Young people are becoming ever more central to youth work funding, whether applying for funds or controlling where the cash ends up.
The green paper outlined an opportunity fund, which will give young people direct access to up to 30,000 to spend on projects as they see fit. And the Big Lottery last week unveiled the Big Boost, in conjunction with social entrepreneurship charity UnLtd. It will provide a fund for 11- to 25-year-olds to apply for grants from 250 to 5,000 to become social entrepreneurs for their community.
Meeting audience needs
Involving young people at every stage of Big Boost is crucial if it is to meet the needs of its audience, says programme manager Kirsten Bradbury. "We have involved young people right from the beginning, from the development of the name of the programme, to the production of support materials," she explains.
"Young people will be part of the management steering committee which will monitor the Big Boost's progress and they are integral to the awards process. The awards for the 16 to 25 age range will be reviewed and approved by an awards panel made up of young people."
One project that has been involving young people for the past three years is the 4front Awards. Set up by Camelot, 4front works with about 18 young people a year, with a third of the group focusing on the grant-making process.
Eira Lloyd, 20, from Wales, was a member of the 4front panel in its first year. "We had about 24,000 to give away and set the criteria for the whole group," she says. "We decided that a five minute video application was best because it would encourage equal opportunities and young people can be themselves on film."
The BBC's Children in Need fund has been actively marketing vacancies on its regional committees to young people in places where they congregate, such as libraries, youth clubs and even mosques and churches. The committees meet twice a year for two-day meetings and members receive structured training.
Monica Brown is Children In Need's national co-ordinator for England. "We had one 21-year-old young carer who joined the Midlands and East committee," she says. "He was fantastic because he was able to look at projects aimed at young carers and see whether it would have worked for someone like him. We also had an 18-year-old young woman who was an ex-drug user from rural Cornwall who proved fantastic in assessing applications for that area because she knew the issues and projects well."
Tracking spending
Young people involved in grant giving also track how their money is spent. Twenty-one-year-old Neil Brimer is national trustee and chair of Northumberland and Tyne and Wear YouthBank. "We have projects report back to us after either three or 12 months and we also visit them because we don't want to become a faceless panel," he says.
Staffordshire Council of Voluntary Youth Services (SCVYS) launched a 5,000 grants scheme, The Great Giveaway, last month. The funds come from the county council's Transforming Youth Work budget. Barry Halls, co-ordinator of SCVYS, says: "We wanted to demonstrate that young people can be involved in decision-making.
"Connexions Staffordshire supported the move as part of the Hear By Right standards for participation," he adds. "We held a residential workshop in May for young people to learn about being a grants assessor, and a launch event in July with about 50 young people coming to learn about applying for grants."
SCVYS panel member, Anna-Marie Moorhouse, 19, helped set the application criteria. "Part of our criteria was to ask young people to subsidise their projects so they can learn about fundraising," she says. "They have to learn about research, costings and budget skills."
Young people respond well to having their peers assess their applications. Joseph Johnson, 24, received 3,000 last year from 4front to set up his Platform of Creativity youth development project in east London. "When I found out that young people were going to be the judges I thought it would be better because I'd rather young people told me if my project was needed than an adult," he says.
