It still takes a villageto raise a kid.
Second Corner started in the field — talking with 13–15 year olds across Lambeth about the opportunities they feel are missing from their everyday lives. This is what we heard, and what we're building in response.
"Why do we have to wait until we're 16 to do something real?"
— A recurring question, from young people we met
Start earlier, on purpose
Employability shouldn't start at 16. For young people who want to complement their studies with a technical, hands-on approach, the years between 13 and 16 are the ones that quietly decide a lot. We meet them there.
Pocket money, with purpose
Not every household can hand out pocket money or a small stipend for simple tasks. We help young people earn their own — safely, legally, and close to home — through age-appropriate work with vetted local businesses.
The village, reconnected
Mentors, boxing gyms, youth workers and coaches already exist in every neighbourhood — they're just not connected. Second Corner stitches the existing network together so a young person isn't passed from form to form, but from person to person.
Social value, made tangible
Social value has become a tick-box exercise for too many businesses and procurement teams. We make it measurable: every pound funds a real young person, in a real postcode, doing real work — with the evidence to prove it.
Six groups, one corner
Working with young people can't happen in isolation. It takes a multi-sided approach — combining efforts from every part of their world so no one carries it alone.
Young people
13–16 year olds ready to learn, earn and build skills outside the classroom — finding a second corner behind them.
Local businesses
Employers who benefit from supervised youth work and want to invest back into their high street by being part of a young person's second corner.
Social value funders
Companies and procurement teams turning their obligations into measurable local impact — funding second corners across the city.
Mentors & gyms
The coaches, boxing clubs and youth orgs already doing the work — now connected as part of every young person's second corner.
Schools & youth clubs
The trusted everyday spaces that spot young people early and help connect them to a second corner.
Families & close network
Parents, carers and the trusted adults who know the young person best — the ones who can advise, encourage and help them find a second corner.
Common questions
Pick the group that matches you for the answers that matter most.