Happy New Year from 21K Digital Media
Building Wellbeing, Opportunity and Hope in Enfield
As we begin 2026, 21K Digital Media would like to thank everyone who supported our work throughout 2025. Your support has enabled us to stand alongside young people and families in Enfield, improving access to mental health support, skills development, and pathways into employment for those most at risk of exclusion.
Together, we are working to reduce inequality and create opportunities where they are needed most.
Why Our Work in Enfield Matters
Enfield continues to experience deep and persistent inequality. The borough ranks within the worst 13% of local authority districts in England for overall deprivation, reflecting unmet needs across income, employment, education, health, housing, and crime.
This inequality is not evenly distributed. While parts of western Enfield are among the least deprived areas nationally, deprivation is heavily concentrated in the east. Neighbourhoods in Edmonton fall within the 2% most deprived areas in England, resulting in poorer outcomes for children and young people.
Youth unemployment remains a serious concern. Figures published on 16 December show that 1,050 young people aged 18–24 in Enfield are unemployed and claiming benefits. Evidence shows that long‑term unemployment is closely linked to poor mental health, disengagement, and increased vulnerability to grooming, exploitation, and involvement in the criminal justice system.
Supporting Excluded and Marginalised Young People into Work
With support from the Community Fund, 21K Digital Media delivered a targeted work placement programme for young people often excluded from mainstream opportunities. This included young people excluded from school, young people with lived experience of the criminal justice system, and long‑term unemployed young people.
Impact
Through our targeted programmes in 2025, 21K Digital Media supported young people and community members to rebuild confidence, improve wellbeing, and progress towards positive futures.
- 25 young people were supported to re‑engage with learning and structured activity
- Confidence was rebuilt and practical workplace skills developed, improving readiness for employment, education, and training
- 6 young people progressed to university, taking the next step in their academic journey
- 15 young people received one‑to‑one wellbeing counselling, supporting them to manage trauma, stress, and mental health challenges
As part of the placements, young people took part in structured career development workshops, including:
- CV writing and job applications
- Communication and workplace confidence
- Interview preparation and techniques
- Goal‑setting and understanding career pathways
This programme provided structure, routine, and positive role models—helping young people take meaningful steps towards employment, education, or training.
Right2Thrive UK: Responding to Community Trauma
Alongside employment support, we continue to address the growing mental health needs of young people through the Right2Thrive UK Wellbeing Project.
In March 2025, we hosted Dr Ron Dodzro, Clinical and Community Psychologist, alongside Vanessa Boachie, Psychotherapist (MBABCP), who shared powerful insights into the lived experience of community violence and the lasting trauma it has on young people—particularly young Black people. Drawing on clinical expertise, trauma‑informed practice, and culturally sensitive approaches, they highlighted how repeated exposure to violence can affect emotional regulation, behaviour, and self‑belief.
Their contributions reinforced how trauma is often misunderstood or criminalised rather than supported, and why early, culturally appropriate mental health intervention is essential.
Research such as The Life of a Top Boy reflects these realities, describing how many young Black boys suppress emotion and present toughness as a survival response to trauma, not a lack of vulnerability.
Tackling Stigma and Rebuilding Trust
Mental health stigma remains a significant barrier within our community and is compounded by a lack of trust in the mental health system. Many individuals delay seeking support due to fear of being judged, misunderstood, or treated unfairly, meaning mental health needs often go unaddressed until crisis point.
Black people are disproportionately sectioned under the Mental Health Act, often due to late intervention, systemic inequality, and limited access to early, culturally appropriate support.
Right2Thrive UK works to change this by:
- Creating safe, trusted spaces for open conversations
- Challenging stigma and misinformation
- Promoting early intervention and prevention
- Delivering culturally appropriate support through highly qualified Black psychologists and psychotherapists
Looking Ahead: 2026 and Beyond
In February 2026, we will launch wellbeing activities and career development workshops at the Right2Thrive UK Wellbeing Hub, located in Edmonton Green Shopping Centre, alongside the Right2Thrive UK Wellbeing Digital Platform.
Together, these will expand access to:
- Mental health and wellbeing workshops
- Safe community spaces
- Career development and employability support
- Trusted, culturally grounded psychological services
Thanks to community funding, in the first three months of 2026 we will also provide:
- Mental health and wellbeing support for 20 young people
- Targeted support for 15 parents and carers
- Continued employability and confidence‑building activities
Early intervention remains essential in communities experiencing financial pressure, housing insecurity, and high levels of community and domestic violence.
Help Us Go Further
We have launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise £6,000 to extend the Right2Thrive UK Wellbeing Programme and continue tackling health inequalities in the most deprived wards of Enfield.
Your support will help us to:
- Reach more young people and families
- Provide culturally appropriate mental health support
- Reduce long‑term unemployment and crisis‑led interventions
- Build stronger, healthier communities
💛 Any contribution you are able to make will help change lives. https://www.spacehive.com/right2thriveukwellbeing-hub
Our Commitment
As we begin 2026, our commitment remains clear: to work with communities, amplify young people’s voices, and build systems that allow everyone the opportunity to heal, grow, and thrive.
Thank you for standing with us.
— 21K Digital Media