While we welcome his call for ‘radical reset’, it will only work if young people’s voices and lived experiences are at the heart of it. In 2025, we asked more than 1,300 young people aged 16 to 28 across the UK about the challenges they face. They told us how the systems around them are failing to address the realities of their lives. They want better mental health support, stronger relationships and community connections, a greater say in decisions shaping their future, and an education system that moves beyond one-size-fits-all approaches. The Resolution Foundation report, Lost in Translation, reflects many of these same pressures, from rising mental health challenges and economic insecurity to limited pathways into meaningful work and training. 

Whilst recognising the problem matters, we must equally focus on creating the conditions for solutions to emerge. There are no quick fixes to a crisis this deep-rooted. But what gives us hope is the number of young people already showing what a future built around purpose, agency, relationships and opportunity could look like. We are proud to fund and support changemakers, including those aged 30 and under, who are creating new pathways to work and bringing their lived experience to break through the barriers they and many they know have experienced. To name just a few:

• Vijai, founder of WEEE Renew, is creating new pathways into work for young people who are rejected from jobs due to a lack of experience. Through training in IT repair, logistics, and digital skills, young people are gaining real opportunities while tackling electronic waste.
• Oluferanmi’s project, Room Too, is transforming underused spaces into study hubs for young people living in overcrowded housing, recognising that something as simple as access to a quiet place to learn can shape a young person’s future.
• Aiyana, who launched the peer-led support platform NEUROMANCERS at just 19, is creating spaces where neurodivergent young people, particularly those from LGBTQ+ and Black and Asian communities, can access care and connection designed around their lived experiences.
• Ella-Grace’s work with Her-izons n Blackpool focuses on early intervention for girls and young women struggling with mental health, creating support before a crisis point rather than after it. 
• Ellie Costello’s Square Peg is helping schools and local authorities move away from punitive approaches to attendance and towards relationships, belonging and trust by recognising that young people engage when they feel seen and supported.

These, and many more leaders across our community, are tackling the deep interconnected issues in employment, mental health, education, housing and community, because they know that young people’s lives do not fit neatly into silos. If the government is serious about tackling this crisis, they must give young people the opportunities, support, and funding to be part of a joined up solution. 

We call on every part of society to rise to the challenge this moment demands and create the conditions for radical systems change.

To find out more about ways you can support young people through Big Change, drop our partnerships team a message at partnerships@big-change.org.