Our History
In 1984, the late Dr Christine Baksi, a Consultant at St Mary’s hospital, saw that young people on the Isle of Wight were not receiving the support they needed. Joining together with friends and colleagues she raised funds to purchase a building in central Newport. In 1985, 1 St Johns Place opened its doors as the headquarters of the Isle of Wight Youth Trust.
Initially working with children and young people aged 13 and over, in 2005 we expanded our service to include working with younger children aged 4 and over.
By 2016, demand was such that bigger premises were needed. Following a capital campaign launched in 2017, the Youth Trust, purchased 114 Pyle Street Newport, and in September 2018 became Youth Trust House.
We further expanded our premises in 2019 renting the retail space next to our headquarters to develop a drop in Hub.
January 2021 saw the launch of the Mental Health Support Team (MHST) on the Island. Working in partnership with Barnardo’s and the Isle of Wight NHS Trust, the Youth Trust supports the wellbeing of young people aged 5 to 19 in Island schools.
We are now the Islands largest independent provider of youth mental health and wellbeing services.
