Creative Youth Network / Bristol City Council / University of Bristol · 2021
This mixed-methods study explored the factors that build or undermine resilience in young people receiving one-to-one Targeted Youth Services (TYS) from Creative Youth Network in Bristol. Drawing on 60 qualitative interviews with 21 young people and 47 surveys, the research found that resilience is shaped by a complex interplay of individual, relational, community, environmental and educational factors — not by personal character alone. Targeted youth worker support was found to help young people develop new coping strategies, improve confidence and reduce maladaptive behaviours such as drug use. However, many resilience-shaping factors — including unsafe neighbourhoods, unstable family environments and limited local resources — remain outside both the individual's and the service's direct control.