Youth centre closures in Wales reach 100 since 2012

A conference staged by Unison Cymru heard that spending on youth services by Welsh local authorities has been cut by £6.1m in the last four years.

In addition to the closures, 360 jobs have been lost, of which two thirds were part-time vacancies mainly held by women.

Unison said that the mass closure of youth centres across Wales means a generation of young people are being failed.

It warned that 28 per cent of 16- to 17-year-olds and 12 per cent of 18- to 24-year-olds are unemployed and not in education, adding that experts have directly linked service cuts to an increase in antisocial behaviour and crime.

The union is now calling for fair funding for youth services, a statutory duty on councils to provide youth services and for the involvement and consultation of young people in determining the future of these services.

Dominic MacAskill, Unison Cymru head of local government, said: "At a crucial stage in their lives, young people desperately need the support well-qualified youth workers can provide.

"By forcing through savage spending cuts which devastate our local public services, the UK Conservative government is guilty of writing off the livelihoods and potential of so many Welsh youngsters."

Keith Towler, chair of the Council for Wales of Voluntary Youth Services and former Children's Commissioner for Wales, added: "Good youth work saves young lives.

"For many young people, the trusted relationship that they have with their local youth project helps them build resilience, self-esteem and find a professional response at times of crisis.

"It provides a safe place to meet friends, explore new experiences and allows young people to realise their full potential."

A spokesman for the Welsh Local Government Association, said: "Local authorities have faced significant cuts in funding during recent years and face a further £192m shortfall in the next financial year that will grow to £570m by the end of 2019/20.

"Local authorities take their youth services responsibility seriously, but inevitably the youth service is subject to the same budgetary pressures as every other aspect of local government provision."  
 
"There is a statutory underpinning to the youth service and authorities recognise the link between this service, educational attainment and wider community outcomes.

"Given the budgetary pressures therefore, authorities are increasingly seeking to work with partners and are looking at alternative models of delivery in order to manage the impact of budgetary pressures and seek to maintain youth services provision in our communities."