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Youth Work, Schools and Colleges

Mark Carriline

Executive Director (Children’s Services) Bury Council ADCS Lead on Youth Issues

CHYPS Summer Seminar – 4 July 2013

Background to the Commission

• Welcome and happy Independence Day!

• Commission established by NYA – first meeting 17 April

• part of a strategy to ‘keep youth work safe’ in the current environment, conscious that the policy landscape is changing and will change again in the future.

• Commission’s role is to investigate the role of youth work and look at practical approaches and outputs i.e. the Commission is not looking to government to develop a new national policy

• We aim to produce our report by early Autumn to influence discussion at the Party Conferences

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Membership

• Tim Loughton MP, former Children’s Minister

• Baroness Beverley Hughes, Labour Children’s Spokesperson in the House of Lords

• Rosina St. James, Chair BYC• Damian Allen, Children’s Society• Ndidi Okezie, Teach First• Fiona Blacke, CX NYA• Yours Truly, ADCS and Bury Council

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Parameters

• Youth work in schools in the past has been seen as the ‘soft’ option, as something to do ‘instead of’ education and there was an agreed need to be clear that the commission is not specifically talking about a compensatory model.

• There was an agreement to clearly demonstrate the benefits, to enable education organisations such as academies to understand models that work. This will involve looking at best practice.

• There is a need to consider how youth work can support gifted and talented programmes as well as young people who find academic attainment more challenging.

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Approaches to the Work

• Survey – over 700 responses – thank you!

• Evidence Sessions – 2 days worth – wide variety of inputs from both youth and schools/colleges perspective

• Visits to see work in practice• Direct discussion with young people’s

groups e.g. UKYP

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Emerging Thinking

• There are some really good examples of work out there, much of which based on local inspiration and schools who “get it”, this can be either maintained schools or academies

• Youth workers have a distinctive role to play in schools/other learning placements

• Some work to be done around mutual perceptions for teachers / youth workers

• Mix of funding being used – usually short term

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• Venue is a consideration but not necessarily a barrier

• There are issues about career progression for school based youth staff

• Evaluation of impact is critical – especially if pupil premium is a funding source

• More to follow…..

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