BRIDGING COMMUNITIES:
INTERNATIONAL YOUTH WORK EXCHANGE
The Berlin Bridging Communities Youth Exchange is a two-way partnership between Young H&F and the district of Mitte, Berlin, designed to strengthen relationships, invite shared learning, and build connection between youth sectors across Europe.
In November 2024, Young H&F welcomed 12 youth work delegates from Mitte, Berlin to the borough, for a week of learning, connection and conversation. The group visited various spaces across Hammersmith & Fulham, including WEST Youth Zone, Mosaic Trust, Masbro Youth Club, Action on Disability, and QPR in the Community Trust, and heard directly hear from Hammersmith & Fulham’s youth council about their lived experience of being a young person in Hammersmith & Fulham.
We were also joined by representatives from H&F Council and John Lyon’s Charity, providing space to reflect not just on delivery of youth services, but on the wider ecosystem that makes youth work possible in the borough and beyond.
In Spring 2025 Young H&F travelled to Berlin to continue the exchange, this time focusing on the learning we could take home around funding, structures and how cross-sector collaboration can help shape youth provision. We visited community spaces, youth clubs and government buildings, hearing from a wide range of professionals all working toward a common goal - enabling young people to thrive in their local space.
This first exchange was about creating space for open dialogue about systems, values and partnerships that underpin youth work across countries. It highlighted common challenges and different approaches, surfaced new ideas, and reminded us that connection across borders can strengthen the work we do at home.
As part of our wider Sector Development work projects like this help us:
Reflect on what’s working within our borough’s youth sector and where we can grow
Strengthen relationships between practitioners, funders and policymakers
Build collective understanding of how to sustain youth provision in changing times
Champion youth voice in cross-cultural learning
We believe meaningful youth work happens when we look outward as well as inward, and we’re proud to be developing a borough that is both locally rooted and globally connected.
What Next?
After some big, bold discussions, Young H&F and Mitte, Berlin delegates have decided to build on the partnership by hopefully hosting another exchange - this time for young people living in our borough and in Mitte Berlin. We look forward to updating you more on how this project develops! If you’d like to support this project please get in touch with us!
