Research published by YMCA England and Wales in February 2023 found that spending by councils on services for young people fell from £1.46bn in 2010/11 to £377m in 2020/21, a drop of around three quarters (see graphics). Over the same period, spending per head on young people fell from £182 to £42 in England. Between 2010 and 2021, council spending fell every year but in there was a four per cent rise between 2020/21 and 2021/22 in both total spending and per head spending.
The same trends have been seen in spending in Wales, but to a much lesser extent. Total real-terms spending by Welsh local authorities has fallen 23 per cent since 2010/11, from £121 per head to £91 per head over the same period. Encouragingly, real-terms spending on youth services in Wales rose 12 per cent in the last year. For example, in Cardiff, the youth service has invested in digital provision and expanded its workforce (see practice example).
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