The Youth Matters green paper is heavy with promise but light on detail when it comes to the voluntary sector, and this uncertainty, coupled with a certain similar vagueness in Every Child Matters, is causing voluntary organisations some extreme concern.
At Young People Now's Children's Trusts for Young People conference earlier this month, Dr Chris Hanvey, UK director of operations at children's charity Barnardo's, said the voluntary sector offers a "Martini" culture of "anytime, anyplace, anywhere", and warned against losing this unique role.
Against transition
"Much of the voluntary sector depends on statutory funding, and the voluntary children's sector wonders if it will be left out in the cold or forced to fit into the statutory sector," he said. "The voluntary sector can be free from statutory burdens, work earlier in terms of prevention and intervention, and reach out to young people and families who don't want officialdom."
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