About Us

Our vision is that all children and young people are heard and supported to be happy and thrive wherever they are.

Established in 2021, Young People Foundations Trust (YPF Trust) is an organisation that grows, supports and enables place-based collaboration and partnerships focused on the needs of young people and the organisations that support them – we do this through a growing network of Young People’s Foundations (YPFs).

We know that children & young people will thrive if the organisations that work with them are supported, resourced, recognised and connected, locally and nationally.

Our strategy

OUR FOUR KEY PRINCIPLES

People

We put people first, within and outside the network, and want to be an outstanding employer and a champion of equity, inclusion and rights. We are enablers and facilitators of others, bringing people together.

PARTNERSHIP

We are better when we work with others, and we know that collaboration makes children and young people’s lives better. We do it and champion it in all we do. We provide space and platforms for others, not ourselves.

PLACE

We focus on local and put local first. We are a network of local partnerships, not a national infrastructure charity, driven by the needs and ambitions of our members and in turn their members and children and young people locally.

PRACTICE

We focus on good practice and quality which impacts on children and young people’s lives. We support quality standards and are ambitious in how good we need to be, and how good our members need to be.

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Meet the team

Staff Trustees

Chris Murray

CEO
Dr Mon Partovi

Programme Manager – Supplementary Education
Lubna Alam

Administration Officer

Erik Mesel

YPF Trust Chair of Trustees, Senior Grants and Public Policy Manager, John Lyon's Charity

Erik is the Senior Grants and Public Policy Manager at John Lyon's Charity. Erik has been instrumental in the design of the original YPF Model and continues to support the YPF Movement.
Kita Ikoku

YPF Trust Trustee and Director of Clear Thinking Consultancy

Kita set up Clear Thinking Consultancy in 2010 to provide much needed strategic and funding support for micro and small voluntary organisations, and has worked closely with Erik to support the set-up and development of a number of the YPFs. She has led on the development of the Quality Mark and YPF-in-a-Box and is passionate about seeing the YPF model replicated nationwide.
Nicola Butler

YPF Trust Trustee and CEO of Young K&C

Nicola has extensive experience of running voluntary sector children and youth services. In her previous role at Hackney Play Association, she was responsible for managing adventure playgrounds, youth clubs and Hackney’s play streets project.

Nicola has served as a trustee of local children’s charities and as Chair of the national children’s charity, Play England. She is an author of Play England’s guidance, 'Design for Play: a guide to creating successful play spaces'.

Nicola is passionate about children and young people having better opportunities for play, fun and enjoyment.
Noura Salhani

YPF Trust Trustee and Teacher at Al Ola Suuplementary School
Phil Pusey MBE

YPF Trustee and Chief Executive of SCVYS
Ashley Thompson

YPF Trustee and Global CFO for Strategic Accounts at Sodexo
Kate Seller

YPF Trustee and CPO at Landsec 
Sarah Allen

YPF Trust Trustee and Director of Talent and Learning at Deloitte

Young People's Foundations (YPFs)

Young People Foundations (YPFs) are locally established, cross-sectorial organisations that seek to sustain CYP delivery in a specific area. They are independent membership organisations open to any group that works with Children and Young People 0-25. Each YPF is different, working to a flexible model which is shaped by local needs and ambitions.

We are growing the number of YPFs across England, building a network of local partnerships in support of young people, and strengthening regional networks in partnership with the Network of Regional Youth Work Units and national partners.

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History of Young People's Foundations

Young People’s Foundations were first established in North and West London, supported by John Lyon’s Charity (JLC), as a response to the pressures on the children and young people’s sector, including reductions in local and national investment in youth work. John Lyon’s Charity’s goal was to ensure that the organisations and groups that serve children and young people are strong, viable and fit for purpose.

The first YPF was established in 2014 in Brent before growing across the JLC Beneficial Area. The growth of the network nationally is now supported by JLC through core funding provided to YPF Trust and their wider role in supporting and advocating for People, Partnership and Place nationally.