Daily roundup: Trafficked children, Paralympic legacy and the Youth Contract

Children trafficked into the UK for sexual exploitation or forced labour are going missing from local authority care, a report by the Council of Europe has found. According to the research, trafficked children that are taken into care aren’t always placed in secure and suitable accommodation. It calls for better training for supervisors and foster carers. It also says further action is needed to strengthen investigations and prosecutions of perpetrators of child trafficking. Only 56 people were convicted of human trafficking in 2009 and 29 the following year.

Young disabled people are being invited to give their views on their hopes for the legacy of the Paralympic Games. Charity Whizz-Kidz is running the “Generation Inspired?” consultation until Christmas, with the findings set to form the basis of a manifesto to lobby those charged with delivering the Paralympic legacy. Ruth Owen, chief executive of Whizz-Kidz said: “It will be a hugely missed opportunity if we don’t capitalise on the legacy of the Games - and not just to create more access to sport, but to offer greater opportunity for young disabled people across all areas of society."

The effectiveness of the government’s £1bn Youth Contract has come under the spotlight after figures showed youth unemployment has risen for the first time since its introduction. The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) said that although there has been an overall drop in unemployment, there are still more than one million young people without a job. Tony Dolphin, IPPR chief economist, said: “With youth unemployment rising, questions will be asked about how effective the implementation of the government’s Youth Contract is proving.”

Citizenship education has a positive impact on pupil engagement and participation, an academic has claimed. A book by Ben Kisby, of the University of Lincoln, argues that government proposals to remove citizenship from the National Curriculum are wrong. “While citizenship education is certainly not a panacea to address the problem of political disengagement in the UK, there is good evidence that citizenship lessons do have a positive impact on pupil engagement in society, in terms of increased civic and political participation,” he said.

Four out of ten households are concerned about affording their energy bills this winter, despite millions of pounds of support going unclaimed from a government scheme. A group of organisations including the National Children’s Bureau is urging people to check if they are eligible for free heating and insulation improvements from the Warm Front scheme. The government is introducing changes today that will make more people and families with children, who are living on low incomes, eligible for the scheme.

A youth centre in Lincolnshire has been saved from closure by a local church, the Sleaford Standard reports. The county council has been inviting community groups to become actively involved with the running of youth clubs, but nobody came forward to take on the Sleaford Youth Centre, which was facing closure this autumn, until the church stepped in. Chris Huggins, youth leader at the church, said: “We did not want to see Sleaford lose its own youth centre.”