Released during Youth Work Week (7-12 November), the report by Frontier Economics, commissioned by youth work charity UK Youth, states that every pound invested in youth work generates between £3.20 and £6.40 in benefits to the taxpayer due to the sector’s impact on improved societal health, increased employment and education, and a reduction in crime.
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Norfolk young people take the lead in commissioning their local youth services
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Combined voice on youth policy
Untapped: The Economic Value of Youth Work, calculates that the “wider societal benefits of government investment youth work” are at least £3.2bn, based on savings of £1.7bn from improved health outcomes through mental health interventions and substance abuse support, £0.8bn from increased youth employment and education and £0.5bn from decreased crime due to reductions in criminal justice costs and anti-social behaviour.
However, it highlights research carried out in 2020 by YMCA England and Wales which found that, in the last decade, the youth sector has faced spending cuts of £1bn.
UK Youth is calling on Chancellor of Exchequer Jeremy Hunt to invest in youth services in next week’s budget.
Ndidi Okezie, chief executive of the charity, said: “Youth work provides a safe, trusted environment for young people to discover their place in society, navigate the world around them and realise their full potential. This in turn has a huge impact on the work of other sectors including education, employment, health and social services. It is a multi-faceted force for social good.
“We cannot continue to ignore the transformational quality youth work can have across so many areas of a young person’s life. We are calling for an urgent, renewed, and radical commitment – from funders, the business community and government – to providing guaranteed access to quality youth work provision for all young people. This work is no longer just a moral good; unlocking youth work makes sound economic sense.”
Meanwhile, a separate report by the UK’s public services spending watchdog, the National Audit Office (NAO), on support for vulnerable adolescents finds that “when vulnerable adolescents are not identified and provided with effective and timely support the costs to society can be significant”.
“The government does not know the full costs of these adverse outcomes,” according to the report.
It adds that the government has “no overall strategic assessment of whether vulnerable adolescents’ needs are being addressed” which risks both gaps and overlaps in support for individual young people.
The NAO also finds gaps in evidence around what works to support vulnerable adolescents, stating: “These gaps in knowledge and lack of a strategic approach mean it is not possible for the government to know whether it is currently providing value for money and addressing the needs of adolescents as effectively as it could.”
Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said: “Providing the right support to young people at risk of poor outcomes is vital to prevent both harm to individuals, and considerable costs to society, yet gaps in evidence and data mean the government does not have the understanding it needs of this challenge.
“Without looking again at its approach, government may not make the best use of the funding it has to improve the chances of these vulnerable young people.”
