October 2026: In Your Corner: Supporting the Heads and Hearts of EVERY Young Londoner

By January Jones, CEO, In Your Corner Charitable Trust

Mental health problems among young people do not discriminate. It is a universal issue that impacts children and young people from all walks of life, across every borough and background. However, the reality for many marginalised families, including within Romani (Gypsy), Roma, and Traveller communities, is that getting timely, meaningful support when a young person is struggling with anxiety, trauma, or big emotions can feel like an uphill battle.

The numbers reflect a severe crisis:

• High Psychological Distress: Over 50% of Traveller children report feeling unhappy with their mental health, while facing disproportionate levels of racist bullying and social exclusion that compound anxiety and stress.
• Disproportionate Risk: Young Irish Traveller men are 6 to 7 times more likely to die by suicide compared to the general population, making emotional distress and unaddressed mental health challenges a matter of urgency.

• Systemic Barriers & Stigma: Cultural stigma around mental ill-health, combined with a mistrust of formal institutions and long NHS waiting lists, means traditional clinical settings often fail these young people before they even start.

That is why we created In Your Corner, to offer an intervention that is culturally relevant, non-stigmatising, and explicitly designed to meet young people exactly where they are in their struggles and in their communities

A Mix of Boxing and Clinical Psychology

We do not ask young people to sit in a cold clinical room and talk about their feelings across a desk. Instead, we bring them into boxing gyms and local community centres and have them hit bags and pads, skip rope and learn combinations, alongside fun and thought provoking group activities; all rooted in CBT (Cognitive Behavioural Therapy) and DBT (Dialectical Behaviour Therapy) therapy.

When a young person is focused on footwork, hitting pads, and letting off steam, the noise and weight of daily stress fade into the background.  Across 12-week programmes, we help young Londoners aged 12 to 18:

• Channel anger and stress: Learning physical and emotional regulation skills to manage overwhelming feelings in a safe, guided space.
• Reframe self-belief: Shifting away from narratives of failure or exclusion toward confidence and positive identity.
• Build trust and connection: Moving away from isolation by connecting with peers and trusted adult role models.

At the heart of what we do is our team. We work with a diverse group of clinical mental health experts and England-accredited boxing coaches. Having a coaching team that reflects the diverse set of young people we support across the capital is very important to us. When coaches and psychologists sit on the floor, train alongside the group, and share their own lived experiences, it breaks down barriers and builds real trust.

Does It Work?

Our model is simple, we meet young people on their own terms:

• 60% of participants who start in clinical distress move into the non-clinical range for wellbeing by the end of 12-weeks.
• 80% exceed their own self-set wellbeing goals.
• We maintain a 70% graduation rate, far outperforming engagement in statutory mental health services..

What some of our young people say after completing a group:

• “Better at relaxing myself… able to control anger more often… Better at dealing with things.”
• “I feel less anxious within a group and like I can be more myself… I feel like I can share my opinion and not worry so much about what others think.”
• “I don’t really get out… because I have a big family. Getting into new things is good for me… Dad would call me a quitter… [now] if I am interested in something I make it happen.”

Where We Are and How to Join

We currently deliver projects in Islington, Camden, and Southwark, and we are expanding to more boroughs across London over the coming year to ensure no young person is left without a champion in their corner. In addition to our 12-week groups, we offer young people opportunities to earn AQA qualifications, volunteer with In Your Corner, become a peer mentor, and continue to box.

• Completely Free: Our sessions run for 12-weeks during the academic year and do not cost a penny for families or young people. We receive referrals from parents and carers, as well as statutory services and other community organisations.
• Safe and Non-Contact: All sessions are strictly non-contact, focusing on technique, movement, mental regulation, and personal resilience.

Get in Touch

To see our work in action, check out our video.

If you are a parent, carer, youth worker, or community representative and would like to learn more about In Your Corner or refer a young person, please reach out to me directly. Because all young people deserve to have someone in their corner.

• Website: www.inyourcorner.uk
• Email: january@inyourcorner.uk (or info@inyourcorner.uk)
• Phone: 07759 156143