Poor transport, lack of facilities and the need for outreach work have always made rural youth services expensive. With forthcoming cuts to local authority budgets, those working in the sector fear youth work will be an easy target.
"People don't expect there to be issues for young people in rural areas so they're easy to cut," says Denise Sore, senior policy officer for the Commission for Rural Communities. "If a village is lucky enough to have a youth service, once that's cut and you haven't got transport, there's little more on offer."
Outreach cuts
Around 2.2 million children aged from birth to 19 live in England's rural communities. Of these, 39 per cent of secondary school pupils travel more than 4km to their nearest school, compared to 0.5 per cent for urban children, and the distances for accessing youth services are similar.
Some areas in Cumbria have no public transport. Young Cumbria, the largest youth work provider in the area, has overcome the problem by providing a mobile youth bus. The bus travels from schools to villages offering information and advice. Other areas have similar approaches, but in Shropshire the bus was the first service to go. "Outreach services cost more money so they're easier to cut," says Sore.
All of Cumbria's youth services are commissioned out to voluntary organisations. Cath Clarke, chief executive of Cumbria Youth Alliance, will this week meet with Cumbria County Council to discuss where cuts will fall. Youth services have already had to make an in-year reduction of three per cent and are expecting transport and Connexions services to suffer most from future cuts. Connexions is the main contract holder for the delivery of youth work in the area and oversees a consortium of 42 organisations. "I have extreme concerns of what the future will hold," says Clarke.
She worries that cuts will force a shift from universal to targeted youth work. This might leave young people in Cumbria's marginalised communities without support. She says the voluntary sector is not in a position to replace commissioned services.
"We're seeing cuts from charitable trusts," she says. "Organisations that rely on a volunteer workforce, in many ways, are better quipped to weather the storm, but that doesn't mean they'll have access to qualified youth workers."
Alternative organisations
Membership organisations such as the Young Farmers' Clubs (YFC), provide an alternative to rural statutory services. Open to young people up to the age of 27, older members provide transport for younger ones. "Things like YFC end up being the lifeblood for places like Cumbria," says Clarke. Jodie Stirrup, youth work development officer for the National Federation of YFC, says the organisation is expecting more members as a result of cuts. However, Clarke and Sore both agree that this may not be the answer for all young people. "Not everyone would choose to be a member," says Sore. "There's a need for targeted work where people have the skills to deal with young people at risk - YFC is not set up to do that sort of thing."
RURAL ISSUES
- Transport The biggest challenge to youth service providers
- Lack of facilities Many youth clubs charge a small entry fee to cover hall hire costs, but some areas have no local facilities
- Unemployment Labour Force Survey shows 86,000 16- to 24-year-olds in rural areas were unemployed in 2009
- Internet Just 1.5 per cent of villages and hamlets have access to high-speed cable-based broadband, meaning many young people are isolated from opportunities
