Young Westminster Foundation

What Young Westminster Foundation does

Young Westminster Foundation (YWF) is a cross-sector registered charity (Charity no: 1169255) founded in 2017 and headquartered in London's Westminster borough. Its stated purpose is to support the borough's youth sector through grants, training, networking, and research, convening 116 member youth organisations (clubs, charities, and specialist providers delivering services to 0-25 year olds), 75+ business and strategic partners, Westminster City Council, schools, cultural institutions, and young people themselves under a unified membership model. Free membership is open to any qualifying not-for-profit, and the foundation functions as a grantmaker (Brighter Futures Fund, Helping Hands, HAF Programme, Half Term Activity Fund) and intermediary between corporate funders (Landsec, Howard de Walden, Shaftesbury Capital, GPE, Capital Arches, Derwent London, Westminster Property Association) and grassroots youth provision.

YWF's core products are interconnected programmes rather than technology platforms: the Brighter Futures Fund (annual grants of up to £20,000, with £330k+ awarded to 32 organisations in the 2026 round); Mastering My Future (employability programme delivered with 2-3 Degrees); Level Up Youth Work (workforce development training across six NW London boroughs funded by £848k from City Bridge Foundation); YEP! (four-month youth leadership programme) and Youth Associates (paid freelance roles paying London Living Wage of £14.80/hour); Safer Futures and Helping Hands (serious youth violence prevention); and the Our City online platform (ourcity.org.uk) for activity discovery. The proprietary technology layer is minimal: a website, the Our City discovery site, and Survey Monkey for grant applications. YWF does not develop or operate proprietary technology platforms as a core part of its operations.

The revenue model is a non-commercial charity/grant-making structure. Total income for FY2023/24 was £2,189,047, drawn from Westminster City Council, charitable foundations (City Bridge, John Lyon's Charity, Aziz Foundation), corporate Growth Partners (collectively £500k+ committed over three years), property-sector contributions (WPA £255k for three years), and earned fundraising (e.g., Howard de Walden's matched £40k from the Marylebone Summer Festival). In 2023/24, £1.6m was distributed as grants and commissioned projects, indicating significant pass-through funding. The organisation is governed by a Board of Trustees chaired by Brian Bickell (former CEO of Shaftesbury Capital) with Helen Mann as CEO since September 2022, and a team of approximately 19 staff (firmographics) delivering services across a single UK geography (Westminster and, via Level Up Youth Work, five additional NW London boroughs).

Name

Young Westminster Foundation

Legal name

Young Westminster Foundation

Website

https://youngwestminster.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Young Westminster Foundation is a registered charity founded in 2017 that acts as a cross-sector membership intermediary for Westminster's youth sector, channelling grants, training, and corporate partnerships to 116 member youth organisations and the borough's 0-25 year-olds.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth sector charity services

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132), Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Youth Leadership, Civic Education & Service-Learning Nonprofits (BPAGADAI), Youth Justice, At-Risk Youth & Violence Prevention Nonprofits (BPAGADAM), Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB), Youth Mental Health, Counseling & Wellbeing (Education-Linked) Nonprofits (BPAGADAK)

Keywords

• Youth sector charity
• Youth club grants
• Youth employability programmes
• Youth voice engagement
• Community youth funding

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Grants and Funding: YWF raises and distributes grant funding to its member organisations. Primary funders include Westminster City Council, City Bridge Foundation, The Aziz Foundation, John Lyon's Charity, Shaftesbury Capital, Howard de Walden Estate, Landsec, St Giles and St George, Eyre Estate, Derwent London, GPE, and others. In 2023/24, £1.2m was distributed in grant funding through the Brighter Futures Fund, Helping Hands grants, HAF Programme, and Half Term Activity Fund. Total funding distributed to the sector in 2023/24 was £1.6m.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Young Westminster Foundation is a cross-sector charity membership organisation that supports Westminster-based youth clubs and organisations (serving children and young people aged 0-25) by distributing grants (Brighter Futures Fund up to £20,000 per award), delivering training and workforce development (Level Up Youth Work, Mastering My Future employability), amplifying youth voice (YEP!, Youth Associates, Our City, Our Future peer-led research), and convening business, public sector and cultural partners to channel funding, space, volunteering and skills into the local youth ecosystem.

Product overview

Young Westminster Foundation operates as a membership-based charity organisation rather than a technology product company. Its offering consists of interconnected programmes and services for youth support: the Brighter Futures Fund provides annual grants to member organisations; Level Up Youth Work and Mastering My Future deliver training and employability support; YEP! and Youth Associates enable youth leadership and voice; Our City Platform connects young people with activities; and Youth Hubs provide physical spaces. Research initiatives (Our City, Our Future) inform all programming. The organisation functions as a convenor and funder rather than a technology product provider.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• YEP!: Young Westminster Foundation's youth leadership and empowerment programme that provides pathways for under-served young people into paid freelance work, governance, research and advocacy.
• Youth Associates
• Level Up Youth Work
• Mastering My Future
• Helping Hands
• Safer Futures
• Brighter Futures Fund
• Our City

Products and services

• Brighter Futures Fund Annual grants programme providing funding of up to £20,000 to YWF member organisations working with children and young people aged 0-25 in Westminster. Over £330,000 was awarded to 32 organisations in the 2026 round.
• Level Up Youth Work Programme Training and workforce development programme for youth sector professionals across six north-west London boroughs, delivered in partnership with Young People's Foundations and funded by City Bridge Foundation via the Propel initiative.
• Mastering My Future Youth employability programme blending personal development workshops with real-life employer experiences, created to address limited career and skills development opportunities for young people in Westminster.
• Safer Futures Place-based initiative addressing serious youth violence in Westminster through community-led approaches and partnership working with local communities.
• YEP! Youth Leadership Programme Four-month youth leadership and empowerment programme co-designed with young people, providing pathways into paid freelance work, governance, research and advocacy.
• Youth Associates Paid London Living Wage freelance roles for young leaders working across grant-making, public speaking, youth-led research, recruitment panels, policy consultation, workshop facilitation and organisational strategy.
• Helping Hands Programme Community-led initiative addressing serious youth violence in Westminster, focused on Mozart, Amberley, and Warwick/Brindley estates with youth steering groups and a community network.
• Our City Platform Online platform connecting young Londoners with free or low-cost activities in Westminster and Kensington & Chelsea, used to promote holiday activities and youth services.
• Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme Westminster City Council-funded partnership providing free holiday activities and food for children aged 4-16 on Free School Meals, delivered through YWF member organisations.
• YWF Membership Free membership for not-for-profit organisations delivering services for children and young people aged 0-25 in the London Borough of Westminster, providing access to grants, training, networking and partner opportunities.

Quantifiable outcome

• £1.6m in grant funding and commissioned projects distributed to the youth sector in 2023/24
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core and key.

• Westminster Property AssociationcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2023The Westminster Property Association (representing 240+ property owners, developers, and occupiers) partnered with YWF for three consecutive years starting 2023, committing £255,000 to deliver a property-focused specialism in the Mastering My Future employability programme. Delivered by YWF member 2-3 Degrees, the programme introduces young people to the property sector and supports access to jobs linked to WPA members' activities.
• Westminster City CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWestminster City Council is YWF's primary public sector partner. The Council provides major grant funding to YWF, co-commissions the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme, and collaborates with YWF across Children's Services, Community Safety, Public Health, Economy Team, and Policy. YWF serves as the lead intermediary for distributing council funding to youth organisations across the borough. The partnership is formalised through joint commissioning of youth services and the Youth Hub model.
• Young People's Foundations Network (YPFs)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYWF is part of the YPF Trust network of locally established cross-sector charities sustaining services for children and young people. YWF leads a partnership of six YPFs (Camden, Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham, Harrow, Kensington & Chelsea, and Westminster) in delivering the Level Up Youth Work programme, funded by City Bridge Foundation via the Propel initiative (£848K). The network enables cross-borough training, practitioner forums, and qualification support for youth workers.
• Mediaplus Group UK (Total Media)keyStrategic or Co-development PartnerMediaplus Group UK (behavioural planning and media buying agency) has partnered with YWF since 2018. They have fundraised for youth projects, contributed to the Brighter Futures Fund, run specialist marketing training with Youth Hubs, and co-created YWF's consultation process for the Helping Hands programme using a behavioural science approach. The partnership won Best Charitable Social Responsibility Initiative at the UK Company Culture Awards 2022 and Best Collaborative Campaign During Covid-19 at the Drum Out Of Home Awards.
• Dragon RougekeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerDragon Rouge (global graphic design and branding agency) partnered with YWF and St Andrew's Club to deliver a complete pro bono rebranding of the world's oldest youth club. The agency conducted research, interviews, and creative development, delivering a new brand identity free of charge (valued significantly). The project was facilitated by YWF connecting St Andrew's Club with the right creative partner.
• Addison LeekeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerAddison Lee (London's largest same-day courier and private cab hire service) partnered with the Mastering My Future programme in February 2020 and April 2022. They hosted young people at their offices for multi-department experiences, practice pitches, and interactive business activities as part of the youth employability programme.
• Rocket SciencekeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerRocket Science is YWF's research partner for its peer-led needs analyses. They co-designed the methodology for the Our City, Our Future reports (2017, 2020/21, 2023/24), trained young people as peer researchers, and conducted surveys and focus groups with youth workers, practitioners, and parents/carers. The 2023/24 report was also supported by the University of Westminster.
• University of WestminsterkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe University of Westminster supported the production of the Our City, Our Future 2023/24 needs analysis report, working alongside Rocket Science and 15 trained young peer researchers.
• King's College LondonkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerKing's College London's MSC in Public Policy & Management Programme students co-designed the peer research approach for the Our City, Our Future 2020/21 needs analysis report, in partnership with YWF, Rocket Science, and Partnership for Young London.
• Mind (Mental Health Charity)keyStrategic or Co-development PartnerYWF partnered with Mind to place dedicated mental health youth workers in Westminster's five Youth Hubs, responding directly to findings in the Our City, Our Future report that identified mental health and emotional wellbeing as a key priority for young people in the borough.
• DreamArtskeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerYWF partnered with DreamArts and Westminster City Council to support young carers in Westminster. YWF identified service gaps, fostered collaboration, and addressed community needs through a commissioned Young Carers project. YWF advocated for DreamArts' expertise and helped secure long-term funding from John Lyon's Charity for a Young Carer Navigator role.
• National GallerykeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe National Gallery hosted YWF's 'Five Years Young' fifth anniversary event, bringing together 200 members, partners, and young people alongside special guest HRH Princess Beatrice. The Gallery also ran a Summer on the Square youth engagement workshop as part of the partnership, promoting youth voice through art.
• Ambassador Theatre GroupkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerAmbassador Theatre Group partnered with YWF on the Cultural Connections pilot programme, providing 300 free West End tickets for young people who attend youth clubs in Westminster, funded by the Kusuma Trust. The programme responded to findings that over half of Westminster's young people said they 'never' go to the theatre, museums, or concerts.
• Met PolicekeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerMet Police works with YWF and Westminster City Council partners to design and deliver the Helping Hands Programme addressing serious youth violence. An Inspector from the Neighbourhood Policing strand serves as a YWF Advisor and leads the Youth Engagement Team on the tri-borough area policing footprint.
• 2-3 DegreeskeyStrategic or Co-development Partner2-3 Degrees leads the Mastering My Future youth employability programme in partnership with Inspire! and Westminster Befriend A Family. The programme brings together businesses and volunteers to open up access to the world of work for young people in Westminster. It is also the delivery partner for the Westminster Property Association's property specialism within Mastering My Future.
• YPF TrustkeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerYWF is part of the YPF Trust network, which unites individual foundations with the shared goal of bringing together the public, private, and voluntary sectors to affect positive change for young people. The network is growing across England and builds a national infrastructure of local youth partnerships.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• UK Youth: National umbrella charity for the youth sector. Operates at significantly larger scale than YWF with national policy advocacy and a membership of youth organisations across the UK, serving as the broader incumbent in the same space.
• The Prince's Trust: Large national youth charity focused on employability and personal development for under-25s. Substantially larger and broader in scope than YWF but addresses an overlapping beneficiary cohort and outcomes space.
• Locality: National membership body supporting community-led organisations. YWF's model of convening local charities around shared goals parallels Locality's broader community-sector support role at a national scale.
• Partnership for Young London: Regional umbrella body advocating for the youth sector across London. Works alongside YWF on the 2020/21 Our City, Our Future needs analysis and convenes a broader network of youth organisations and funders.

Others

• Centre for Youth Impact: Works with YWF to implement a shared measurement framework across Youth Hubs. Sits in the youth sector ecosystem as a measurement and evaluation partner rather than a direct competitor.
• London Funders: Infrastructure body for London funders that ran the Propel initiative through which City Bridge Foundation awarded YWF the £848k Level Up Youth Work grant. Acts as a funder convener and ecosystem enabler rather than a direct service provider.

Direct peers

• Young Harrow Foundation: Sixth member of the YWF-led YPF partnership, operating the same borough-level youth membership and grantmaking model in Harrow. Direct structural peer and programme partner.
• Young K&C: Young Kensington & Chelsea Foundation, also part of the YPF Trust network. Co-operates the Our City platform with YWF and runs a near-identical borough-level youth foundation model.
• Young Camden Foundation: One of the six Young People's Foundations (YPF) in the YWF-led Level Up Youth Work partnership. Operates an analogous cross-sector grantmaking and youth membership model in Camden, making it the closest structural peer to YWF.
• Young Ealing Foundation: Another of the six YPFs in the YWF-led Level Up Youth Work partnership. Runs an essentially identical cross-sector youth foundation model in the London Borough of Ealing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/YoungWestminster
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC9bFxOWf2FHMSlPxiYcDY2A
• Instagraminstagram.com/youngwestminster
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/young-westminster-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles20 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Young Westminster Foundation