Pressure growing to invest in Wiltshire's Youth Service
Funding for Wiltshire's youth service is set to be revisited after local Lib Dems called for savings made from senior staff leaving to be reinvested in young people.
On Tuesday 24th June Cllr Jon Hubbard, leader of Wiltshire's
Lib Dems, wrote to the leader of the Council calling for this investment in Wiltshire's youth service. Now, along with other Lib Dem councillors, he has tabled a motion calling on the Council to support the £225,000 saving being used to provide youth workers to support existing and new youth provision during the transition to a new community model.
The motion should be debated at council on 29th July.
"When consulted young people voiced they wanted to see a youth service that had professional support," said Cllr Jon Hubbard "yet the current plans put that at risk.
"There are growing concerns that the plan as it stands could close community facilities due to the lack of professional support.
"This money offers us the opportunity to right this wrong and give young people what they clearly wanted- youth workers on the ground supporting them.
"We will then not only have a youth service grounded in what the community and especially young people want but with people who have the skills to deliver it and make sure young people are at the heart of the service.
"If we have this money we should use it to make our frontline services better for the people of Wiltshire."
The motion submitted by Cllr Jon Hubbard is as follows:
Proposer: Cllr Jon Hubbard
Seconder: Cllr Trevor Carbin
Council notes the reforms to the Integrated Youth Service outlined in the cabinet report of 15th May 2014.
Council recognises the plans for a more community led model, and supports the concept of communities having more control over identifying the best delivery model for provision of Positive Activities for Young People through the development of Local Youth Networks (LYN).
Council also notes that every Area Board will have a Community Youth Officer assigned who will work with community groups to develop the new offer and support the developing LYNs.
Council further notes that all youth provision in existing Youth Development Centres and street based youth work supported by the Integrated Youth Service will cease by 30th September 2014.
Council is concerned at the impact of these sudden changes on young people and Wiltshire's communities when the service closes.
Council recognises that when consulted on the changes Young People responded more than anything else that they valued the benefits of having professional youth workers to support them in personal development and decision making, especially the additional support available in times of personal crisis.
Council therefore requests the administration to use the £225,000 recently identified from senior staff savings to provide a transitional service for the next 18 months. This service could provide street based youth workers to work with existing and emerging community providers to support young people within their communities and ensure that the LYN's are voicing the needs of young people in the wider community including the villages.
This will also help to deliver positive activities requested by Young People and not activities imposed on Young People - thus responding to a key concern expressed by Young People during the consultation process.
Council believes that this transitional arrangement will help Area Boards and LYNs to ensure the new Young People's funding best meets the actual needs of Young People in communities; thus better enabling communities to work towards fulfilling the opportunities presented by the new operating model approved by Cabinet.