Young people lukewarm about weekend opening

By Ross Watson Tuesday, 02 February 2010

A survey of almost 2,000 young people has triggered calls for a government rethink on recommendations for more youth service provision on Fridays and Saturdays.

Young people at youth club. Credit: Arlen Connelly

Research conducted by Wiltshire Council and shown to CYP Now, suggests young people would prefer youth clubs to be open between Monday and Thursday evenings. When asked to order each day of the week with a preference from one to seven, 81.4 per cent of the young people had Wednesday as their first, second or third choice, compared to only 37.7 per cent for Saturday.

But councils have been instructed to direct more resources for youth provision on Fridays and Saturdays, based on government research conducted among adults and young people in their communities.

David Whewell, Wiltshire's head of youth services and former chair of the Confederation of Heads of Young People's Services (Chyps), said: "Our findings do not reflect the picture presented by Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) research. We need to consider the implications this has on services for young people."

Susie Roberts, Chyps chief executive, said the findings place a question mark over the validity of the government's research. "There is definitely a need for a national debate and a larger sample of young people to be surveyed to inform policy direction," she said.

A DCSF spokeswoman said a survey of young people is currently being conducted, which is intended to provide a comprehensive picture of young people's views of youth provision.