Building connections - Stay Safe Partnership

An NSPCC service empowering young people to find a way through loneliness.

The Building Connections programme has seven stages.

1. Introductions: The young person and befriender get to know each other
2. I am: Together they look at the young person's world, their feelings, vulnerabilities and strengths.
3. I have: They identify support and resources available to the young person.
4. I want and deserve: They explore what the young person feels they're missing and what they imagine is possible.
5. I can or I will: With support, the young person takes concrete steps to overcome feelings of loneliness.
6. Reflecting on learning, creating a plan and managing setbacks: The young person is supported to develop a plan for the next six to nine months.
7. Endings: They celebrate the work that's been done and the progress they've made.

Building Connections is an online service, which empowers young people up to the age of 19 to find a way through loneliness through an 11-week programme.

Young people work with a trained befriender, who guides them and champions them each step of the way. Building Connections gives young people tools that can help them build their confidence and better equip them to manage loneliness.

Building Connections is a free online service. Young people will need an internet connection and an email address. They should also have access to a quiet and private space to attend sessions with their befriender. 

If you know a young person who would benefit from this service, you can make a referral.

Please note that before making a referral to Building Connections you must get the young person’s consent. Parents or carers must also give their consent if the young person is under 18.

This form allows professionals (such as members of staff in a school) to submit a request to access the NSPCC Building Connections service on behalf of a young person that is known to them:

Further information and support is available regarding making a referral.

This programme is offered free of charge by the NSPCC.

Building Connections can support young people through issues including:

• Transitional periods – such as moving to a new school or area.
• Emotional health – including stress, lower self-esteem, social anxiety, low mood or social isolation.
• Friendship issues and bullying – for example struggling to make friends or maintain relationships with peers, feeling a lack of connection with the people they view as friends or experiencing bullying or cyberbullying.

Sense of otherness – the young person may experience a sense of ‘otherness’ due to how peers have reacted to their sexual or gender identity, race, religion or other protected characteristics.

Free

If you have any questions, please contact the Building Connections team on buildingconnections@nspcc.org.uk

Building Connections