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- Mentoring and befriending
National Youth Homelessness Scheme
Mentoring and befriending
Young people report that mentoring and befriending can be a huge help to them. It can offer: 
- insights into what homelessness is really like and how to avoid it
- support for young people facing the challenge of living away from family and moving towards independence, helping them take control of their lives and work towards their aspirations
- a chance for young mentors and befrienders to gain skills, confidence, accredited qualifications and a sense of achievement
The National Youth Reference Group, supported by CLG and made up of young people from across England who have experienced homelessness, recommends that mentoring and befriending be part of local areas youth homelessness strategies.
This module highlights the different models of delivery for mentoring and befriending in the context of youth homelessness, and showcases good practice examples. Mentoring and befriending services for young people have been widespread in the UK for some time now, and whilst there is still little hard evaluative evidence regarding outcomes, much knowledge has been gained regarding hallmarks of success for delivery (see below) and key indicators of quality. The Approved Provider Standard is the national benchmark and quality standard for volunteer mentoring and befriending. Providers and/or commissioners will be able to draw on highlighted practice when considering either developing or funding a similar initiative for young people.
A range of providers offer mentoring and befriending services to young people and this includes homelessness prevention work in schools and support aligned to the provision of supported accommodation. Most providers of mentoring and befriending for homeless young people are specialists in working with issues of homelessness, and offer a range of services of which mentoring and/or befriending is one. Most of this work is currently undertaken by voluntary sector providers. The Mentoring and Befriending Foundation can offer support, guidance and training to practitioners across England.
Definitions
Mentoring and befriending are very similar activities with some differences of emphasis. In general, they both involve the development of one to one relationships between clients and volunteers based upon trust, confidentiality and mutual involvement. The relationships are usually voluntary with the goal of providing practical assistance and support.
The main difference between mentoring and befriending is, generally, the emphasis placed on working towards goals. Mentoring tends to focus more on goal setting and operates within a clearly defined timeframe, whilst befriending tends to develop more informal and supportive social relationships, often over a longer timeframe.
