WBAF is delighted to have been chosen by the new Lord Mayor of Westminster, Councillor Andrew Smith, to be the beneficiary charity for his Mayoral term in office. For over 30 years, WBAF has supported families and young people in Westminster and the neighbouring boroughs, enabling people to achieve their potential as they overcome challenges. We are very excited to be working with the Lord Mayor to raise funds to provide mentoring to young people and parents.

The last year has been incredibly tough, and many of the young people and families we work have experienced loneliness, anxiety and concerns about employment or access to education. The Young Minds Covid report of January 2021 found that 67% of young people believe that the pandemic will have a long-term negative effect on their mental health, while the British Science Association revealed the top fear amongst young people is the impact of COVID-19 on their education, exams and qualifications.

Fortunately, we know that having a mentor makes a difference: each week for six months, a dedicated volunteer takes time to work through goals, build confidence, and create connections with the local community, tackling loneliness and unleashing potential. By the end of our programme, 82% of mentees say they feel confident often or all of the time, three times as many as at the start. Our participants feel more positive about their future and better able to manage their problems, and when theyre feeling positive and confident, our mentors develop and achieve incredible ambitions.

We're open to everyone, and we target those who face the most challenges: 77% of the families with whom we worked had children who qualified for free school meals; 82% were single-parent households; 98% of the young people we worked with described themselves as coming from a minoritized community, over a third come from most highly deprived five wards of Westminster.

The impacts of the pandemic are going to be felt throughout the next year, and the most disadvantaged have been hit the hardest. In the last year, we quadrupled the number of young people and families we worked with in central London, and we know there are still many more who can turn their lives round, get on track and achieve brilliant things with the support of a mentor. Working with the Lord Mayor, WBAF will be there for them when they need it most.