Helping young people to move into employment, education and training

Mersey Care  is leading a new project to examine how young people can be better supported so they can move positively into education, employment and training.

The project is funded by Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA) and is part of the Office for Public Service Innovation (OPSI) Lab Programme

Bringing together health, education, social care and community services, the aim is to examine how current systems support young people and families and how services could be improved.

Adam Drage, Mersey Care's Assistant Director of Innovatio, said: "Through co-production with children, young people, families and system partners who support them, and analysis of population health data focused on social determinants, we’re building a clear picture of how early support currently works.

"This will help us understand where changes to service provision are needed so that support reflects what people say they need and what our data shows us needs addressing. It's a shift towards a genuinely preventative model.”

Why the project is needed

It is estimated that a million young people in the UK are not in employment, education or training and parts of Liverpool City Region are among the hardest hit.

Young people can face many barriers and these are often complex and interconnected. This project will test a new way of working which builds on the strengths, relationships and expertise already in place locally. It also aligns with existing work by LCRCA linking into the Get Liverpool City Region Working Plan.

Understanding the problems young people face

The project will analyse data from across the system to understand the early risk factors that might prevent or deter young people from having a positive experience of education, employment and training. 

Data will also help understand the specific areas within Liverpool where improved support might be most needed.

Importantly, young people, families and frontline workers will also play an important role by providing their perspectives through a series of workshops. Updates about the project’s progress will be communicated regularly over the coming months.

About the partners

OPSI Lab exists to help public services understand how innovation really happens. It works alongside partners on live challenges to build a shared understanding of what drives change in public services and what holds it back.

By working on real problems with real teams, OPSI Lab helps to create space for public sector teams to try new approaches and build practical skills, whilst observing what happens when theory meets real practice.

Everything learned is shared openly through the wider OPSI network, helping partners across the Liverpool City Region decide what to focus on, what to stop, and what to do differently.