Agenda item

To submit a report by the Head of Learning in respect of the above.

Submitted – the report of the Head of Learning in relation to the above.

The Principal Youth Officer reported that Wales Youth Service Strategy 2014-2018 recognises the need for the service to remain a strategic educational service and not be part of leisure provision. Within the strategy there is an increasing emphasis on placing youth workers in schools to support young people to remain engaged in education, remaining in formal education and training. The strategy recognizes three distinct fields which were highlighted within the report where services should be focused.

It was stated that the Executive at its meeting held on 20 July, 2015 granted permission for the Youth Service to undertake a consultation exercise on Future Models of Delivery. The consultation findings were appended to the report. Based on the consultation findings the options to be considered will include :-

• Appointing a full-time worker to be based in each secondary school, delivering a range of the priorities;

• A reduced structure of clubs, run by the School Youth Workers and a smaller team of part-time staff;

• The possibility of supporting smaller village communities to run voluntary youth clubs, supported but not funded by the youth service;

• To extend the role of the Alcohol Project Worker to include all Substance Misuse, and associated sexploitation that result from this abuse;

• To work with the Department of Education to develop more responsibility for Department of Education/Accreditation Development to be undertaken within schools;

• That a half-time post is created for an Engagement Worker to work with 16-24 year olds who are NEET, funded through the Engagement and Progression Grant. This to be reviewed within 2 years to decide if youth service needs to be further reviewed to bring this work into core provision, rather than other grant funded work.

The Principal Youth Officer further reported that Anglesey and Gwynedd have retained the largest network of small rural clubs, throughout Wales, however there has been a 17% decrease in the numbers attending a youth club between 2013/14 and 2014/15. This in itself would have been a driver for a review on how the authority is engaging with young people, and has prompted the service, through the work of the Transformation Board to start the re-structure by consulting widely with young people, and asking them what service they require, for the future. This will need to be coupled with the Authority’s agenda of identifying its priorities while implementing an extensive programme of efficiency savings.

The Committee considered the report and raised the following main issues :-

• The views and requirements of young people is paramount within the Youth Service;

• Questions raised as to how many young people attend rural Youth Clubs on the Island. The Principal Youth Officer responded that a decline in young people attending rural Youth Clubs is of concern and it was anticipated that consideration will need to be given to close a further 4 Youth Clubs this year;

• Questions raised as to the possibility of reintroducing the Outreach Bus for young people in rural areas to attend Youth Clubs in their preferred locality. The Principal Youth Officer responded that the Outreach Bus has not been run during the past financial year due to costs associated with the facility. She further stated that it seemed that during the consultation process young people did not seem to consider the facility of an Outreach Bus as a priority for them as opposed to attending a Youth Club;

• It was considered that the Youth Services should be producing costings for a service based on no more than a 20% savings so as to alleviate the effect of any changes on vulnerable groups;

• Questions raised whether there is duplication of activities offered by Communities First within the designated CF areas and local youth clubs. The Principal Youth Officer responded that young people over 16 years of age will be offered activities by CF only within the designated areas.

It was RESOLVED to recommend to the Executive that the report be approved, subject to the Executive noting the Partnership and Regeneration Scrutiny Committee’s opinion that the costings for the service be based up to 20% savings to limit the effect of any changes on vulnerable groups.

ACTION : As noted above.