North Devon and Torridge Family Mentoring Hub

So What's It About?

We are looking to fundraise £183,000 for a family mentoring centre based in Onyx Business Park, Roundswell, Barnstaple.

Our centre will work with young people and their families to offer mentoring, tuition and counselling to the many students across North Devon and Torridge who are struggling with mental health, attendance or engagement at school and those not in employment, education or training.

£20,000 gets us in the door
£90,000 fits out our unit ready to welcome the public
£63,000 covers our core costs for the first year

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Next Steps Tutors C.I.C. set up to meet the funding gaps we’ve found through the work of our first company Next Steps Education Ltd.

Next Steps Education Ltd began in 2021 and works with local authorities (Devon, Cornwall, Somerset) and local schools to support students not in school or finding school attendance challenging because of health reasons. Through this work we’ve found many students and families don’t meet the strict criteria set out for funding, meaning that many local students are going without education and support for reasons such as:

Having social anxiety or school anxiety and awaiting CAMHS support (which can take up to 4 years). GP evidence is not enough for a student to meet funding criteria

Having unmet SEND needs and stuck in the ECHP process, often whilst finding their current school setting too overwhelming. An EHCP can take 20 weeks or more. Many EHCP applications are refused or taken to tribunal, which can extend the process over 2 years. Only students with an awarded EHCP would meet funding criteria

Having low attendance at school but not meeting school criteria for intervention (no EHCP, no recorded SEND needs (sometimes due to not being at a school to have observations & needs recorded)

Parents choosing to prioritise their child’s mental health and taking an Elective Home Education route where they feel this is the only choice

Excluded students who’ve gone on to a second setting and this has failed. Students become non-attenders

Having been put on the diagnosis pathway for autism or ADHD and are awaiting an assessment (our ADHD assessment pathway timings have improved in North Devon with a new service at NDDH. We have heard of students now receiving ADHD assessments within 3-6 months). Our autism pathway is still around a 2 year wait. Having a diagnosis does not necessarily open funding routes though. In many cases parents then need to go on to start the EHCP process

Current Project Status, September 2025

Key people within the Next Steps team in place for the project
Premises visited and first enquiries on leasing made with commercial estate agent
Planning consultant and internal architect in place. We are choosing to work with an internal architect who has experience in developing public spaces for children and young people
Business plan and costings considered
Social media campaign in place for Family Mentoring Hub Awareness
Media plan in development. Connections with local print media, BBC Spotlight and The Voice in place
‘Hitlist’ of local business and political connections created
Marketing email list of over 300 local school staff (engaged with our emails)
Ballpark estimates for internal fitting underway

More updates