Building belief and resilience in a younger generation

Thursday 20th March 2025

Earlier this week former England football manager Sir Gareth Southgate delivered the annual Richard Dimbleby Lecture for the BBC.

In his speech, Sir Gareth reflected on the importance of positive role models in boys’ lives, and warned of the dangers posed by ‘toxic influencers’.

“There’s a point at which boys look naturally for mentors outside their immediate family, and is often where they find the role models who inspire them the most… However boys are spending less time at youth centres, sports facilities and community events. They aren’t meeting the traditional role models I used to meet such as coaches, youth workers and teachers.”

Recognising the importance of understanding the needs of young people, in 2023 The Boys’ Brigade partnered with the Youthscape Centre for Research to launch Youth Culture and Trends, which explored the lives and culture of young people today and how we can better support them now and into the future.

Read the Youth Culture and Trends research at boys-brigade.org.uk/youth-culture-and-trends

The research highlighted there has been a significant rise in the numbers of young people who are dissatisfied with their friendships over the last decade, and particularly since the Covid-19 pandemic.

It also revealed that young people are spending less time socialising in person and are increasingly more likely to conduct social relationships online, an environment which could lead to the kinds of influences emphasised by Sir Gareth.

Each week The Boys’ Brigade works with around 20,000 children and young people in around 750 communities across the country, providing opportunities to learn, grow and discover in a safe, fun and caring environment which is rooted in the Christian faith.

Organisations such as the BB have a vital role to play in providing positive role models for young people, by showing them that there are people who are willing to come alongside them, invest themselves in relationships and genuinely care for them; helping young people to feel included, valued and that they have something to offer each other and the world.

Recently John Sharp, our Director for Development and Communications, appeared on Premier Christian Radio’s The News Hour to speak about some of these issues.

During the interview, John said: “At the heart of the BB’s work is relationships – those real, long term, authentic relationships that get built with young people, with positive role models and positive influences in young people’s lives. That has been at the centre of what we have been doing for many years.”

“As Christians, one of the responses that we can have is trying to encourage young people to be involved in a structured environment where they have opportunities to learn skills – not just important life skills, but also ‘soft skills’ like confidence, resilience, independence and working together as a team.”