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Youth Professional Practioner Network

NTU's Youth Professional Practitioner Network is a shared space for discussion, identifying how to explore and address issues on a local, regional, national and global scale.

We work with our colleagues and external partners to identify opportunities for initiatives and projects, conducting research, and accessing funding.

The aims of the Professional Practitioner Network (PPN) are to:

  • Develop stronger collaborations with partner organisations, including through informing the curriculum
  • Support the development of work-based placement opportunities
  • Create opportunities for practitioner guest speaker slots within courses
  • Develop projects alongside course teams and students
  • Act as a vehicle for sharing information and expertise between the sector and training providers
  • Support NTU's social impact agenda, including Knowledge Exchange
  • Link with NTU's Youth Research Group and feed into the Centre for Policy, Citizenship and Society
  • Promote consultancy opportunities
  • Explore regional, national and international collaborations.

Student projects

Examples of student placements include:

20192 students working with Ashton Youth and Community Project (funded by SPUR)
20202 students undertaking an evaluation of a community poetry project and a music mentoring scheme (funded by Nottingham Community Artists' Network)
20214 students taking part in YMCA's new mentoring scheme Y's Girls (funded by NTU)
20222 student evaluations of SwitchUp Boxing and Positive Futures (funded by the department), and 2 student placements at Beatknots and the YMCA Food Project (externally funded)
20232 student placements with Next Generation and the SEND Project (funded by Knowledge Exchange).

These research placements have built upon students’ existing research skills and enabled them to apply these in ‘real life’ contexts. In addition, experience of being in youth organisations, such as Pupil Referral Units, have enabled students to get a sense of working in those settings, which has shaped future directions and employment chances.

Knowledge Exchange

Youth Justice

In relation to the youth sector, which has sustained ongoing cuts for the last decade, supporting local youth organisations to evaluation and measure the impact of their work will further support the wider sector and future funding for these project. Our proposal will help to build a strong evidence base for those Youth Organisations, as well as potentially generating future commercial income through paid evaluations.

We can sypport with:

  • evidence gathering and data generation around 'impact' work
  • creating data tools for youth organisations
  • supporting with monitoring and evaluation

Impacts and outcomes

We want to understand the impacts and outcomes that matter, which for us are:

  1. Increased sector voice (practice and teaching & learning)
  2. Collective approach in supporting issues raised
  3. Increased pool of knowledge, skills and expertise
  4. Issues for young people.

More about Youth at NTU

Learn more about our further study options and research in Youth at NTU.

Youth Work Leadership and Practice

Find out more about the MA Youth Work Leadership and Practice (JNC) at NTU.

Centre for Policy, Citizenship and Society

The Centre for Policy, Citizenship and Society (CPCS) conducts research that seeks to understand the ways in which society operates, especially in relation to policy, theory and practice in social contexts.

Youth Research Group

Hosted by the Department of Social Work, Care and Community and supporting colleagues across NTU who are involved in youth research. Generating inter-disciplinary and cross-departmental collaboration through close-to-practice research.

Want to find out more?

If you want to find out how to become part of this Professional Practitioner Network, please contact Ian Jones, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Social Work, Care and the Community, at ian.jones@ntu.ac.uk.