Youth Work Connect – Navigating Risk, Building Resilience: Youth Work Approaches to Reducing the Risk of Violence

Following Dr Carlene Firmin (Durham University)  webinar in February where she shares new research that shines a spotlight on the vital role youth workers play in preventing violence and safeguarding young people, the Youth Work Connect session in March will explore the role of youth workers as trusted adults and their role in building safe, youth led spaces where early intervention, de-escalation and meaningful relationships can thrive.

For this Youth Work Connect we are pleased to be joined by Denise Lewis from the Solihull Safeguarding Children Partnership.

Denise is a member of the Association of Child Protection Professionals and she has a Master’s Degree in Youth & Community Development and a range of practice experience working with young people in different areas and settings. Denise started volunteering at age 17 in the junior section of the youth centre she attended and has been Manager of a Local Authority Youth Service, and has delivered open access, targeted, detached and outreach youth work.

She has been involved with the Global Contextual Safeguarding Unit at Durham University (previously Bedfordshire) since 2016; and has been a practitioner co-researcher on the sustaining social work project (blog available here). She coordinates the west midlands regional contextual safeguarding champions network and co-chairs the national youth worker network for contextual safeguarding.