How Violence Reduction Units can make a meaningful difference

Across the UK, Violence Reduction Units (VRUs) were established in response to a growing crisis; an alarming rise in serious youth violence, knife crime, and community harm. These units were designed to bring together police, local authorities, health services, education providers, and community organisations to tackle violence through a public health lens. Their mission: to prevent violence before it starts by addressing its root causes.

While many VRUs have made commendable strides funding a range of initiatives, supporting trauma-informed practices, and fostering multi-agency collaboration their long-term success hinges on one critical, often overlooked factor: authentic youth oversight.

This report makes the ethical, strategic, and practical case for embedding independent youth scrutiny into every VRU across the country. Not as a token gesture, but as a structural necessity. Without it, these units risk becoming well-meaning but disconnected from the very communities they aim to serve.

Why Violence Reduction Units Were Created. VRU’s emerged in 2019 following the Home Office’s recognition that enforcement alone could not solve the epidemic of youth violence. Inspired by the success of the Glasgow model, which treated violence as a disease rather than a criminal defect, the UK government invested in a multi-agency approach.

Each VRU was tasked with:

- Mapping local drivers of violence

- Coordinating early intervention strategies

- Funding community-led projects

- Supporting young people at risk

- Building trust between statutory services and communities

These units now operate in over 20 regions, including London, Greater Manchester, the West Midlands, and Bedfordshire. They work with schools, youth services, charities, police, and health professionals to deliver targeted interventions.

Who They Work With—and Who They Miss

VRUs have partnered with a wide array of stakeholders: local authorities, mental health services, youth offending teams, and community based charities. Many have funded mentoring programmes, youth hubs, and diversionary activities. Some have even co-produced campaigns with young people.

Yet despite this progress, a fundamental gap remains. Youth involvement overseeing the VRUs themselves is often limited to consultation and in many cases young people are excluded altogether or used in a tokenistic way. Few if any are involved in governance scrutiny and oversight. Young people—especially those from marginalised backgrounds—are rarely given the power to shape strategy, allocate funding, or scrutinise outcomes.

Why VRU’s Will Not Succeed Without Meaningful Representative Youth Oversight

Violence is not experienced equally. Young people from Black, Asian, and minority ethnic communities, care-experienced youth, LGBTQ+ youth, and those living in poverty are disproportionately affected. They are also the least likely to be represented in decision-making spaces.

Without their voices:

- Funding may be misallocated to projects that lack credibility or reach

- VRUs risk misdiagnosing the problem

- Opportunities for intervening at an early age may be missed

- Trust between communities and institutions remains fragile

- Opportunities for innovation and lived-experience leadership are lost

- Possibilities to deter are reduced due to the lack of understanding how violence may escalate

The Case for Involving Young People in Oversight

Embedding independent youth oversight is not just ethically sound—it’s operationally smart. Here’s why:

1. Lived Experience = Better Diagnosis

Young people understand the nuances of their environments. They can identify emerging trends, hidden harms, and cultural dynamics that professionals may miss.

2. Credibility and Trust

Youth-led scrutiny builds legitimacy. When young people see their peers in positions of influence, they are more likely to engage with services and interventions.

3. Funding with Impact

Young people can help assess which organisations truly deliver. They know which projects are performative and which ones change lives.

4. Accountability and Transparency

Youth panels can independently monitor how public money is spent, ensuring that resources are used effectively and equitably.

5. Innovation and Relevance

Ensuring there are a variety of young people from different areas, different ethnicities and with different experiences is critical. Young people bring fresh ideas, digital fluency, and cultural insight. Their involvement keeps VRUs agile and responsive.

How Youth Should Be Involved: A Structural Proposal

To move beyond tokenism, youth involvement must be embedded at every stage of the VRU process. This proposal outlines a three-tiered model for independent youth oversight:

1. Initial Problem Assessment

Youth panels should be involved in mapping local drivers of violence. This includes:

- Participating in data analysis and community listening exercises

- Identifying gaps in current services

- Highlighting emerging issues (e.g., online harm, peer exploitation)

- Holding open forum workshops with youth workers teachers and advocates to consider emerging trends.

2. Funding Decisions

Youth representatives should sit on grant panels and have voting rights on funding allocations. Their role includes:

- Reviewing applications from community organisations

- Assessing credibility, reach, and relevance

- Ensuring funding reflects diverse needs and geographies

3. Ongoing Scrutiny and Accountability

Youth panels should be empowered to:

- Monitor project delivery and impact

- Publish independent reports on VRU performance

- Hold public forums to gather feedback from peers

- Recommend strategic changes based on lived experience

This model requires training, safeguarding, and support—but it is entirely achievable. Att10tive has already piloted similar structures in scrutiny panels across policing, education, and heritage sectors.

From Rung One to Rung Eight: Climbing the Ladder of Participation

The current youth involvement in many VRUs sits at the bottom of Roger Hart’s Ladder of Participation—rung one or two: manipulation and decoration. Young people are invited to events, asked to pose for photos, or consulted after decisions are made.

This proposal moves youth oversight to the top of the ladder: rung eight—youth-initiated, shared decisions with adults. By adopting this model, VRUs shift from doing things to young people to doing things with and through young people. It is a transformation in power, ethics, and effectiveness.

As an ethics advisor and the Managing Director of Att10tive, I have witnessed the transformative power of youth-led scrutiny. From police-community panels to heritage projects, when young people are trusted with responsibility, they rise to the occasion.

The Benefits of Youth oversight:

Effective and meaningful youth oversight;

- Reduces institutional blind spots

- Enhances community legitimacy

- Improves service delivery

- Builds future leadership

Conclusion: A Call to Action

Violence Reduction Units were born out of crisis. They now stand at a crossroads. Will they continue to operate with good intentions but limited impact? Or will they embrace a new paradigm—one where young people are not just consulted, but empowered?

This report calls on:

- The Home Office to mandate youth oversight in all VRUs

- Local authorities to fund and support youth scrutiny panels

- VRU directors to embed youth voice in governance structures

- Community organisations to champion youth leadership

- Young people to demand their rightful place at the table

The power of youth voice is not a slogan. It is a strategy. It is a safeguard. It is a solution.

Let us climb the ladder together.

About the Author

Montell Neufville is the Managing Director of Att10tive Social Enterprise and a leading ethics advisor in youth empowerment, community scrutiny, and systemic change. He has designed and led multi-sector projects across policing, education, and heritage, with a focus on amplifying seldom-heard voices and building sustainable legacy frameworks.

For further information contact [email protected] www.att10tive.