Mentoring and Befriending activity in London is vibrant and the sector is growing fast.  Nowhere else in England, is unparalleled wealth and history contrasted more starkly with socially excluded communities.  It is these communities in particular that the Foundation aims to reach through it's work with charities & voluntary sector bodies.

At present we are working with over 1115 mentoring and befriending projects and organisations in the region. At the end of October 2007, 214 of these had taken part in our registration and consultation process. 35% of the projects consulted with were befriending, 48% mentoring and 17% peer mentoring (both pre and post 16). Most of these projects were in the non profit sector with the majority being run by voluntary organisations and charities. The most popular client group that these projects work with are refugees and asylum seekers, young and older people and those with mental health issues.

London has many examples of good practice in Mentoring and Befriending, including;

• Tower Hamlets college has a mentoring programme designed to help students realise their potential by using mentors drawn from local business, particularly the major corporate companies based in Canary Wharf and the city.  They achieved APS status in August 2006 and are going from strength to strength, just having launched a fantastic website full of hints and tips around mentoring and it's uses, visit the website 
  
  
• Broadway Homelessness and Support run both befriending and mentoring projects for people who are at risk of, or are experiencing, being homeless.  Befriending is used to reduce isolation and engage clients with services, Mentoring to support work and learning direction once clients have become more constant and able to engage.  Having recently acheived APS, Broadway are keen to help and consult with other projects, visit their website or contact project coordinator, Caroline Hanks to hear more