A Professional Friend – BWC celebrates Youth Worker’s Week
Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust (BWC) is celebrating the work of our ‘ professional friends’ during Youth Workers Week (4 – 10 November) with a host of activities across our Children’s Hospital.
We’ll be marking the week with events in our Play Centre and across our hospital over the coming days.
On Sunday 10 November between 1 and 4pm we will be having a Youth group for young people. And a pottery painting studio will be here and a henna artist to engage young people on the wards and as outpatients in some kind of youth creativity. Any inpatients will need a consent form to come down to the play centre.
Youth Workers act as “professional friends”to the young people, aged 10 and above, they support It’s a term during sessions to keep a relaxed and informal feel, while at the same time ensuring they meet their duty to safeguarding.
Emma Brassington, Youth Worker at Birmingham Children’s Hospital said: “We offer a lot of advice, guidance, advocacy, support and validation. We support young people to gain both emotional literacy and emotional intelligence.
“We allow them to have freedom and make choices of their own. Our sessions are fluid and can change each time to suit what the young person is feeling.
“Youth Workers like to ‘ social prescribe ’ by signposting young people to relevant organisations within their local area bridging the gap between the clinical environment and their community so they can overcome any barriers in their personal life.”
Our professionals use a variety of methods, which might include arts and crafts, games and conversation to build relationships.
Emma added “Some of the plans we've got for Youth Worker Week is that I am planning and facilitating an event in the Play Centre for young people, a pottery painting studio will be here and a henna artist to engage young people on the wards and as outpatients in some kind of youth creativity. Any inpatients will need a consent form to come down to the play centre.