STREET

The Safe Teenage Relationship Empowerment & Education Team

STREET provides specialist support to young people affected by domestic abuse and teen relationship abuse. This free, confidential & independent service is open to young people aged 13- 19 living or being educated in Gloucestershire.

We know that young people are disproportionately affected by domestic abuse, they see it at home as well as experience it in their own relationships. Some young people may also be struggling with harmful behaviour in their own close relationships.

 STREET aims to support young people to be:

• safer and less fearful;
• equipped to recognise and avoid risky behaviours;
• less likely to be re-victimised;
• confident and well-supported to positively move on from their experiences.

Our Domestic Abuse Practitioners (DAPs) will complete a thorough risk and needs assessment to assess the level of support we can offer.

Support Available

1 2 1 Support

Specialist Young Persons Violence Advocates (YPVAs) provide one-to-one support for young people experiencing abuse in their relationship, exposed to domestic abuse or displaying harmful behaviours. This support is for young people experiencing higher risk abuse.

 YPVAs work alongside a young person to create an individual support plan that aims to reduce risk, increase protective factors and develop resilience. This includes emotional & practical support, such as safety planning or increasing self-esteem, and understanding abusive relationships.

121 support is also available to young people not experiencing higher risk harm where they are unable to access group support. This is offered on a case by case basis dependant on the individual circumstances of the young person.

Group Work

The Recovery Toolkit is an 8 session group programme informed by Trauma Focused Cognitive Behaviourial Therapy that helps young people come to terms with their experiences, develop coping strategies and achieve positive future relationships with family members and peers. Activities cover a range of topics including self-esteem, gender roles, safety planning and healthy relationships.

Dating Detox is an 11 session group programme designed to help participants who are displaying unhealthy behaviours towards a parent, sibling* or in their own relationships. It supports a young person to understand their feelings and behaviours, explore anger and aggression and develop new and healthy coping strategies and techniques to help change their current behaviours.

(*must be a history of witnessing Domestic Abuse within the family)

Both groups include a range of therapeutic & practical activities, games and discussions to deliver content to young people.

Groups are delivered by our DAPs and take place online and at community venues across Gloucestershire. Young people are grouped with others of a similar age to ensure all content is age appropriate.

How to make a referral

Call: 01452 228 802

Email: streetreferrals@victimsupport.org.uk to request a referral form 

For information or advice please call the STREET Team on 01452 228802 or visit Home - GloucesterCYP (ygtglos.org.uk)

Referrals are triaged within – one working day of receipt and, if accepted, allocated to a Domestic Abuse Practitioner for an initial call within 10 working days. Referrals are prioritised based on the level of risk.

Where a young person has experienced domestic or teenage relationship abuse within the last 3 months a Young Persons DASH should be completed and submitted as part of the referral. You can find a copy of the Young Persons DASH here alongside guidance on how to complete it .

If the young person is 16 or over and you believe they are at high risk of serious harm through domestic abuse, then a referral to MARAC (Multi Agency Risk Assessment Conference) must be made. This is achieved by completing the Young Person’s DASH (above) and sending it to marac@gloucestershire.pnn.police.uk.

A young person experiencing domestic and/or relationship abuse is a safeguarding concern and making this referral does not end your safeguarding responsibilities. If a young person, at any age, is in danger, or you are concerned that they are at risk of serious harm then please call the Multi agency Safeguarding Hub on 01452 426565. Online safeguarding referral forms can be found here