Welcome to this month's edition

Good morning, thank you for taking the time to read through this month's VERU in View.

It's been a whirlwind few months as I settled back into the VERU, but I'm glad to finally be in a position to share some of things we've been working hard on behind the scenes.

One of those things is our capacity. As many of our colleagues across this space can attest to, the need in our community is great and all too often we are working against the tide, but I'm glad to say that we are steadily expanding!

Please join me in welcoming new VERU Manager, Phil McCarthy, and Youth Intervention Specialist Rochelle Browne to the team. 

With them comes a wealth of unique knowledge and experience that will inevitably fuel the success of the VERU. You can find out more about Phil and Rochelle on our website and see how our team is shaping up below.

Looking back on a key event this month, I had the opportunity to attend Westminster for a closed conversation with Kerry McCarthy MP and others to discuss the impact of parental imprisonment on young people.

The purpose of the meeting was to understand how children with a parent in prison are often 'invisible' to the system and therefore rarely get the support they need. I am grateful to the charity that organised this and to those with lived experience who chose to speak out.

Moving forward, I intend to continue to support this group and to explore a local offering of support for those impacted by parental imprisonment.

As always, there's lots to share and a lot more to come, so I hope you enjoy this month's update and stay tuned for more!

Kimberley Lamb | VERU Director

As often stated, the role of the VERU is to use a multi-agency approach to tackle violence and exploitation. 

True to our mantra, our Youth Intervention Specialist (YIS) team are proud to share a perfect example of how partnership working can disrupt exploitation, while helping victims become survivors.  

'C's Story

Identified as a regular missing person, and often absent from school, the YIS team were made aware of a young person that was suspected of being a victim of exploitation by older men, after receiving a referral from Children's Services.

Through shared information between partners, including 'C's school and Bedfordshire Police, YIS worker Roseann was able to bridge the gap between 'C' and local authorities. This led to the identification of the perpetrator and ultimately the disruption of communication with 'C'.  

Over a period of time Roseann was able to instigate a managed move, ensuring 'C' was in appropriate accommodation that could support their needs. As a result we are thrilled to share that 'C' is not only back in school and thriving, but they are also regularly attending one of the VERU's commissioned projects.

Roseann said: "As a whole this is a fantastic success story. However, a notable take away for me would be 'C's change in perspective.

"When I first met with 'C', they were adamant that there was no issue with their relationship with the perpetrator. But towards the end of our time together, 'C' said that they can now see how they were being exploited and that the behaviour of the perpetrator was not okay."

To refer a young person into our Youth Intervention team, click the button below.

The scheme has been launched by Bedfordshire Police and Crime Commissioner Festus Akinbusoye, to tackle persistent school absenteeism.

It will be led by the VERU to provide tailored support to young people with a pattern of persistent absenteeism who could be at risk of exploitation.

Support for families will also be part of the initiative.

Various agencies in Bedfordshire have been working for months on the programme to ensure correct processes are in place to best target those most in need of support.

PCC Mr Akinbusoye said: “It is a sad reality that many children caught up in knife crime, in county lines and in serious and organised crime are frequently absent from school, despite the best efforts of parents and our schools....

This year has seen the VERU go from strength to strength, and with that, there's been lots of change.

From guaranteed funding for three years to supporting the development of the county's first ever scheme to tackle absenteeism, we've worked hard to stay true to our mission of tackling violence and exploitation.

As we continue on this journey, it's been imperative to develop our team. While we are still looking forward to welcoming additional team members, we thought it would be a good time to 'reintroduce' ourselves.

For a full look at who we are and our journey in the VERU click the button below.

From left to right

• Kimberley Lamb, VERU Director
• Phillip McCarthy, VERU Manager
• Dee Bailey, PA to VERU Director & VERU Manager

• Tasha Case, Community & Engagement Lead
• Jon Vale, Head of Communications
• Rochelle Browne, Youth Intervention Coordinator

• Roseann Taylor, Youth Intervention Specialist 
• Sheldon Thomas, Gangsline Youth Intervention Specialist 
• Chantelle Olaiya, Communications & Engagement Lead

• Debbie Hearne, Education Lead
  
• Slavica Tobdzic, Consultant
• Ade Abitoye, Lead Public Health Analyst

You can view the updated Home Office Child Exploitation Disruption Toolkit here.