History

Include Youth was established as a charity 11 May 1979; initially as ‘Northern Ireland Intermediate Treatment Association’ established following the publication of Sir Douglas Black’s ‘Black Report’ which highlighted the lack of services for looked after children who were at risk or had experience of involvement with the criminal justice system, including the poor educational and employment outcomes for care-experienced young people. We work with approximately 700-800 young people per year who are at risk of not receiving the care and support they need when it matters most.   

In 1989 the organisation established the Give and Take scheme, a pre-employability programme for care-experienced young people, recognising that a more bespoke wraparound service was required for some care-experienced young people to stop them falling into long-term unemployment and dependency on state benefits. Give & Take developed over the years and secured funding from bodies including The National Lottery, Children in Need, Comic Relief and Esmee Fairbairn, enabling further development of the youth work model which embodies the core components; essential skills, qualifications, employability, personal development, transitions and mentoring. We recognise that the most effective way to improve outcomes for our young people is to establish effective partnerships and grow a network of employers, training organisations and colleges to support progression to mainstream ETE, as well as other 3rd sector providers.