Adversity narrows what feels possible
Poverty and exclusion erode confidence and hope, not just access to opportunity.
Empowering young people and families
A five-year plan.
Our Vision – A world where every young person and their family have opportunities to thrive
Our mission
To support young people and families in England — especially those
facing adversity — to strengthen their future prospects by developing
their life skills, deepening their sense of belonging and fostering their
agency and participation in their communities.
Opportunity depends too much on where you grow up
Support and networks are unevenly distributed — geography still determines life chances.
Support alone is not enough
Young people need belonging, confidence and real influence, not just services delivered to them.
Strong organisations enable lasting change.
Robust, well-supported partner organisations are the platform underneath everything else.
What we want to change
We're committed to transforming young people's lives through support, relationships, and opportunities to lead change.
Our mission focuses on three key areas where we believe young people and families deserve better outcomes and greater support.
Growth
Confidence & capability
Young people develop the life skills, confidence and ambition to
achieve their goals
Families feel more confident and better equipped to support
their children’s development.
Connections
Belonging and support
Young people build stronger relationships and a greater sense of belonging with peers, school, family and community.
Families develop a wider, more supportive network and greater trust with schools, services and peers
Citizenship
Agency and participation
Young people gain a greater sense of agency and responsibility to be active citizens shaping their communities.
Families become more engaged with young people in making a difference to others and their communities.
Where we invest
We are an active investor — providing funding, capacity and sponsorship to help our partners maximise their impact.
£9m+
invested across these areas · 2025–30
Priority 01
Network support & excellence
G1
Sponsorship & community
Drive stronger academic, enrichment and community outcomes across sponsored academies, while deepening shared learning and a sense of belonging across the Ormiston network.
G2
Core funding & targeted projects
Provide strategic core funding to build more resilient partner organisations, alongside targeted small-project interventions that help them better achieve our three outcomes for young people and families.
Priority 02
Innovation & replication
G3
Innovation & replication projects
Invest in up to eight programmes that test promising new ways of working — within and beyond our network — then evaluate, refine and replicate the most effective, so proven approaches reach many more young people and families.
Priority 03
Sector impact
G4
National‑scale projects
Back up to three regional or national programmes with strong evidence and the potential to scale — partnering across the sector to influence policy and practice, and create systemic, lasting change well beyond the Ormiston network.
Priority 04
Enhanced operations & learning
G5
Governance, operations & people
A collaborative, high‑performing Board with clear accountability, supported by the capacity, capabilities and culture across our team to deliver the strategy.
G6
Evaluation & learning
Robust data and evidence to understand, communicate and continually improve our impact — sharing what we learn across the network and wider sector.
Our design principles
These principles guide how we design, fund, support and learn from our programmes
keeping our work focused, responsive, evidence‑led and capable of making a sustained difference for young people, families and communities.
Our principles:
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Early-intervention — Reaching families early, especially primary-aged children.
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Place-based — Shaped by local context, complementing existing provision.
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Youth-driven — Young people shape design and delivery.
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Impact-driven — Evaluation feeds back into better design.
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Collaborative — Working openly with funders, partners and schools.
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Sustainable — Backing leaders and approaches built to last
Our values
Our values guide everything we do, shaping how we work with young people, families and communities
We’re grounded in collaboration, equity and a belief that young people deserve a voice in their own futures
Community
Collaborating meaningfully with diverse stakeholders, and building belonging across partners, schools, staff and the people we serve.
Empowerment
Equipping young people, families and communities to take ownership of the projects that shape their own futures.
Inclusion
Providing equitable funding and support that enhances the inclusion of young people and other underserved groups.
Forward thinking
Anticipating future needs and opportunities, and preparing to overcome the barriers to achieving impact together.
Ready to Make a Difference?
Whether you're a young person seeking support, a parent looking for resources, or an organization interested in partnership—we're here for you.
Stories & Updates
Catch up on the latest stories from our programmes, community achievements, and national initiatives.
Strong results and a culture of aspiration across Gateway Learning Community
Aug 28, 2026
Pupils across the Gateway Learning Community (GLC) are celebrating a strong summer of achievement, with all four primary academies reporting outcomes above national averages.
Read Article
Celebrating young people’s success across Ormiston Academies Trust
Aug 25, 2026
Young people across Ormiston Academies Trust (OAT) have been celebrating this summer as primary, GCSE, A-level and vocational results have been announced.
Read Article
Learning from Liverpool’s specialist 14–19 model
Jun 26, 2026
How The Studio Liverpool and Liverpool Life Sciences UTC are helping young people connect learning with future careers
Read Article