NYA Quality Mark Advanced - Smashed It

We're ecstatic to announce that we have been awarded the Advanced Level of the NYA Quality Mark. The NYA Quality Mark recognises high quality youth work through benchmarked standards and indicators based on the National Occupational Standards. The Award is a celebration and acknowledgment of how organisations demonstrate they achieve high standards of quality assessed against each indicator, and an opportunity to be externally validated for the excellent services to young people organisations provide using youth work methodology. The process of undertaking Quality Mark Award assessment is reflective and developmental and focuses on achieving better outcomes for young people by reviewing and refining youth work practice. 

Ayisja Smith, Youth and Community Worker,  said, "Working towards the NYA Quality Mark has enabled us to recognise our organisational strengths and areas for development. The process has supported us to develop reflectively and strategically in order to improve outcomes and relationships for young people. Throughout our time working with the NYA, we have been able to establish more effective ways of ensuring participation with young people and put in place new methods of listening to and acting on young people’s voices. We have seen a real change within our project throughout this process and plan to continue developing our practice using the recommendations from the NYA. We are exceptionally proud and honoured to have achieved the ‘Advanced Level’ of the NYA Quality Mark. We will be celebrating our achievements this week with the young people who access our project. Thank you to the NYA for their continued support – this has been an extremely beneficial experience for us that will be instrumental in our future endeavours.” 

Laura Keegan, Quality Practice Manager at NYA commented, “It has been exciting to award Hessle Road Network with the Advanced Level Quality Mark. This organisation works in the heart of the community and delivers fantastic youth work that closely meets the needs of the young people while also offering aspirational opportunities. Innovation is important to Hessle Road Network and this is demonstrated through their willingness to develop and grow their youth work practice, I was particularly impressed with how they embedded their Voice and Influence work. I had the fantastic opportunity to see first-hand the commitment and enthusiasm of the youth workers and the difference they are making to the lives of the young people they work with.” 

We will take pleasure in continuing to work to this high standard and aim even higher over the next three years to develop as a project for our community.