Social Impact Category: Prosperity & Local Economy/Partnerships & Customer Collaboration
Empowering Manchester Youth through Socio-Emotional Learning
Category: Prosperity & Local Economy/Partnerships & Customer Collaboration
Project Name: Dean Trust, Ardwick Mentoring Programme
Location: Manchester
Date: January to June 2025
Initiative Output: 6 months (2 hours per month) mentoring in an after school programme
Outcomes: Change in feelings, capacity and behaviour
Partnership Snapshot
Baker Mallett have recently forged a strategic partnership with ReachOut, a youth charity delivering after-school programmes that build critical socio-emotional skills for 9–14 year olds. By investing time and resources into the local community, we aim to strengthen both individual potential and the broader local economy.
Volunteer Engagement: Natalie Hill’s Journey
Between January and June 2025, Managing Partner Natalie Hill devoted two hours each month to mentor Year 8 students at The Dean Trust Secondary School in Manchester.
Chosen by teachers for their need of extra support, these young people benefited from:
• Empathy and emotion management guidance
• Responsibility and initiative workshops
• Problem solving and teamwork exercises
Her consistent presence offered them a stable adult role model and positive peer support.
ReachOut’s Evidence-Based Model
ReachOut’s curriculum mirrors academic subjects in its structure and rigor, ensuring socio-emotional skills aren’t left to chance.
Key features include:
• A tailored, research-driven syllabus targeting crucial developmental milestones
• Small-group sessions to foster collective mentorship
• Trained youth practitioners co-facilitating to balance peer influence with adult guidance
This approach amplifies impact on children constrained by circumstance, bridging gaps in access to informal and formal ReachOut’s Evidence-Based Modellearning opportunities.
Corporate Recognition and Internal Inspiration
In acknowledgment of her dedication, Natalie received ReachOut’s Award for Outstanding Corporate Engagement.
Her experience inspired Baker Mallett to:
• Deepen our commitment to local youth development
• Encourage other staff to volunteer in community initiatives
Volunteer Engagement: Natalie Hill’s Journey
Building on this success, Baker Mallett has since hosted a work experience day for Year 6 students from a nearby primary school which included a workshop in design thinking and problem solving.
This pilot event set the stage for a recurring Work Experience Visit (WEV) programme, designed to:
• Spark early aspiration in local talent
• Strengthen the talent pipeline for Manchester’s economy
• Nurture socio-emotional skills, exposing young people to real-world opportunities, shaping individual futures and fortifying the local economy—one mentor-mentee relationship at a time.
