The National Youth Agency: My place

In this series we look at a range of generic and specialist youth facilities to encourage ambition and vision in support of Myplace bids, linking each to one of the programme's 10 key principles.

Local authority case study:

Leeds Integrated Youth Support Service

Key principle: Strategic context - responding to local needs and priorities within the context of a wider strategy for improving places for young people to go.

In February 2008, Leeds City Council approved the Integrated Capital Strategy for Youth Centres, which draws on a number of years' experience of capital investment in youth provision and is designed to enable quality integrated youth facilities to be established throughout Leeds. An Integrated Youth Support Service has been established to improve partnership working and services delivered to young people aged 13 to 19 (and up to 25 for those with learning difficulties and disabilities) and the city's Breeze Youth Promise has been developed to ensure all young people have knowledge of and access to the services available to them. The Integrated Youth Support Service is currently working in partnership with other city council departments and the charity 4Children to establish quality youth centres across the city. Partnerships are an important factor in the capital strategy and the Integrated Youth Support service works with a range of internal and external organisations.