Listen Up - Social Welfare Portal

listenup!112 | Case Study 7How the project addresses gaps in localservice provisionStreetwise was originally set up to counter theunder-use of health services by young people inthe area. Expansion of the service has similarly beengoverned by identifying gaps in provision. The twomain areas of work, as described above, are providingservices for young people who self-harm, andmaking services accessible to all young people, fromevery ethnic background. As part of this second areaof work, a monthly ‘positive’ hip hop event, called‘CRUNK’, has been was set up. This has an attendanceof over 100 young people (70% are BME) and ismanaged by a group of 20 young people, known asthe CRUNKERZ, who meet on a weekly basis. This hashelped to increase the number of BME young peoplewho use the service.Barriers and constraints which impedeeffective provisionInsufficient funding is the first major constraint onthe nature of the service that Streetwise is able tooffer. The counselling service, for instance, is currentlyonly able to operate four days a week, including onelate-night session. Better flexibility for young peoplecould be achieved by having the service availablemore often.The service has expanded greatly in the past fewyears but the project is still housed in the same smallbuilding. A lack of space not only constrains thenumber of workers, but also leads to overcrowding inthe waiting room.ContactsStreetwise35 – 37 The Groat MarketNewcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 1UQTelephone: 0191 2305400Website: www.streetwisenorth.co.uk