The past year has seen the Centre for Britain and Europe’s (CBE) work deepen, broaden and, crucially, begin to take root across Surrey in more tangible ways.
A main focus has been on strengthening the evidence base while simultaneously increasing connections. Working closely with Surrey Community Action, we delivered a refreshed report of the county’s voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) sector, publishing both an interim and final report titled Bridges and Beacons. As Surrey’s infrastructure body, it plays a vital role in supporting organisations through advice, training and partnership-building. Through interviews and engagement with both paid staff and volunteers, we gained a clearer understanding of the pressures and potential within the sector, and forged closer relationships.
At the same time, our focus on young people who are NEET has continued to evolve. Following Unseen Surrey, we produced a series of outputs that moved the conversation forward, from rapporteur reports capturing stakeholder insight to practical recommendations published as “Insights to Action.” Most recently, our Next Steps for Young People convening brought together partners from across the county to consolidate a year’s work and maintain momentum toward meaningful, coordinated change. We also celebrated the tireless service of Peter Cluff as High Sheriff and congratulated him on the huge impact he has made. Peter also presented CBE’s Founder and Director, Professor Amelia Hadfield, with an award certificate in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the community, particularly in supporting Peter’s Shrieval theme of preventing young people from becoming NEET.
Importantly, this is more than just a conversation and is progressing into meaningful change. Two ESRC Impact Acceleration Account (IAA) awards are now supporting delivery, including a collaboration to provide interactive cybersecurity workshops for NEET young adults. The second ESRC IAA launched this month, a place-based grassroots pilot collaboration, in partnership with The Quinnell School of Blacksmithing, Phoenix Cultural Centre Woking, and the University for the Creative Arts. The project explores how grassroots organisations can act as vital non-formal institutions in addressing the NEET challenge, creating inclusive, community-led pathways into skills and opportunity.
The recent appointment of Sarah Davies as NEET Partnership Coordinator at Surrey County Council also signals growing alignment across the system, helping to connect stakeholders and sustain progress. We also expanded our policy reach and submitted evidence to the Department for Work and Pensions to contribute to the Milburn Review, with our written evidence from our work on young people in Surrey since being published. Looking ahead, in July, Amelia and Megan Ward, Communications & Public Affairs Officer for the CBE will be taking part in Evidence Week in Parliament, hosted by Sense about Science. We’ll be sharing insights from the Surrey case study and discussing how its findings can be applied across constituencies and nationwide.
What began as a Community of Practice is now evolving into something more structured and enduring, with plans for a steering group to guide future work. Taken together, these developments reflect a shift from insight to implementation, ensuring that the foundations laid last year translate into lasting impact for Surrey’s young people.
