Our impact
Many of the young people we work alongside face multiple challenges including homelessness, mental health needs, exploitation, discrimination and other risks to their safety and wellbeing.
Impact at a glance
Youth voice
When young people are involved in shaping services, influencing decisions and sharing their experiences, we create better support and achieve greater impact, not just for individuals, but for communities and future generations.
Creating lasting change starts with listening and young people are at the heart of everything we do.
From youth voice to action
Young people leading conversations
Young people participated as Mental Health Champions and Youth Ambassadors to support peers, raise awareness and helping influence change.
New Youth Voice Strategy
Co-produced with young people to strengthen participation, influence and opportunities to shape the services they use.
Influencing change beyond our services
Young people helped shape our Manifesto, contributing to our stakeholder event, and co-produced a film sharing their experiences.
Safer online experiences
Young people from Sussex secondary schools shared their online experiences and their recommendations are helping shape future policy and support.
Behind the numbers
Behind every statistic is a child or young person with their own experience, challenges and aspirations.
The stories below show the impact that safe homes, mental health support and trusted advice make.
Strengthening our services
Safe homes
Young people living in YMCA DownsLink Group accommodation have highlighted feeling safe, supported and treated with respect as key strengths of the organisation.
Mental health support
YMCA DownsLink Group’s Therapeutic Services has once again successfully passed its British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) Accredited Service annual evaluation.
Trusted advice
Our Youth Advice Centre in Brighton has been chosen to take part in the pilot phase of the government’s new Young Futures Hub programme.
Why our work matters
Young people are facing increasing challenges, while support has struggled to keep pace. Many of the children and young people we support face significant risks to their safety and wellbeing - so we make an impact where it is needed most.
Last year, YMCA DownsLink Group worked alongside 4,695 children and young people across Sussex and Surrey.
60,000
young people in Sussex and Surrey may need extra support–
demand amongst 11-24 year olds also expected to rise.
70 %
cut to youth services -
spending across England and Wales has fallen dramatically over the last decade.
29%
young people we house have experience of the care system –
many need extra support as they move towards independence.
56%
safeguarding concerns needed statutory support –
keeping young people safe relies on strong partnerships with relevant services.
45%
safeguarding concerns related to 16–19 year olds –
many young people face risks as they move into adulthood.
1410
safeguarding concerns raised across our services –
reflecting the increasing complexity and severity of need.
Creating impact: safe homes, mental health support, trusted advice
Safe homes
We provide accommodation and support for young people aged 16-25, including Ofsted-registered provision for vulnerable 16 and 17 year olds, helping them stay safe, build independence and move forward.
Alongside housing and practical support, our chaplaincy builds on our impact by helping create connection, belonging and a sense of community. Through shared meals, trusted relationships and non-judgemental support, young people can build friendships, confidence and feel more at home.
Young people are not just finding somewhere to stay.
They are gaining the stability, skills and confidence needed to live independently and achieve their goals.
Investing in safe homes
YMCA DownsLink Group secures Hove housing portfolio
During the year, we also strengthened our housing offer through the transfer of homes from Sussex Overseas Housing Society, helping secure affordable housing for future generations of young people.
MP opens our new accommodation for young people in Eastbourne
Creating spaces for belonging and hope – meet our new Chaplain
Our new Brighton & Hove Chaplain Mike Jones joined us in April 2026. Here he explains how chaplancy creates welcoming spaces where people find meaning and inner strength.
Mental health support
Through Dialogue and our wider wellbeing services, we provide counselling, emotional support and early intervention for children and young people across Sussex and Surrey.
From schools and communities to specialist wellbeing services, we help young people make sense of what they're experiencing and feel more confident about the future.
Good mental health is the foundation for learning, relationships and independence. By providing support early, we help young people build resilience, improve wellbeing and feel better equipped to navigate life's challenges.
Trusted advice
Through our support and advice services - Youth Advice Centres (YACs), WiSE (What is Sexual Exploitation?) and Family Mediation - we work alongside young people and families when they need a trusted adult to listen, practical support, or help finding a way forward.
From providing a trusted adult to talk to and a safe place to drop in, to helping young people stay safe from exploitation and strengthening family relationships through mediation, early support can reduce the risk of crisis, family breakdown and homelessness.
Having the right support at the right time can prevent problems from escalating.
Partnerships and influence
Together with schools, local authorities, NHS services, employers, community organisations, funders and supporters, we achieve great impact and create lasting change for children and young people.
Partnerships in action
Professionals supported through training and consultation
Through WISE, we helped 225 professionals build their understanding of exploitation and how to better support young people.
Youth-led research into homelessness
Working with partners, we helped ensure young people's experiences informed conversations about homelessness in Brighton & Hove.
Sussex youth manifesto
Developed with organisations, practitioners and young people across the region, the Sussex Youth Manifesto sets out a shared call for action on youth homelessness, mental health, support and housing.
Lasting change happens when young people, communities and organisations work together. We couldn't achieve this impact without the support of our funders, partners and supporters.
Looking ahead
In 2026, we launched our new five-year strategy to build on our impact, focused on four goals:
Reach
Supporting more children and young people.
Impact
Delivering high-quality services that create lasting change.
Voice
Strengthening youth participation and influence.
Potential
Investing in people, leadership and sustainability.
As the challenges facing young people continue to grow, our focus remains the same: ensuring every child and young person is safe, heard and able to shape their own future.
Our ambition is clear: 50% more children and young people will be using our services each year by 2031.
Help create change across Sussex and Surrey
Whether you're a supporter, partner, funder or advocate, you can help us achieve greater impact and reach more children and young people so they can be safe, heard and able to shape their own future.
