Youth programmes are run on the Transition to Independent Living (TIL) platform with many different levels of support.

The SAYes TIL platform is suitable for programmes serving young people between 14 and 25 years old.

SAYes programmes rely on mentoring to improve impact.

Whatever the intervention, we know impact is vastly improved when delivered in the context of a supportive relationship.

All SAYes and SAYes-affiliated programmes are run on the Transition to Independent Living (TIL) platform managed by SAYes.

TIL relies on mentorship along with cross-sector collaboration, digital infrastructure, and nested support to optimise meaningful transitions.

The TIL platform includes;

Recruitment and screening of volunteer mentors including local and international police clearance and background checks.
Volunteer fit evaluation based on a comprehensive online application and interview.
Transition mentorship training (for both mentors and mentees) focused on mentoring and strategic planning for personal transition.
Youth population training focused on working with different groups of young people in context.
Placement on a SAYes or SAYes-affiliated programme designed to support a specific youth population by providing evidence-based curricula and/or services.

Facilitated mentor-mentee matching using credible psychometric tools.
Transition mentoring face-to-face with a young person for 1 hour per week for 9 months.
Online transition tools, software and resources to support transition planning.
Business partners providing mentored youth with career opportunities and resources (products or services).
Non-profit partners providing mentored youth with access to additional programmes and services.
Drop-in sessions in a particular field or area.
Programme support specialists providing monitoring, transition and social work services to each mentor-mentee match.

Improving social impact, tractably, sustainably and at scale.

SAYes Care Programmes

SAYes Group Care programmes are focused on preparing young people currently living in or recently exited from Child and Youth Care Centres (Children’s Homes) for independent living. These young people have all been legally placed in care for their own safety and protection. However at the age of 18 government support stops and they are required to leave the homes. There is very little support for their transition to independent living. SAYes bridges the gap through its Group Care programmes. SAYes has been providing mentoring and programme support for care-experienced young people for more than 10 years.

TIL Care is for young people (14 – 17 years old) currently living in residential care.

TIL Care is the most popular programme at SAYes and accounts for 70% of our matches. Young people living in residential care are supported through weekly mentoring sessions which take place both on and off site. Mentors are matched with a mentee at a home in their area. Workgroup content is focused on planning and preparation for life outside the home, as well as building informed choices and implementing healthy practices. Resource partners provide exposure/enrichment opportunities such as job shadowing, access to sports and recreation clubs, tutorial support and outings.

TIL Special Needs is for care-experienced young people who are neurologically atypical (14 – 25 years old).

TIL Special Needs has the smallest number of mentees at SAYes and a very special group of mentors. Young people with special needs who are living in care and/or the community are supported through weekly mentoring sessions which take place both on and off site. Workgroup content provided by SAYes is delivered one-to-one by the mentor, and is focused on practical steps toward improving independence and well-being. Specialized resource partners provide the full range of support, including resources, exposure/enrichment opportunities, employment and training.

TIL Community is for care-experienced young people (15 – 17 years old) who are living in the community as minors.

The young people in TIL Community are living back in the community, often with the families they were initially removed from. Mentors sometimes find this more challenging because the conditions in which the young people live are quite different from life in the children’s home. Weekly mentoring sessions take place at an agreed meeting point with a travel allowance for mentees, provided by SAYes. Workgroup content is focused on making informed choices and keeping to healthy practices in community-relevant settings. Business partners provide resource support (e.g., textbooks, clothing) as well as exposure/enrichment opportunities such as job shadowing, access to sports and recreation clubs, tutorial support and outings.

TIL Independents is for care-experienced young people (18 – 25 years old) who are living in the community as adults.

TIL Independents is an increasingly popular programme at SAYes as the number of SAYes mentees who have aged out of the care system increases. The first few years outside the home are known to be the most vulnerable, especially as state support stops at this age. Weekly mentoring sessions take place at an agreed meeting point with a travel allowance for mentees, provided by SAYes. In addition to workgroup content focused on improving independence and well-being, customised workshops are offered to independents throughout the year (typically weekly evening classes). Resource partners provide the full range of support, including resources, exposure/enrichment opportunities, employment and training.

SAYes Community Programmes

Our Hout Bay programmes, launched in 2019, are for under-served young people currently in secondary education in Hout Bay (Silikamva High School and Hout Bay High School) as well as a small number of young people between 18 and 25 years of age from Hangberg and Imizamo Yethu. We are excited to offer our formal mentorship model to the great community of Hout Bay, reducing social inequalities by supporting objective improvements in independence and well-being.

TIL Schools is for secondary school learners at Silikamva High School and Hout Bay High School (14 – 18 years old).

This programme is designed specifically to prepare for and support the transition from schooling to further education and training (especially in priority skills areas) and/or ensuring sustainable access to the economy. As with all SAYes programmes, mentors work to improve both independence and well-being for young people by supporting growth in perspective, social capital and secure relationships. TIL Schools is thus not a narrowly tutorial/academic or careers programme, although mentors will have access to a set of intervention tools, tactics and strategies designed in collaboration with our educational partners to support decision making and healthy practices in the context of schooling.

TIL Community-Based Organisations is for young people working with CBOs in Hout Bay (18 – 25 years old).

This programme is designed specifically to support independence and well-being among young adults already engaged with and/or by established Community-Based organisations in Hout Bay. In this programme mentors work to support growth in perspective, social capital and secure relationships, especially in the context of active citizenship and community engagement.