INtegr8 Befriending Service

INtegr8 is West Lothian Youth Action Project’s Befriending Service for 10 – 21 year olds. We aim to reach some of West Lothian’s most vulnerable young people, specifically those who are experiencing issues around their mental health/well-being. Young people may have things going on in their lives such as peer or family difficulties, being bullied, feeling alone, or experiencing stress or anxiety.

Our objectives for young people are:

To reduce social isolation
To increase levels of confidence & self-esteem
To engage young people in sustainable community activities
To improve communication skills
To help young people cope better emotionally

What is Befriending?

Befriending is support offered to young people on a one to one basis. It is carried out by trained volunteers who meet with their young people approximately once a week for 2 – 3 hours, during which time they take part in social and recreational activities together. Young people can discuss any aspect of their life with their Befriender, if they want to. INtegr8 offers a confidential service to young people.

To prevent managing a long waiting list, and to offer the service to more young people, INtegr8 will limit the time of the support offered. On average, we expect a Befriending relationship to last up to 1 year.

Referral Criteria

Young person
Aged 10 –21
Living in West Lothian
Experiencing issues affecting mental health/well-being
Isolated/not involved in any social or recreational activities

Due to high demand on our service, and delivery dependant upon availability of trained volunteers and capacity to support them, the Befriending Service is unable to accept and progress referrals on a responsive basis. Historically, if referrals are taken in this manner, then the Befriending Service has a very long waiting list of young people which is much more than our team of volunteers (on average 20 - 25) can support. Volunteers usually support 1 young person for a period of up to one year.

If you are interested in this service, initially your enquiry will be logged into a waiting system, without us asking you to disclose too much personal information relating to your young person. At a later date, when we are in a position to look at progressing your enquiry, you will be invited to make a formal referral. At this point, you can either refer or if there is no longer a need for your client, then decide not to progress. If you do refer, the process should happen more smoothly, and support would normally be in place a lot quicker following initial visits and assessments etc. To enquire, please contact:

Angela Gourdie, INtegr8 Co-ordinator
Phone – 01506 461588, Email – angie@wlyap.org.uk