The sector skills council wants the development of the new UK-wide standards to start "as soon as possible" next month.
The existing standards were approved in 2002. The council believes they are no longer fit for purpose, given the growing need for youth workers to work within integrated services.
The standards will define areas of common competence for the whole workforce.
A first draft will be produced in the next two months and be discussed at a series of consultation events across the UK. An interim report and draft standards will be sent to the National Occupational Standards board by the end of April next year, followed by a submission for final approval at the end of June.
Gill Millar, head of the regional youth work unit at Learning Southwest and a board member of Lifelong Learning UK, said: "Our qualifications are based on existing standards, so we probably wouldn't want to go too far away from this."
The deadline for tenders is Friday (24 November).
- www.lifelonglearninguk.org.
