8 April 2025
New Evidence Shows Mentoring And Befriending For Care Experienced Children Improves Mental Health, Reduces Offending And Helps To Keep Families Together
Mentoring and befriending (1) can be vital in improving mental health, reducing offending and reuniting children and young people with their families (2), according to new evidence published today by Foundations (3).
The latest Practice Guide (4), commissioned by the Department for Education and produced by Foundations, highlights the value of evidence-based mentoring and befriending programmes (5) for care-experienced children and young people, as well as those at risk of entering care. Too often, these children and young people lack the stable and trusted adult relationships they need to thrive, making it especially important for them to receive evidence-based mentoring and befriending that provides effective support.
Mentoring and befriending programmes are currently variable and should be strengthened in line with this new evidence. Key findings include:
- Improved mental health: there is strong evidence that mentoring and befriending programmes improve general mental health and reduce isolation and post-traumatic symptoms, especially for children aged 9-11 years old
- Preventing poor long-term outcomes: There is good evidence that mentoring programmes reduce offending and re-offending rates among young people. These programmes also help reduce the risks of unemployment, and keep young people stable in foster care and beyond
- Keeping families together: There is promising evidence of the impact of mentoring programmes in improving reunification of care experienced children with their families (6). Mentoring and befriending increases the success of reunification with birth families and strengthens long-term relationships
The evidence also shows that matching young people with mentors who share similar characteristics – such as gender, ethnicity, family background, and aspirations – leads to greater engagement. Some young people from minoritised ethnic backgrounds reported that having a mentor of a different ethnicity could be a barrier to connection, as they found it harder to relate to them. Many felt more understood and genuinely cared for by mentors from their own cultural background, who could also help them stay connected to their communities.
Mentoring and befriending support can also help local authorities meet their statutory duty to provide Independent Visitors for looked after children, where it is in the child’s best interest.
Foundations is urging local funders, third sector providers, and stakeholders to use the evidence in the new Practice Guide to design and commission programmes that are proven to help vulnerable children and young people have the trusted relationships they need to thrive.
Dr Jo Casebourne, Chief Executive at Foundations, said:
“Every child needs trusted, stable relationships to thrive – but too many care-experienced children and young people miss out. As an Independent Visitor myself, I have seen first hand the additional support that young people in care need and how having an independent adult in their life can help them to reach their full potential.
“Right now, mentoring and befriending support is inconsistent. We need to change that, using the evidence in this Practice Guide to make sure young people get the support they deserve.
“The Guide shows how positive relationships with adults, friends and family can offer stability, help children overcome adversity and trauma, and keep families safely together. Crucially, this means listening to care-experienced children and young people and shaping support around their views. I hope these recommendations will help many more young people in care develop a trusted relationship with a mentor.
“We’re calling on local partners, funders and providers to use this evidence to put in place support that works, and to make sure every child who needs it can access it.”
Princess Bestman, Arts and Wellbeing Practitioner, Care Advocate and advisory group member for the Mentoring and Befriending Practice Guide, said:
“As someone with experience of care, I’ve witnessed the impact mentoring can have. It helps to grow genuine, trusting relationships. It provides support, advice and stability during uncertain times. It offers inspiration to try new things, explore new opportunities, and avoid negative influences. Mentoring gave me the motivation to pursue my future goals and helped me feel a stronger sense of belonging.
“Having been involved in the development of this Practice Guide, I encourage organisations and local leaders to use it to strengthen their offer to care-experienced young people in line with the evidence, to match mentees with mentors who share lived experiences or interests and to equip mentors with the support and skills they need to really make a difference in the lives of children and young people.”
Lynn Perry, Chief Executive at Barnardo’s, said:
“For a child growing up in care, having an adult they can trust – to offer friendship, support and guidance – can be life-changing.
“And yet the number of children who have access to an independent visitor is incredibly low, at just 3.3% in England.
“At Barnardo’s, we know the difference they can make to a child’s life – so we hope this guide will help organisations as they develop these vital support services.”
Rasheed Pendry, Director of Children’s Social Care in Wandsworth, said:
“It’s good to see how mentoring and befriending programmes can change the lives of care-experienced children and young people. This Practice Guide brings together powerful evidence showing just how much of a difference they can make.
“For me, it all comes down to relationships. When we help children build stable, trusting connections, we are supporting their emotional wellbeing, mental health, and family stability. This Guide helps us to make sure every child has that foundation.
“As leader, I’m always looking for ways to strengthen the support we provide. To do that well, I need the best evidence at my fingertips so that every decision I make about services is grounded in what truly works. We should want the very best for care-experienced children.
“This guide is an essential resource for me and for all of us who want to ensure that care-experienced young people have the consistent, meaningful relationships they need to feel safe and thrive.”
For further information, please contact Charlotte Kelsted, Senior Press Officer: 07922 147 222 / charlotte.kelsted@foundations.org.uk
Notes to editors
- In the UK, mentoring and befriending describes a broad range of practices and interventions which use reciprocal, purposeful and non-judgemental relationships to guide and support individuals (befriending) to improve their wellbeing, develop skills, and achieve personal outcomes and goals (mentoring).
- This Practice Guide is based on findings from a systematic review conducted in partnership with Liverpool John Moores University, which brings together the evidence on different types of mentoring and befriending interventions and practices for care-experienced children and young people and those at risk of entering care. The evidence reviewed includes studies from the UK as well as other high-income countries with comparable children’s social care systems to the UK. The studies we looked at involved children and young people with similar characteristics to care-experienced children and young people and those at risk of entering care in the UK. We are therefore confident that our key principles and recommendations are appropriate and applicable to the UK context.
- Foundations is the What Works Centre for Children & Families. We believe all children should have the foundational relationships they need to thrive in life. We’re researching, generating, and translating evidence into practical solutions that shape better policy and practice and lead to more effective family support services.
- Commissioned by the Department for Education and produced by Foundations, Practice Guides offer evidence-based recommendations on approaches to supporting local authorities in achieving the outcomes set out in the Children’s Social Care National Framework. This Practice Guide relates to Outcome 4 of the National Framework: children in care and care leavers have stable, loving homes. It is also relevant to Outcome 2: children and young people are supported by their family network and Outcome 3: children and young people are safe in and outside of their homes. Practice Guides are topical and more will be published as systematic reviews on each evidence base are completed. Foundations will be publishing separate future Practice Guides on: Parenting support for parents/carers of children and young people with disabilities or severe mental illness; Parenting interventions for families with multiple and complex needs with children aged 11 to 19 years; Interventions to support adoptive and foster parents/carers; Reunification interventions and practice.
- Mentoring and befriending programmes provide safe, trusting relationships with supportive adults to help children and young people overcome adversity, build resilience and thrive.
- There is promising evidence of the impact of evidence-based mentoring programmes in improving reunification of care experienced children for whom parental rights have not been terminated.
