NYA are pleased to release the final report from the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Youth Affairs’ inquiry into Youth Work.
UK review on Youth Work offer..
Newsflash
Stoke-On-Trent: The city divided by a youth club
Stoke City Council is considering plans for a £3.3m youth hub to
be built in the town of Hanley.
Stoke-on-Trent is made up of six towns, and some young people in
the city feel it will alienate those who don't live in Hanley.
They also believe it could lead to more violence by bringing
postcode rivalries together in one place.
Dominic, a student and Labour activist, has set up a petition
against the centre, believing it will be more of a "violence hub
than a youth hub".
But Jordan, who works at the YMCA in Hanley, thinks the new youth
hub might help bring the different towns of Stoke together.
Gemma runs a youth club in the suburb of Meir and feels the money
would be better spent on youth clubs in the six towns of Stoke,
rather than in the centre.
This video was created as part of We Are Stoke-on-Trent, a BBC project
with people of the city to tell the stories that matter to them.
Newsflash
Spending Round delivers extra funds for children and young people's services
Councils will have access to £1.5bn extra for social care from
next year, the Chancellor has announced in today's Spending
Round, but he provided no detail on cash for children's services.
Chancellor Sajid Javid has announced cash boosts for children and
young people
An additional £66m for early years education, to boost the
hourly rate paid to providers of the 30 hours childcare offer
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport to develop a
new youth investment fund to build and refurbish youth centres
and deliver services for young people
Department for Education to receive £700m for special
educational needs, revealed as part of a multi-billion package
for education earlier this week
Home Office to get £30m to tackle online child sexual
exploitation
The fast-tracked Spending Round sets departmental budgets for
2020/21.
Minister 'committed' to review of youth work guidance despite delay
A delayed call for evidence as part of a review of statutory
guidance for council youth services will "happen very shortly",
according to the government minister responsible for youth
policy.
Baroness Barran: "Completely committed to the review." Picture:
Parliament UK
Speaking to CYP Now, Baroness Diana Barran said her office was
"keen to get going" with the public call - which was due to take
place over eight weeks from late July, but has been delayed by
the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).
Concerns have been raised by the youth work sector that the
delay, alongside a general election, could mean the review is not
published for some months.
Baroness Barran declined to explain the delay, but said: "We're
completely committed to going ahead with that.
"I think we're going to be making an announcement shortly.
Everybody is keen to get going with it."
Analysis: Leaders call for clear vision of council youth work
duties
Analysis: Youth work reforms need universal focus
The review was launched in early July by the then minister for
civil society Mims Davies and featured details of the
consultation process.
A written parliamentary question from shadow youth minister Cat
Smith on 2 September asking for an update remained unanswered (at
time of publication) by Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan.
Morgan however, gave a detailed answer to a separate question
from Smith about progress with other elements of the government's
youth strategy.
James Cathcart, director of youth network Young Voices Heard,
called on the sector to take the initiative over the review.
Cathcart said: "It's been over a year since the publication of
the Civil Society Strategy which promised a review of the youth
work guidance.
"Since then we have had two changes of minister and a new
government.
"Although a guidance review team was launched in July, the
expected eight-week window didn't open over the summer.
"The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport team's
auto-reply email states that ‘we are not able to launch the call
for evidence on the scheduled date (end of July) and are looking
at a slightly longer time-frame...will be in touch in due
course'.
"Given the possibility of a general election before the end of
the year, which could be before the review could now report, it
is time for stakeholders to start publishing what they would like
to see in revised guidance, including reference to a refreshed
new ministerial role in monitoring it, with a view to informing
and influencing those who might be drafting general election
manifestos, commitments to new youth sector legislation and
ministerial appointments."
The department said the review was intended to "provide greater
clarity" around the government's expectations of councils,
"including the value added by good youth work".
The review is supported by the National Youth Agency (NYA), which
has so far hosted six of the nine regional events to gather
sector views.
The organisation said it had seen "excellent engagement" at each
event from across the sector, including funders, local
authorities, higher education and universities, and youth work
practitioners.
NYA said it has also scheduled a National Youth Work Summit on 29
October to include feedback from the roadshows, due to be held in
parliament.
The NYA added that in partnership with the DCMS it has also
hosted a roundtable of NYA national advisory board members to
discuss the review and improvements to the guidance.
Barran was speaking to CYP Now following the announcement of
details of a bursary for disadvantaged youth work trainees.
