Community-Led Violence Prevention: Inside the Neighbourhood Fund

Fusing local knowledge with evidence of what works is at the heart of the Neighbourhood Fund. In episode three of YEFcast, host Ciaran Thapar is joined by Robert Sangwa, a Programme Manager at the Youth Endowment Fund, to explore the Neighbourhood Fund: five hyper-local areas across England and Wales where communities decide how funding is used to reduce young people’s involvement in violence. 

Drawing on his experience as a youth worker in north Manchester and his work on the Neighbourhood Fund programme, Robert explains how steering groups of residents, community organisations and statutory services set local priorities and commission programmes, supported by YEF’s evidence. 

They discuss: 

• How the Neighbourhood Fund gives local steering groups in Bradford, Birmingham, Manchester, Cardiff and Norfolk the power to decide how funding is used 

• Why bringing residents, community organisations and statutory services together is a new way of working, and what it takes to give every voice an equal say 

• How communities are using YEF’s evidence, including mentoring and sport-based approaches, to design programmes that fit local needs 

• How place-based working supports race equity by funding organisations that are known and trusted locally 

• The real-world examples that combine local knowledge with evidence-based practice 

This episode builds on the mission of YEFcast: hosting evidence‑driven conversations with the people shaping policy, practice, and public understanding of violence involving young people.

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