Wipers Youth CIC is a social enterprise offering a range of support to professionals and young people involved in youth justice, with a focus on building anti-discriminatory practice. In the context of a correlation between unconscious racial bias and an over-representation of black and mixed heritage young men in the criminal justice system, the organisation provides anti-discriminatory practice training to youth justice teams, with topics including Unconscious Bias, Cultural Competency and Anti-Racism training. This has supported teams to acknowledge and address how unconscious bias may shape how they interact with young people. Through providing important training, development and upskilling opportunities, the initiative is also helping to address sector challenges related to recruitment and retention.
The Wipers mentoring programme offers young people a crucial point of support to manage the transition from adolescence to adulthood, using a relationship-based, person-centred approach. Wipers mentors work with those at risk of criminal justice involvement, meeting young people at least once a week over three to six months. They engage with mentees in a range of ways, including partaking in activities and day trips as well as offering support to access local youth services and medical or professional appointments. The focus is on building self-esteem and confidence and helping them to navigate issues across their lives. Wipers report that for 88% of the young people receiving mentoring there has been an improvement in confidence and self-esteem.
A further programme delivered by Wipers and funded by the London Violence Reduction Unit, the ‘Ether Programme’, provides support to young black and minority ethnic men involved in the criminal justice system. This is an eight session personal development and leadership programme and engages uses in issues around race, identity, self-esteem and confidence, as well as perceptions around masculinity and other stereotypes.