Early Break wins national award

Winner: Early Break - Holding Families

A young people’s substance misuse service has won a national award recognising it’s “outstanding” work.

The group picked up the Health and Wellbeing award at the Children & Young People Now Awards for their ‘Holding Families’ project, which has given direct help to more than 200 family members across the Rochdale, Bury and East Lancashire areas.

The initiative also received a commendation in the Early Intervention award and Vicky Maloney, Chief Executive Officer at Early Break said that everybody in the group was ‘delighted’ to have received national recognition for their work.

“We don’t set out each day with “awards” in the forefront of our minds, we set out each day to genuinely support young people and their families.

“To have this recognition for our workers and the families we serve, who actively participate in our challenging programme, is amazing and we value the recognition at this level.”

The initiative aims to serve children with parents suffering from substance abuse via weekly one-to-one sessions for children, regular one-to-one and group work sessions for parents and family meetings prompting one adult judge to say: “This initiative has had a massive impact.”

Chairwoman of Trustees Diana Ashworth and Holding Families worker Katy Cleece were able to join Vicky in order to accept the awards in person at the Hurlingham Club in London, alongside 20 other winning groups.

Ravi Chandiramani, Editor-in-Chief of ‘Children & Young People Now’ said: “These awards have become the gold standard for everyone working with children, young people and families.

“These awards provide a great source of pride and recognition for all those who strive day in, day out, to improve the lives of others. They offer an opportunity to raise the profile of projects and initiatives to funders and the general public.”

The service is funded by Rochdale and Bury councils.