Basis Young People’s project (formerly known as Isis, part of Genesis) have been supporting young people who are being sexually abused, sexually exploited or are at risk thereof since 1997.

We support young people of all genders and demographics; we work in Leeds, Wakefield and Bradford on an outreach basis so we will be able to meet the young person wherever they are most comfortable.

Each support plan is tailored to the young person’s needs, so everyone’s support will look slightly different, but we cover topics such as:

• Identifying and understanding healthy/ unhealthy relationships
• Keeping yourself safer online
• Safety planning for if you go missing
• Supporting you to stay in school

If the young person you are referring has specific support needs (like safety plans for missing episodes), please add as much detail as possible on the referral form so we can support in the best way possible.

We work with young people from the age of 10 up to 18 years old (or up to 24 depending on need).

Below are some Frequently Asked Questions from practitioners to understand more about our young person’s service – please get in touch if you have any questions!

Frequently asked questions

What work do you carry out with young people?

Our specialist support is one to one work with the young person at the place they feel most comfortable, including home, school or in the community. We normally try to see a young person once a week, but this can change to meet learning styles and risk categories.

Our sessions are confidential and are made up of a selection of topics to help the young person recover from all forms of sexual abuse, including child sexual exploitation. We support young people to identify that they are at risk of, or are involved in child sexual exploitation.

These can include specialist resources on:
understanding the grooming process, the grooming stages, different grooming models, internet safety, sexting, pornography, equal consensual and respectful relationships; how to identify an abusive relationship; reducing their risks of being vulnerable and the dangers of being missing. Each intervention is tailored to the individual and reviewed on a regular basis to see whether their risk is reducing.

We maintain regular contact with the professional who has referred the young person and often attend multi agency professional meetings such as child in need, child protection and strategy discussions. The support we offer is confidential so unless there is consent given to speak to other professionals or an immediate safeguarding concern we would not go into detail about what the young person had spoken about in sessions.

Is there a time limit on your work with the young person?

There is no time limit to the work we do, on average we support young people for 6 months, but it can be shorter or longer than this timeframe depending on need. This will be a conversation between the worker, the young person and other trusted adults (where consent to share is given) about support needs when it naturally starts concluding, but it could be extended to include additional resources and emotional support for as long as the young person feels like they need it. We try to see young people once a week but this can be changed depending on the wishes of the young person.

Do you work with parents?

If the young person agrees, parents can be made aware if we are working with their children, although the content of our sessions is not discussed unless they specifically want us to or if a safeguarding concern arises.

We are proud to announce that we have a Parents and Schools CSE Liaison and Support Worker who will be able to support the parents of young people getting support from Basis; the young person, the parent themselves or other professionals can speak to their worker about parental support.

If the young person is not receiving support from the Basis young people team we unfortunately cannot offer support to the guardians, we can support in referrals the Safe Project or Ivision Trust.

Which postcodes do you work with?

We can support young people in the Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield areas. Different specialisms have different geographical areas assigned to them, so please contact Basis at info-basis@basisyorkshire.org.uk or call us on 0113 243 0036 if you have specific questions about this.

How do I make a referral?

Before completing a referral, you need to get the young person’s consent for the referral to be made, as we are a voluntary support organisation, so we can only help if the young person wants it.

You can find our referral document and risk matrix form on our dedicated referrals page. Once you have filled it in with as much information as possible, send it to ypreferrals@basisyorkshire.org.uk (or get in touch for secure CJSM email contact details).

You should read the Child Exploitation Practice Guidance before completing the referral form, or you can ring us on 0113 243 0036 to discuss. If you are a social worker and you have already completed a Child Exploitation Risk Identification Tool, you can send this to ypreferrals@basisyorkshire.org.uk instead of completing our referral form.

Do I need to inform anyone else of the referral?

If the referral has been deemed as medium to high on the exploitation matrix then a referral should be made to the children’s social care, as the new protocol states that social care must complete an initial assessment for the young person. The telephone number for the Duty and Advice Team is 0113  376 0336

Is there an age limit?

We work with young people from the age of 10 up to 18 years old (or up to 24 depending on need). If you are supporting a young person under 10 and would like to discuss a referral, please call Basis on 0113 243 0036 to speak to a member of the team about support options.

What is your safeguarding policy?

You can read our safeguarding children and young people policy. If you feel this is not being followed or the child is not being appropriately safeguarded by Basis, you can make a complaint.

For further information or if you have any questions please contact the Basis Young People team

0113 2430036 or to put through a referral please email: ypreferrals@basisyorkshire.org.uk