Analysis - Policy: Information and guidance - Helplines told toraise their game

In Youth Matters: Next Steps, the Government says it aims to merge existing youth information, advice and guidance services into a "simple and innovative" internet and helpline service for young people.

But with its own youth helpline Connexions Direct under internal audit for allegations including making up details about calls and cutting calls short to meet information and time targets, the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) has a tough task on its hands to ensure a clean and solid foundation on which to build (YPN, 20-26 September, p5).

The current scrutiny of essentiagroup's handling of the Connexions Direct contract suggests two challenges facing those running young people's helplines for the Government. Criminal Records Bureau checks are not legally required for call centre staff but are called for by DfES guidelines: one challenge is ensuring they are carried out and recorded in a working environment that is heavily dependent on agency staff. The second challenge is helping young callers with complex needs, while meeting targets to answer as many calls as possible in as short a time as possible.