building it's relationships with a variety of statutory and voluntary organisations. These include: Thames Valley Police, Oxford and Buckinghamshire Community Foundations, Response, Oxfordshire Youth, Oxford and Buckinghamshire Virtual Schools for Looked After Children, SEN Teams, Adoption Support Teams, Oxford County Council, Oxford Hub and the Berin Centre (including The Growing Minds Partnership).
Working closely and collaboratively with like-minded organisations, will help to ensure that vulnerable communities are better supported with higher-levels of impact and skills-based interventions. This is even more important as a result of the crisis.
Zara (name anonymised), was referred to One-Eighty during the pandemic as she is due to transition to secondary school in September, but had been struggling with the uncertainty of this which was affecting her behaviour. A 6-week, remote intervention, enabled her to learn emotional regulation strategies and manage her thoughts to prepare her for the new academic year. Zara’s carers reflected on how the intervention has helped her.
“We were anxious about having a lot of extra work to fit into our already busy days but it wasn’t like that. Instead, the things we needed to work on made our days easier and the reduced stress in our child made her easier to be around. We now have a child who has the knowledge to calm herself and cope in difficult situations. She is happier and more confident. “
(paraphrased for anonymity.)
One-Eighty’s vision and passion is to continue reaching more disadvantaged and vulnerable young people like Zara. To do this essential work, we need your support to ensure we are able to continue to adapt to the ever-changing advice whilst still maintaining our support of vulnerable young people and families.
If you would like to help us to do this, click here to donate: https://one-eighty.org.uk/support
With very best wishes
Susie Besant
Chief Executive Officer