Nat Wei appointed as adviser to government's Big Society programme

Wei will work alongside civil society minister Nick Hurd, to lead on the delivery of the flagship Conservative programme that was set out today by Prime Minister David Cameron.

As well as being among the first employee's of Teach First, a charity that identifies and trains top graduates to move to a career in teaching, Wei founded the social reform charity the Shaftesbury partnership, which was central in forming The Challenge, the prototype used by the Conservative's National Citizen Service scheme.

The Big Society programme paves the way for policies including the citizen service for 16-year-olds and support for more charity involvement in the running of public services.

Commenting on the programme, Cameron said: "Today is the start of a deep and serious reform agenda to take power away from politicians and give it to people.

"That's because we know instinctively that the state is often too inhuman, monolithic and clumsy to tackle our deepest social problems."

Supporting the proposals, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said: "We need radical change that puts power back in the hands of people. Only by bringing down vested interests and giving people real control over their lives will we build a Britain that is fair."

Earlier this year, CYP Now reported that Wei was a key personality likely to shape children's and youth policy under a Conservative-led government.

The Big Society policies include:

• Training a new generation of community organisers who will support the establishment of neighbourhood groups
• Giving communities a greater say over their local planning system
• Encouraging volunteering and involvement in social action, including launching a national Big Society Day
• Piloting the National Citizen Service, which aims to give teenagers from different backgrounds the chance to take part in a two-month summer programme including community involvement
• Supporting mutuals, co-operatives, charities and social enterprises to have greater involvement in the running of public services
• Funds from dormant bank accounts being channelled to a Big Society Bank, which will provide finance for neighbourhood groups, charities and social enterprises
• Increasing access to government-held data through a "new right to data" for citizens to ensure Government data is published. The police will be obliged to publish monthly crime statistics
• Extending powers for local government and conducting a comprehensive review of local government finance to help remove restrictions that limit the work of local councils