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Interview: Paul Oginsky, government adviser for the National Citizen Service

2 mins read Youth Work Interview
Chirpy, down-to-earth Scouser Paul Oginsky has for the past four years been youth policy adviser to his Old Etonian master, David Cameron.

Since the election, he has been given the official title of government adviser for its flagship youth programme National Citizen Service (NCS), although he continues to advise on all matters of youth policy.

Twelve consortia will test out the NCS programme with 11,000 16-year-olds this summer. Oginsky believes NCS is an opportunity for youth organisations "to galvanise the whole country behind youth".

"There's been a disconnect between youth and community," he says. "We talk about youth and community as if they're two different things."

The government wants every 16-year-old in England to take part eventually. But with an estimated 620,000 young people eligible each year, running costs could reach £700m to £800m a year. So how can the costs be justified? "If there wasn't an NCS, the same cuts would still be there," says Oginsky. "This is money that isn't from the education budget but was brought through the Cabinet Office."

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