Labour East Midlands

Working hard for the people of the East Midlands

Derbyshire Labour Groups fight against Tory cuts to Youth Services

As one of many important services that Derbyshire County Council provides, its universal Youth service is vitally important.

For many years, the County Council has operated a youth service. This has been been run from youth centres, a fleet of mobile units, detached youth work targeting young people where they congregate and B Safe projects that help to combat under-age drinking and anti-social behaviour.

However, new proposals unveiled by the Tory County Council, outline plans to axe front-line services for teenagers and close youth groups and mobile services. These services are currently used by 30%, or roughly 18,000 young people in Derbyshire . Their proposals also include plans to either transfer or sell-off the youth centre buildings.

The proposals are based upon the assumption that voluntary organisations and community groups will step up and provide the youth activities instead of the Council, yet there is no evidence to support this at all. There are no plans detailing the recruitment, training and vetting of new volunteers or any figures given for the amount of money in the Youth Activities Grant Scheme which will be available for the voluntary groups to help with funding. To top it all off, up to 157 part-time youth workers have had their jobs and futures put at risk.

In response, Labour groups and young people in the county have launched the ‘Save our Youth Service’ campaign.

Labour Group leader Anne Western has said:

“The County Council Labour Group is determined to support Derbyshire’s young people in their campaign to retain the highly respected Derbyshire Youth Service."

She further added: “Under the Tory proposals 157 qualified youth workers will lose their jobs, and Derbyshire will lose their vast skills and experience."

The campaign aims to put pressure on the Tory County Council to change course and to not make young people bear the burden of austerity. Of all groups in society, the young have not in any way contributed to the financial crisis. Young people are already taking huge hits due to the youth unemployment being 22%, the trebling of tuition fees, the scrapping of the Building Schools for the Future programme, the scrapping of the Educational Maintenance Allowance, the cutting of B_line which gave students cheaper bus fares and now this. There is now a real risk of creating a lost generation of young people.

Please sign the online petition

A petition has begun on the Derbyshire County Council where members of the public can sign and show their anger towards these cuts to young people and vital services. The petition, started by 19 year old Katie Hanson, can be signed HERE.

Please join in the fight against these savage cuts to our services, young people and their futures!