Youth work: Should youth workers need a licence to practise?

The debate over whether youth workers should be regulated by a licence to practise was reignited last week after Keith Brumfitt, director of strategy at the Children's Workforce Development Council (CWDC), said the workforce was not ready for it (CYP Now, 28 May- 3 June).

Brumfitt claimed that because of the diversity of the sector and the high numbers of volunteers, the introduction of a licence would be "premature".

But Doug Nicholls, head of the Community and Youth Workers' Union, says a licence could initially be introduced for qualified youth work professionals.

He says: "The professional staff in the youth work service want and deserve a licence to practise. Everything else from yoghurts to dog racing is regulated and licensed. But the most important service for children and young people is not."

Importance of volunteers

However, others in the youth work sector are more wary of this kind of regulation, saying it could deter volunteers or part-time workers.

Graeme Tiffany, vice chair of the Federation for Detached Youth Work, says: "It strikes me as just another form of bureaucratisation. What we need is recognition of our history and the reality that we have a lot of people who are not professionally trained but can make a great contribution to a mix of activities. I do believe in the importance of training our staff, but registration will make it more difficult for people."

Leon Coates, a director at Amaze, the Association of Christian Youth and Children's Workers, says that while it is good to establish standards that make workers aware of best practice, a licence could deter volunteers.

He says: "A lot of the work is voluntary and you don't want to dissuade people from it because there is too much red tape."

To strike the right balance between standards and openness, Coates says a scheme such as its We Love Our Youth Worker campaign - based on seven promises churches commit to follow when employing a full-time youth worker - would work better than a licence.

FOR - TOM WYLIE, former chief executive, the National Youth Agency

Having a licence to practise is, of course, required of those who teach our young people. It is also expected of college lecturers and social workers. Bizarrely, one is now required for nightclub bouncers and wheel-clampers. But not of youth workers: anyone can call themselves a youth worker and many do.

As a result, young people, their parents and our communities are not properly protected from miscellaneous miscreants, including those who would abuse the young, or recruit them into extremism, or those who are just charlatans with more enthusiasm than skill and those who are actually coaching sport.

Some say the youth work field is simply too diverse to license and certainly one hesitates to place any more hurdles before those who volunteer. Parts of the voluntary sector have, regrettably, been too ready to resist regulation. Others, such as the Scouts, have always seen the importance of the careful scrutiny of those it appoints to work with young people and a good system of subsequent training to enable them to undertake different roles in the organisation.

Some, such as the YMCA, have a long tradition of providing, as well as requiring, professional training in its staff.

How can we build on these and other existing features in the youth sector?

First, each organisation should establish its own "fit and proper person" test for its leadership. This would set out the standards it specifically requires of its leaders at any level, including volunteers.

Second, all should subscribe to a statement of ethical principles. The National Youth Agency created one several years ago. This should be updated.

Appropriate qualification

Third, all those who are engaged to work professionally in youth work should be required to hold an appropriate qualification, the so-called "licence to practise". A variety of routes to this qualification are now available. All are shaped by a set of National Occupational Standards, which detail the skills needed for youth work.

This qualification could go on to specify competence in particular areas, for example detached work, or with particular age groups. Based on the Joint Negotiating Committee agreement, the institutions that offer these qualifications throughout the UK already have independent, external validation of their courses. There should be a requirement to renew the licence every few years following in-service training. The state should protect the title of youth worker in law and there is a case for having a professional body to maintain the standards set.

The CWDC declares its commitment to raising standards in the workforce. Why is it dragging its feet on doing so with youth work?

AGAINST - Susanne Rauprich, chief executive, National Council for Voluntary Youth Services

We believe that instead of formal recognition of youth work as a profession, enhanced status for youth workers and better outcomes for young people, the introduction of a licensing scheme would in fact achieve the opposite.

It would divide the workforce, act as a barrier for volunteers - many of them young people - and instead of achieving quality provision for young people would lead to a reduction in services.

The history of youth work shows that it is individuals who apply basic youth work principles and skills that make the most difference. They build relationships that support, challenge and inspire young people and they often come from young people's own communities.

Youth work is not just a graduate profession that can be licensed. Youth work offers a way for many to take an active role in the informal education of young people.

Attracting a diverse range of backgrounds means youth work allows communities to collectively take responsibility for young people and ensure that they are respected and engaged.

Not too long ago we talked about the youth service as a continuum of providers spanning different sectors. We talked about a partnership between local authorities and the voluntary sector. We talked about youth workers as volunteers as well as graduates employed on a full-time basis. We acknowledged that for youth work to be effective, it had to be grounded in communities and offer opportunities for community representatives to take a share in youth work delivery.

Alternatives to a licence

There are a range of alternatives to licensing - all better suited to the unique role that youth work plays in the lives of young people.

For example, the introduction of social pedagogy as a professional discipline would offer a widely recognised professional identity for those youth workers that we need to provide the most skilled support.

Greater emphasis on quality assuring organisations would ensure they have everything in place to provide the support that youth workers need to be effective in their jobs.

The National Council for Voluntary Youth Services' own idea for an accreditation scheme, which would be voluntary in take-up, would provide a mechanism for volunteer workers to gain accreditation and be rewarded for achieving a required level of training. Our proposal also recommends the creation of a framework for existing training and accreditation schemes provided by a range of organisations.

Licensing will create a club for a tiny proportion of youth workers. We cannot afford such a club but must instead make sure that youth work remains open and accessible to everybody.