EXCHANGE The voluntary and community youth sector in dialogue
Winter 2013 Issue 17
Workforce Development: The Shape of Things to Come News: New Qualifications New Thinking New Challenges Policy: Raising the Participation Age (RPA) Youth Report Articles by: Institute for Children, Youth and Mission Young Advisors Institute for Youth Work Open University – Children’s Research Centre Ground Works Real Partners UK Youth Save the Children
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Contents NCVYS news
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Network news
5
Membership news
6
Opinion piece
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Policy update and analysis
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ENVOY update
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Institute for Youth Work
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Catalyst Consortium
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Equality and Diversity
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Ideas Bank
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Young People’s Health Partnership
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Achievement Coaches Groundwork 15 Leadership and Innovation
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International Links
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Humanitarian and Leadership
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Heads up
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EDITORIAL Welcome to Issue 17 of Exchange magazine
The theme of this edition of Exchange is Workforce Development: The Shape of Things To Come At the time of writing this editorial I am sitting in the kitchen at home, as once again the rail network in the South of England has let me down. It gets me thinking how lucky I am to work for an organisation that has clear policies for working from home and more importantly that they value the need for flexibility in this modern work environment. For me this is where infrastructure organisations like NCVYS can help, as they have the opportunity to take an overview of the sector, explore good practice, lead change and disseminate – which is exactly what we hope to do in this edition of Exchange. It also gets me thinking about how the term workforce development has changed from when I began, no longer seen as just training often associated with a statutory responsibility, but diverse, innovative and a key part of any organisation’s sustainability and business building process. I hope that articles written in this edition reflect some of this diversity and innovation as they focus on lessons learnt from the Catalyst Consortium and its legacy. We talk of legacy a lot in this edition because it is really important that we recognise what has worked and also what hasn’t. It is often so easy to finish a piece of funded work and then move onto the next, leaving behind good tools that have been developed, but not realised their potential – more often because we no longer have the capacity to deliver. To reflect as a partnership and continue to grow beyond any activity is really important, as it embeds notions of sustainability and enables growth from within the sector. This leads me on to thinking about the role of youth workers and the importance we should be placing on developing their skills and knowledge for the challenges of the future. I note in recent reports that youth work is being valued across other sectors, but do we need to better articulate our worth as a profession? How do we measure the impact of our interventions on young people – a thorny question that we started to address through the Catalyst Consortium when we asked The Young Foundation to develop a Framework of Outcomes for Young People (http://youngfoundation.org/ publications/framework-of-outcomes-for-young-people/). However, we need to do more to develop this work and continue the dialogue. I recently read that the National Youth Agency’s Commission into Youth Work in Education found that good youth work can help improve attendance and behaviour, promote achievement and improve home and community links (here is the link to the full report: http://tinyurl.com/lamkqu3). So how do we capitalize on this? Should we wait for the next funding stream or should we decide to come together and make something happen? The report goes on to consider the importance of informal and non-formal learning, again an area where we as a sector should be leading the way. The continued drive for social action and the inevitable need to capture the learning for young people in a meaningful way draws me to think of the work of the Awards Network a few years ago and how now, more than ever, it is important to work in collaborative ways to ensure we do not reinvent the wheel. I hope you enjoy reading this edition of Exchange and as ever, we welcome contributions from our members for our next issue of Exchange, so if you’ve got news or ideas for an article, get in touch with us by emailing press@ncvys.org.uk Thanks and enjoy the read. Isabelle King NCVYS Sustainability and Innovations Manager
NCVYS NEWS NCVYS launches new Member Benefits Guide NCVYS’s new Member Benefits Guide outlines NCVYS’s products and services, member-to-member deals, and discounts from other NCVYS partners. It provides a clear summary of the benefits of being a member of NCVYS. If you would like to offer a discount or deal on any of your own products and services to other members within the NCVYS network, then please email Nichola Brown, Membership Services Manager, at nichola@ncvys.org.uk. Nichola will then include this information in future editions of this bi-monthly guide. tiny.cc/mbg_sept13
NCVYS Affiliate Service NCVYS can provide access to a bank of professionally qualified and experienced sector specialists through our new Affiliate Service. We can support you with areas such as: how to develop new business through training, how to open up new unrestricted funding opportunities, brokering partnerships, service planning, marketing and social impact work, and outcomes measurement. Infrastructure members may use the Big Assist funding to buy-in this service. Sector specialists can be brought in to your organisation as you need them, or over a longer period of time via a retainer package. tiny.cc/ affiliate_news
Keeping it Safe Safeguarding Standards and the Sound Systems Accreditation Quality Mark relaunches November 2013. NCVYS has been working with Members to ensure the popular Keeping it Safe safeguarding standards are updated in line with current good practice, updating guidance and legislation. Feedback from the last few years has indicated we needed to strengthen three core elements of the standards in the areas of, working together, e-safety and guidance around the new DBS framework. We have also consolidated the original six standards into four again to reflect the complex world we live in and to ensure progression routes and pathways from Safe Network guidance. For more information on how to Register to complete the standards please follow this link: http://www. ncvys.org.uk/Safeguarding.html
Active Citizens NCVYS is once again delivering the Active Citizens programme. The British Council’s Active Citizens programme is a community empowerment and social action programme that builds lasting partnerships between communities in the UK and others around the world. Through a programme of training, community development and international exchange, 4
Active Citizens aims to equip community leaders with the intercultural values and skills needed to help them engage with and build meaningful links with other cultures. This autumn we shall begin working with 30 young people aged 18-25, providing them with free accredited training to enhance their leadership, inter-cultural and project-management skills. They will have the opportunity to meet with other young people from all over England working on similar issues, to increase knowledge of how to influence change. In January, three participants have the opportunity to take part in an International Study Visit in Sri Lanka to learn from others’ social action projects and to meet Active Citizens participants from around the world. Other participants will be able to help NCVYS host Active Citizens participants from around the world between 8-15 February. www.ncvys.org.uk/Active_ Citizens.html
Get Set To Make a Change NCVYS is part of an exciting new programme which provides opportunities to young people to gain skills and build on the legacy of the Olympics. Funded by the Big Lottery, Get Set To Make a Change will build on the magic and power of the Olympic and Paralympic Games by empowering young people to work together to make a positive change in their communities. Young people will develop leadership skills and receive support for the delivery of social action and volunteering projects linked to sport, healthy eating and healthy balanced lifestyles. We have been encouraging our members to register teams of young people and adult leaders to attend local training roadshows, which took place during October and continue throughout November. At the roadshows, young people get the chance to meet an Olympian or Paralympian and learn how to plan and deliver community projects and events. tiny.cc/getset_news http://www.makeachange.org.uk/
Creative Collisions – youth sector conference We hope that many of you will have benefited from attending this year’s annual youth sector conference, which took place on 6 November in London. The conference provided a unique opportunity to learn, share and come together to create positive ways to support young people in the UK today. The conference was jointly organised by The Foyer Federation, Leap Confronting Conflict, London Youth, NCVYS NUS, NYA, UK Youth and vInspired. NCVYS also held its AGM during the event. We had an impressive list of speakers including the Minister for Civil Society, Nick Hurd.
NCVYS Young Partners Award 2013 This year’s NCVYS Young Partners Award took place at the lavish Plaisterer’s Hall in London on Saturday 19 October. The ceremony brought together organisations and projects across the country to celebrate, reward and share the partnership work between young people and adults. This year we were on the lookout for organisations that worked and supported young people in the following categories: Arts and Culture, Media, Social Enterprise, Community Action, Health and Wellbeing and Environment. 18 organisations were shortlisted and six came through as winners and received a number of prizes including £500 grant towards their project. To find out more about the NCVYS Young Partners Award check out our website here: www.ncvys.org.uk
New members join the network! NCVYS is pleased to welcome the following new members:
Blastbeat Education UK Is an award winning, fun and exciting music and multimedia business programme offered to young people around the country to teach social entrepreneurial business skills, promote young musicians, and support youth communities on a local and national level. They work with around 2,500 young people per year. www.blastbeat.org
Basti Ram Is a Trust which works to address poverty and social issues in India. It creates volunteering opportunities among young people in the UK and in India. They seek to accredit much of the young people’s learning while they are on volunteering placement. UK volunteers take part in short-term volunteering visits to India – teaching English, working in primary schools, nurseries and orphanages. www.bastiram.org
YoungMinds Is a UK charity committed to improving the emotional wellbeing and mental health of children and young people. They campaign, research and influence policy and practice and provide expert knowledge to professionals, parents and young people through their Parents’ Helpline. In addition they provide a range of online resources, training and development, outreach work and publications. www.youngminds.org.uk
NETWORK NEWS NCVYS delivers bespoke training courses Did you know that NCVYS delivers bespoke training courses at competitive rates on various topics? Training is delivered either by experienced NCVYS staff or by one of our skilled training affiliates who have extensive experience in the voluntary and community and statutory youth sectors. We also have a pool of talented young people available to work as trainers or affiliates. We deliver training on safeguarding, coaching, mentoring, leadership, management and youth participation. www.ncvys.org.uk/Train.html
Skills Platform Skills-Third Sector is expected to launch this month (November), The Skills Platform – an online space where you can find and compare the high quality skills services you need. If you are looking for training, this is an ideal resource to use. Training providers will also be invited to advertise on this marketplace. www.theskillsplatform.org
Funding Workforce Development Funding remains one of the biggest barriers to workforce development, which is why last year NCVYS published its 5th edition of the Funding Guide for Workforce Development, which has received over 19,000 web hits! The guide is aimed at employers, training providers and learners who work with children, young people and families in the VCS. There is still much information that is current and relevant within the guide such as details of charitable trusts that support workforce development and a section that provides low and no-cost alternative to support learning and development. http://bit.ly/fundguidewfd For the latest information on funding for workforce development you can either sign-up to receive monthly Funding Updates from NCVYS (it contains a section on workforce development funding) and/or receive NCVYS’s bi-monthly workforce development news e-bulletin Snippets. Email mail@ncvys.org.uk to register for either of these bulletins.
Sector plays a key role in skills provision The Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) has published Third Sector Engagement and Participation in the Learning and Skills Sector. The report found that the third sector has a considerable role in learning and skills provision, particularly in relation to the most disadvantaged and excluded groups of learners. It also found that the sector delivers high quality learning and is able to operate successfully at community and subregional level. It also identifies some of the major challenges which prevent the sector from making a greater contribution including: the introduction of minimum contract levels; and a lack of funding for overhead costs. http://tinyurl.com/nplrbvq
UK Voluntary Sector Workforce Almanac 2013 The UK Voluntary Sector Workforce Almanac 2013 is a website which draws upon a decade’s worth of data to explore how the sector’s workforce has changed. The 15 themes within the website explore the main traits of voluntary sector employment, covering its size and characteristics, the nature of working conditions within the sector, and the levels of skills and training across the sector over the period 2001-2011. This research has been produced by Skills – Third Sector, NCVO and the Third Sector Research Centre (TSRC), all working in partnership. http://tsrc.ac.uk/Research/WorkforceandWorkplace/ Newwebsitechartsvoluntarysectorworkforce/tabid/1004/Default.aspx
Practice Sharing – learning and development NCVYS is reminding members that they can pick up tips on how to support, train and develop staff and volunteers by reading practice sharing examples available on the NCVYS website. These have been written by 15 Workforce Development Champions from voluntary and community organisations (VCS) throughout England, who work front-line with children, young people and/or families. www.ncvys.org.uk/practshar.html
Traineeships Back in January NCVYS responded to the government’s discussion paper on Traineeships and is pleased that this new programme for 16-23 year olds is a reality. Traineeships are for young people who want to work, but who need extra help to gain an apprenticeship or job. Traineeships will give these young people the opportunity to develop the skills and workplace experience that employers require. http://www.education.gov.uk/ childrenandyoungpeople/youngpeople/qandlearning/traineeships
Apprenticeships remain a popular choice for young people
Report on skills and leadership in the social sector Leading Social has published Dame Mary Marsh’s review of skills and leadership in the social sector. The report says more must be done to open up the career paths for young people and recommends collaboration between employers on training and mentoring, and increasing the number of apprenticeships and traineeships for 16 to 19-year-olds. http://leadingsocial.org.uk
Research commissioned by the National Apprenticeship Service (NAS) found that 54 per cent of young people in England would choose an apprenticeship if one were available. This rises to 56 per cent for those who are already university students and 66 per cent of those who are already employed, but receiving no training. For organisations interested in recruiting apprentices, NAS has confirmed the extension of the £1500 apprenticeship grant for employers who recruit 16-24 year old apprentices. http://www.apprenticeships.org.uk/news-media/ latest-news/article353.aspx
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MEMBERSHIP NEWS Young Advisors Awards give us all something to celebrate! Teams of Young Advisors (YAs) from around the country recently gathered in the beautiful peakdistrict village of Castleton for their AGM and National Awards Ceremony, showcasing a year of exciting work which should give us all cause to celebrate! The award categories were: Best New Team, Best Partnership, Best Project, Lead of the Year and Young Advisor of the Year. Nominations were made by the Young Advisors themselves and then the final decision was made by the young people who are trustees on the Board of the National Charity. The Best New Team went to Merton Young Advisors, who have been working hard to ensure that young people’s views are represented as part of the “Rediscover Mitcham” regeneration project. The team, in their first 12 months of operation have met with MPs, conducted research on the communities’ attitudes to crime in the area, contributed towards the allocation of Merton’s Early Intervention and Prevention Funding for organisations providing youth provisions in the Merton area, and managed to run a number of community and publicity events. The Best Partnership award showcases work Young Advisors have undertaken with other organisations in the community to improve things for young people, and the judges were spoiled for choice with the projects on offer. The prize went to Sheffield YAs for their work in developing an ongoing partnership with the local Safeguarding Board tackling issues as diverse as Fake IDs, illegal tattooing and the rising popularity of “legal highs”. The Safeguarding Board said, “This partnership just has to be recognised for the excellence it has shown in its commitment to promote the voice and influence of young people. Through its work, local children are able to make more informed decisions about their behaviour and choices, making them safer in Sheffield.” The Best Project prize also highlighted the range and quality of work undertaken by Young Advisors in their communities around the country, however, the first prize went to the Southwark team for their ongoing and innovative work with a range of local partners addressing community safety, gang violence, bullying, domestic abuse to name but a few! The team won the plaudits of local councillors, who said,
“We’re not the future, we’re the present! We’re making things better right now!”
“The project has been really good at working with local partners including the police, tenants and residents groups. The workshops have tackled issues which are often challenging in the area and while there are lots of difficult things about working in an area like Bermondsey, the project has also been able to celebrate the fantastic and positive contribution which young people make.” The awards left everyone feeling exhilarated. The range, quality and innovation demonstrated in the projects showcased that young people’s contributions to their communities easily match. As one Young Advisor put it, “We’re not the future, we are the present! We are making things better right now!” More information about the work of Young Advisors teams can be found at www.youngadvisors.org.uk.
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NCVYS Young Partners Award NCVYS were proud to deliver another year of celebrations at our annual Young Partners Award ceremony, continuing our celebration of partnership, innovation and collaboration. Launched in 2001, the Young Partners Award recognises showcases and celebrates the excellent work organisations across the country do to ensure young people are involved at all levels of decision-making. NCVYS would like to thank everyone who has taken part in this year’s and previous year’s awards. Every organisation has shown great examples of youth participation and how important it is to connect young people and adults, create partnerships and continue working together. The winners of the Young Partners Award receive a free year’s NCVYS membership along with a £500 grant to develop their project as well as other prizes. The winners of this year’s Young Partners Award are: Health and Wellbeing: Change UR Mind Change UR Mind is the mental health youth board for the North East. Hosted by the Regional Youth Work Unit – North East and supported by Young Minds, the board aims to provide support, guidance and representation to young people living in the North East between the ages of 11 – 25 years who have, or know someone who has, mental health issues. Media: Sounds Positive Project (Learning South West) Sounds Positive is run by young people for young people. It provides training on how to contact the media, help writing press releases and support on writing articles where young people give their views on local or topical issues. A young person delivers the media training and so far 706 young people have completed it. Community Action: Sefton Young Advisors Sefton Young Advisors are paid, trained and professional young people, aged between 15 and 21, who show community leaders and decision makers how to engage young people in community life, regeneration and renewal. Young Advisors are professionally trained to provide links between professionals, young people and their communities, ensuring that plans and delivery are relevant and respected. Arts and Culture: Young Peoples Charter for Arts and Culture The Young People’s Charter for Arts (YPCAC) started life within the wider NEGeneration programme, which was the Legacy Trust UK programme for the NorthEast linked to the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 with the aim of creating a shift in the way the arts and cultural sector in the North East worked with young people. Environment: ECO NSU ECO NSU is a student led environmental volunteering programme, ran by Northumbria Students’ Union. The programme is led by a volunteer leadership committee, whose membership is a mix of mainly young people but mature students also. The Leadership Committee decide on the programmes direction, its’ priorities for the year and its’ budget. The programme exists to support students to form their own projects to lead on environmental activities they are passionate about. Social Enterprise: The Canal Boat Adventure Project The Canal Boat Adventure Project, set up in 1976, is based in the deprived borough of Halton, near Liverpool. In 1976, seven local young people were invited to restructure this project so that it met local need. A failing school, unreliable public transport and a lack of local youth provision, made them jump at this chance.
OPINION Faith based work is controversial, and rightly debated. That’s why training is crucial, that’s why we do it. Faith based work with young people is a controversial area. Recent stories in the press alert us to this fact. First, the recent census showed that participation in churches is declining in most parts of the UK – and associated activities for young people are therefore increasingly ‘under resourced’. Secondly, there is the ‘dropping’ of God from the promise pledges made in the Scouts (following the way lead by the Guides last year). The role of faith in some of our historic youth movements is ‘under review’. Thirdly, a report by the National Secular Society into Christian charities engagement in schools has been the focus of attention as I write this. The role of faith based organisations in public work is ‘under pressure’. This might seem an odd place to start an article on training. However, despite being under resourced, under review and under pressure faith based provision for young people – Christian youth work as many involved see it – is a key part of the landscape of work with young people and as such an area that needs training and support. This is the context in which my organisation is trying to make a difference.
“The Institute believes that life affirming, life enriching and life transforming work among children and young people is a critically important task.” The Institute for Children, Youth and Mission believes that life affirming, life enriching and life transforming work among children and young people is a critically important task. As a Christian charity our work is primarily directed towards preparing and supporting work within the church, or charities that have Christian foundations. However, whether such work is directed to seeking the common good of all, or in seeking to nurture children and young people in Christian communities we exist to sure this work is prioritised, performed well and passed on. We undertake this through providing high quality, practical, theological and professional training. Our programmes and projects are delivered through a network of Centres and Agencies across the UK. These programmes focus on the task of enhancing the capacity, credibility and creativity of Christian work among children and young people and their families and communities. This is undertaken in relation to wider policies and frameworks for work with young people, but is a distinct contextual expression of how this should be undertaken.
We go about this task in three ways. First, we have developed a suite of training from level 3 to level 7 that provide volunteers, workers and professionals with the opportunity to develop a considered understanding of the motivation and purpose for their work. Secondly, all our training is firmly set in practice – long term secondment or work based learning. This means that learning is very much grounded in experience of how one is expected to fulfil the key professional competencies expected for work with young people. Much of our classroom or tutorial training is based on reflections on this practice.
“This connected, contextual and conversational approach to training is the only sufficient approach that young people themselves deserve.” Finally, we see our role not just as being work with learners, but to actively support and enhance the agencies we partner with as places for work based learning. Part of this is an attention to basic standards of policy and practice, but what is just as important is developing a conversation about how they see their work with young people developing. We set up conferences and seminars that help the churches and organisations that employ staff, or deploy volunteers, reflect on some of the controversial, and crucial questions that surround faith based provision. This connected, contextual and conversational approach to training is the only sufficient approach that young people themselves deserve. It requires a high degree of dedication from our learners – over 250 on FE courses and 200 in HE. Faith based work is controversial, and rightly debated. That’s why training is crucial, that’s why we do it.
Dr Nick Shepherd is CEO of the Institute for Children, Youth and Mission. See www.childrenyouthmission.org for further information or to email comments and questions.
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Policy Analysis There is, of course, plenty going on in the policy world around training, learning and development. In particular 2013 is the year that Raising the Participation Age (RPA) has finally come into effect, meaning that young people must continue in education or training until the end of the academic year in which they turn 17 from 2013 and until their 18th birthday from 2015. Also new for this academic year is the requirement that all pupils who fail to achieve a grade C or higher in English or Maths GCSE must continue to study the subjects in post – 16 education until they get these qualifications. As Barnardo’s have highlighted, additional support will be needed to help some of those young people who will now be staying on in education and training. Local authority readiness for these changes is mixed. The government has published new statistics showing that 88% of 16 and 17 year olds were in education or training as of June 2013, but they also show that some local authorities were unaware of the activity of up to 22% of 16 and 17 year olds. The government has been keen to make sure (RPA) is not just seen as the ‘school leaving age’, making it clear that participation can mean education in FE colleges or other training providers, or employment apprenticeships and internships which include training. Its publication, Top tips for local authorities implementing Raising the Participation Age, may support them in doing this. For voluntary sector employers, this means that from 2013 there is a duty on any 16 or 17 year old offered employment or a voluntary or internship opportunity to be participating in learning. That learning can be provided by the employer or an external organisation, but must be in order to gain an accredited qualification. The law does not require employers to ensure their employees, volunteers or interns participate. Careers guidance has also been in the news, with a new report from Ofsted finding that arrangements for careers guidance in schools are not working well enough. Detailed research from The Pearson Think Tank, Careers 2020 Phase Two – A cloudy horizon, supports this conclusion and finds that overall provision is declining with a particularly marked drop in work experience, individual career counselling and careers fairs. The government has responded by publishing a careers guidance action plan and an Inspiration vision statement, which include a commitment to revise the statutory guidance for schools. It has also announced an extra £20m of funding (though only for 19-23 year olds) for the new Traineeships programme to support young people into apprenticeships and other jobs. With work experience seen as an important area, the government has recently published advice for post-16 education and training providers to help them deliver quality work experience post-16. The advice, informed by an NFER evaluation, emphasises the value of work experience to all learners’ journeys – whether doing A-Levels, vocational qualifications, apprenticeships, traineeships or supported internships. It notes that factors influencing the success of work experience placements include effective co-ordination, good matching of students to placements, flexibility in timing and the preparation of students. With the recent promotion of Skills Minister Matt Hancock (from a more junior ministerial post) and the findings of a large-scale OECD report showing that England is the only OECD economy where the average skill levels of 16 to 24-year-olds are no better than that of 55 to 65-year-olds, it is likely skills policy will not stop evolving anytime soon.
Policy Update On 9 July NCVYS launched Youth Report, a new intelligence hub focussed on young people. It will be the place to go for data and statistics on young people and youth services as well as those looking for information on current youth policy initiatives and youth research. It will provide a knowledge bank for effective youth support practice and impact. At the heart of Youth Report will be a website making existing intelligence more accessible. Youth Report will work in partnership with youth organisations to establish a hub for evidence on what works that can be accessed by both commissioners and providers of youth services. The aim is to improve youth provision by giving local authorities and providers clear information on what outcomes can be achieved. It aims to help make the argument for greater and more intelligent investment in youth services, based on best possible evidence. During August and September NCVYS organised a series of roundtable events to garner support for Youth Report and help shape the initiative. Since then we have been developing our thoughts, meeting with key stakeholders and preparing Youth Report 2013, the first output of the project, to be launched at the Creative Collisions Conference in November. Look out for this and further details of the development of Youth Report, coming your way soon.
Campaigns, briefings and consultation responses In recent months we have signed NCVYS up to a number of important campaigns. The Energy Bill Revolution is calling for more support for the 1 in 5 households in the UK now in fuel poverty, many of which contain children and young people. The Give More campaign is asking everyone in the UK to make a public promise, a pledge, to give more of their time, money or energy to a cause or charity they care about this year. Who Benefits? is a campaign to give a voice to the millions of us who have been supported by benefits at some point in our lives – using real stories to show the public, journalists and politicians the reality of who needs help, why they need it and the difference that it makes. We also continue to support a number of groups calling for changes in Bills currently passing through Parliament. This includes the Standing Committee on Youth Justice – which is focussing on the Antisocial Behaviour, Crime and Policing Bill – and Participation Works, which is submitting amendments to the Children and Families Bill. We also added our support to a letter from NCVO about the Transparency of Lobbying Bill, expressing concern over proposed changes to the non-party campaigning rules. We worked with YouthNet to pull together a response to the Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee’s inquiry into Online Safety. We noted that proposals being developed to ensure the safety of children and young people online – particularly the imposition of default filters at ISP level – run the risk of simultaneously denying access to vital support services to those they seek to protect. In July we published a briefing on the Spending Round 2013. In particular it noted that funding of £56m for the Office for Civil Society will be maintained and the number of places on the National Citizen Service will increase to 90,000 in 2014, 120,000 in 2015 and 150,000 in 2016. To find copies of our consultations, briefing and policy papers mentioned in this article, please take a look at the Influencing Policy pages of our website: www.ncvys.org.uk/influencing.html If you would like to inform to find out more about this work, please contact Dom Weinberg, Policy Manager: dominic@ncvys.org.uk
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Envoy “It is essential that young people are supported to gain the basic skills they need to engage”
Developing Employability Skills for Young People Nearly a million young people aged 16-24 in the UK are unemployed or not in education, yet at the same time employers are reporting huge difficulties in recruiting people with the right skills. For those young people who are unable to find work for an extended period of time it becomes increasingly difficult to break this vicious cycle. There are various arguments that finger point the blame for the growing skills gap at different parties; the most prevalent are Schools, Parents, Youth Clubs or The Government. Regardless of who is to blame the key priority going forward should be working together to ensure that young people are gaining the fundamental employability skills required by businesses such as basic people skills, marketing and sales expertise and financial understanding. The issue was brought to the forefront of our work by the young people on our youth forum ENVOY (Enthusiastic National Voice Of Youth) after it was chosen as the area they most desired skills development and training. This served to shape the pilot sessions, structure and delivery of this year Summer Residential that took place in August at the Danbury Centre.
honest experience of a job interview with comprehensive feedback on their performance. They experienced being on both sides of the table during an interview which highlighted the importance of body language and mannerisms. We are not alone and there are a variety of other projects that are working to support Young People to develop their employability skills. Barclays LifeSkills project also offers a good range of online resources around numerous skills and areas. With the Conservative party’s new election plan to scrap JSA (Job Seekers Allowance) for under 25’s that are not in training or employment it is essential that young people are supported to gain the basic skills they need to engage instead of being left in the cycle of poverty. Why not visit www.barclayslifeskills.com If you’re interested in information around any of the residential sessions then please contact: envoy@ncvys.org.uk Article by Chloe Donovan, Young Facilitator for the East of England and Development Officer for Young People’s Skills.
After completing a Learning Needs Analysis with a small group of young people we tailor made a variety of sessions and workshops around different aspects of employability such as CV writing and job searching, interview skills and learning styles. A popular session delivered by Gary Buxton from the Young Advisors looked at their personality, characteristics and learning styles through the Myer Briggs technique. The Young People felt they learnt a lot about themselves in this session as it helped them to think about education and career paths as well as interpersonal skills. Everyone found the results very accurate but Gary emphasised that results can vary at different stages in your life and are subject to change. The session that was most successful in terms of personal development, particularly for those with minimal job experience, was a session around interview skills. This session run by NCVYS aimed to give them a realistic and
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CRITICAL EXCHANGE
Join the Institute for Youth Work! Are you working with young people? The Institute for Youth Work has now launched as an inclusive membership body for youth workers, providing a voice for their views and supporting members to reach the highest professional standards. Registration starts from as little as £10 a year and if you sign-up before the 31st of December you will receive a second year’s membership completely free!
In addition to an Executive Committee, IYW members will have a range of opportunities to shape the work of the IYW. Elections will take place at the end of year one for members to join an Advisory Council who will advise and advocate on behalf of the membership in areas such as CPD, ethical principles and governance. Although the NYA is initially funding the IYW to cover start-up costs and admin, the expectation is that the institution will become financially self – sustaining through on-going membership.
Why do we need an Institute for Youth Work?
Membership is available to all individuals who are working or volunteering with young people and can identify with the ‘code of ethics’, which sets out a framework of principles and values that all IYW members are required to share,. The code provides a common point of reference for the IYW so that practitioners from diverse backgrounds can identify whether it is right for them to join. The code itself was developed between January and July 2013 with an open invite for consultation. This took place through a series of three workshops involving 50 organisations; 11 written contributions from agencies and practitioners; and discussion in an online group. Feedback was considered by the IYW steering group and a final ethics statement developed. During the first year of IYW, this statement will be reviewed within a wider framework of ethical texts.
Youth work has regularly been dubbed ‘the profession without a voice’ as it is all too often compared with other professional occupations and misunderstood based on misconceptions and the lack of a singular professional body to represent it. Definitions of youth work and/or work with young people have at times confused both practitioners and the wider community they serve. A changing landscape has led to a decrease in government-funded youth provision, reductions in local authority budgets (affecting directly delivered services and those supported through grants and partnership funding with the voluntary and community sector), increasing multi-disciplinary team working and the commissioning of youth work into business and community sector. This has meant that youth workers are engaging young people in a range of environments, sometimes working in isolation with other professionals, both in paid and voluntary roles. Ideas of an Institute for Youth Work have been talked about for many years and the current landscape particularly highlights the urgency to better clarify the importance and purpose of working with young people and provide a vehicle of support for the practitioner at the same time. Widespread consultation into the need for a professional Institute for Youth Work (IYW) was initiated by a consortium of organisations including the National Youth Agency (NYA), National Council of Voluntary Youth Services (NCVYS), the Social Enterprise Coalition and the Young Foundation. During consultation, 92% of respondents considered the IYW to be a ‘positive’ development and, when funding ceased it was agreed that the National Youth Agency would continue the work of the consortium to develop the IYW. Until membership develops sufficiently to initiate election processes for the IYW Executive Committee, the already-existent NYA Education and Training Standards Committee will oversee and support the IYW development. This committee has broad representation from voluntary sector umbrella organisations, the business sector, regional youth work units, training agency groups and fieldwork representatives.
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Who can become a member and what will they gain?
The IYW recognises that youth workers operate in a variety of contexts with different roles and experiences and therefore four categories of membership with affordable annual fees have been created; • £10 volunteer • £15 student • £20 member • £40 certified member Those who are undertaking voluntary work with young people can sign-up as a volunteer whilst individuals who are studying a youth-related programme will become a student member. General membership is open to all those working with young people whilst certified membership is currently available to individuals who are JNC-qualified with one year’s practice upon completion of their academic course. There are plans in place to extend this category to those who can demonstrate effective youth work practice experience through the ‘My IYW’ facility, a working group is currently being identified to explore this option for the IYW membership. Employers are also able to support the IYW by registering as an ‘organisational supporter’ which entitles the organisations’ employees to 50% discount and has already been pursued by organisations such as the Scouts and a number of universities.
Once registered, members will have access to a whole range of CPD opportunities including discounted training courses, tool-kits for effective practice and youth work publications. There will also be an online portal (‘My IYW’) which will enable members to record and document learning such as attendance on training courses, face-to-face delivery and informal CPD. Individuals will receive a certificate of achievement at the end of the year which will document completed CPD as an assurance for members and employers. The IYW will provide members with unlimited access to a range of discussion boards with opportunities to share best practice, engage in conversation and network with youth workers from across the country. Individuals will also benefit from hearing about the latest campaigns, the chance to explore potential placement opportunities and receiving the latest policy and news updates from the youth work sector. These are challenging times and the Institute for Youth Work is just beginning. It is our passion and commitment for working with young people that will drive this forward and ensure its future success.
Students say “YES” Students can join the IYW from as little as £15 and Mike Powers from the University of Chester explains why he decided to register: “I’m a third year student and I joined the Institute for Youth Work because I see it as very important to immerse myself in the profession completely whilst still having the support of my lecturers should I come unstuck. The Institute itself is a great idea and I have been a supporter from the beginning. Signing up to the code of ethics and being integrated with the rest of the profession before qualifying will make for a much smoother transition into the working world and will ensure that we all meet the standards required from the start of our careers. It will also expose us to a variety of thoughts and opinions, broadening our understanding beyond that of the course lecturers. The access to continual professional development is also something that I see as key to being a member of the institute. This will allow students like me to complement their studies with outside courses, which not only further our knowledge and understanding, but add much more value to our overall development and increase the employability of members once they graduate.”
CRITICAL EXCHANGE
Catalyst Consortium The Legacy Catalyst was a consortium of four organisations working with the Department for Education (DfE) as the strategic partner for young people, as part of the Department’s wider transition programme for the sector. The consortium was co-ordinated by the National Council for Voluntary Youth Services, (NCVYS) and included the National Youth Agency (NYA), The Young Foundation, and Social Enterprise UK. The consortium began to deliver its plan in April 2011 and completed in March 2013. Catalyst worked to deliver three key objectives over a two year period under three strands: Strand 1 – worked to strengthen the youth sector market by establishing a social finance retailer; developing social franchising for the youth sector; providing education on social finance/investment readiness programmes; and developing a framework for impact measurement – Young Peoples Outcome Framework. What you said: The activities have most importantly started the conversation within the sector and wider. There is now a strong demand for a continuation of the learning developed and continued interest in the Framework of Outcomes for Young People and its practical application. The Social Enterprise programme “has been an incredible journey, we completely addressed who we are and our aims looked at our business model and we have now started pitching to organisations. That would never have happened without this
process...there has been a huge amount of learning. We could easily have gone under, we’d hit a wall we didn’t really understand social enterprise – we now have a sustainable way of growing and opening avenues to social investment”. ‘Young Peoples Outcome framework is a crucial and valuable document for the youth sector’. Strand 2 – to equip the sector to work in partnership with government by representation of key issues to government, brokering opportunities for young people to shape policy that affects them and coordinating information resources across the youth sector and sharing these out in a usable way. What you said: It is evident from the online survey and stakeholder interviews that the Strand 2 activities were valued particularly in terms of making it easier for organisations to access digestible policy updates: “Policy updates, weekly or monthly have been incredibly useful and helped me to work smarter not harder. I know other colleagues in our sector appreciate that as it can take massive amount of time finding the bits that are relevant to you.” However, more needs to be done to continue to develop the Strand 2 offer into one that is ‘saleable’ and can accommodate the increasingly localised policy focus. For further details on our new intelligence hub focused on young people called, Youth Report, please visit: http://tinyurl.com/nbfps2s Strand 3 – to coordinate a skills development strategy for the youth sector’s workforce, by facilitating collaboration, so that skills development is coherent and owned by the youth sector; and by developing
sector skills so that all youth sector practitioners are skilled (appropriate to their role and proportionate to their responsibilities) to allow them to be effective in meeting the needs of a diverse range of young people. What you said: External evaluators identified that activities under this strand have helped to enhance the capacity for some organisations in terms of communicating the importance of workforce development for paid workforce and volunteers and on a practical level through the delivery of CPD opportunities and the development of the new Level 2 qualification. “Excellent. Has brought the youth sector together and offered a platform for improvement and collaboration. NCVYS should continue this good work… it’s been very valuable and a benefit to young people at this difficult economic time.” “NCVYS is pretty much our ‘go to’ organisation if we need help and support with anything to do with youth work training at a national level and the help we’ve received has been really beneficial.” Under Strand 3 NCVYS worked with seven training partnerships to increase their ability to bid/tender for skills funding from a range of sources, and to develop a sustainable business model. At the end of their journey, five partnerships were at or very close to ‘contract-readiness’. L2 Award and Certificate in Working with Young People – Stakeholders involved with the pilot commented that they valued the flexibility of the qualification compared with the Award/Certificate in Youth Work as it was relevant for those working with young people in a diverse range of settings and provided a good gateway into youth work. Continued overleaf
Catalyst Case-Study: Getting ready for growth! Replication in action through workforce development online in 3D Hao2.eu gets ready for growth by investing in workforce development of their young trainees, staff and volunteers using their award winning online 3D cloud technologies 2013 has been an exciting year for Hao2.eu. After participating in the NCVYS Catalyst Replication in Action programme, Hao2.eu successfully tendered to become a HM Government Cloudstore supplier. It now has a framework agreement with the British government helping the public sector to become digital by default and is creating vocational training and employment opportunities for young people with disabilities in the process! Nicola, CEO and founder of Hao2.eu, is clear that success to date has been because Hao2.eu has prioritised inclusive innovation: ensuring its young trainees and staff have the skills and confidence they need to take a leadership role in the design and delivery new ways of learning and working using digital technologies. In times of austerity and recession, many organisations cut investment in workforce development but Nicola attributes Hao2.eu success to bucking this trend. “The reason we won the Nominet Internet Award 2012 was because our young team successfully created products and services that overcome barriers to participation facing young people with complex support needs or hidden disabilities such as autistic spectrum conditions. “
“Participating in the NCVYS Catalyst Replication in Action programme earlier this year, helped us enormously, improving our skills and confidence in planning for growth.” explains Nicola Herbertson, CEO and founder of Hao2.eu. “And it helped us quickly realise that our future success will also depend on our continued investment in workforce development.” And that is exactly what Hao2.eu are now doing. Through an WCVA ESF funded “Digital Highway” programme in Wales and in partnership with Beacon Education Partnership, Hao2.eu is now setting up a City and Guild satellite centre so that it can now offer its staff, trainee and volunteers access to nationally and internationally recognised workforce development qualifications. Blending the benefits and affordances of using avatars and our online 3D Cloud Campus 3D product with traditional approaches to training and development, is proving to be a highly effective. Not only is this proving to be a highly engaging and cost effective way for Hao2.eu to train and meet the workforce development needs of its young people but its also proving to be a very cost effective way for Hao2.eu to engage with and building the capacity of employers, partners and the public sector. Hao2.eu are keen to share good practise with other organisations to ensure that young people and other organisations can benefit from the benefits of workforce development online in 3D Nicola Herbertson – Director Hao2.eu Ltd nikki@hao2.eu 11
Continued from page 11 “There seems to be more awareness of formal training opportunities and apprenticeships within the working with young people sector because of Catalyst.” Institute for Youth Work – see article on page 10 although this work is still on-going, feedback from most stakeholders suggests that they feel it is moving in the right direction: “That work is going to continue as part of the legacy of Catalyst so we have moved from do we want one, to when we have one so there has been a real mind shift.” The delivery of CPD opportunities for trainers has continued to be successful within the second year of Catalyst delivering in excess of 400 opportunities (more than double of the original target.).It is apparent
from comments made by participants that this has been a valuable service enabling access to opportunities to enhance the skills of their workforce that would otherwise have been impossible due to financial constraints. Because of this the Institute of Youth Work is building a significant CPD portfolio to meet the Youth work sectors needs for 2013 onwards.
It is clear that different, innovative approaches will need to be developed to ensure that voices are heard in the future. Collaboration has been a strong aspect of Catalyst and it is likely that much of its legacy will depend upon the continuation and development of those relationships and the formation of new ones to access new markets and sustainable funding.
In Summary
For further details please contact: Isabelle@ncvys.org.uk
Capacity is the aspect where the Catalyst activities appear to have had the most impact particularly with regards to some organisations involved with Strand 1 and Strand 3 activities, as they have begun to change their thinking on funding models and how they approach workforce development. However it is very clear that more work is needed in these areas to support the on-going process of change.
Work delivered by Catalyst – A summary and link repository for all work carried out by Catalyst both reports and publications: http://www.ncvys.org.uk/ index.php?alias=Catalystworktodate
EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY A Novel Exploration of Inequality How can young people and youth workers who recognise the importance of tackling inequality and exclusion engage others who may not have paid the same attention to these issues? Cambridge University’s Education Faculty and the Equality Trust have come up with a new way to raise interest and prompt discussions about the need for equality, democracy and cooperation. Henry Tam’s novel, Kuan’s Wonderland, is being promoted to schools and youth organisations to bring serious political ideas to wider notice.
Kate Pickett (Co-author of The Spirit Level: why more equal societies almost always do better): “Kuan’s Wonderland is a didactic novel that doesn’t hesitate to entertain the reader. It shows that political theorists can engage a wider public with an imaginative medium such as popular fiction without losing intellectual force.” This project provides an opportunity to: Use Kuan’s Wonderland as a platform for group discussion on equality and democracy. Submit reviews to be shared by the Cambridge University and the Equality Trust with others across the country. Devise action plans to promote equality and cooperation in your community (with advice from Cambridge University available).
The novel takes the form of a gripping adventure set in a surreal world. Suitable for anyone aged 15 and over, the storyline takes the reader through a roller-coaster ride of plot and emotional surprises, while it weaves together a fable about the threats posed by growing inequalities.
Teachers can request a free pdf version of the novel for use at their school. All they need to do is contact the author, Henry Tam, at: hbt21@cam.ac.uk. Alternatively, readers can download their own e-copy for 99p from Amazon to their Kindle, iPad or any computer device with a Kindle app.
A learning resource produced to accompany the novel can be downloaded for free from the Equality Trust: http://www.equalitytrust. org.uk/sites/default/files/Kuan%27s%20Wonderland%20 Resource%20guide.pdf
If you would like to take up the above opportunities, please contact Henry Tam on hbt21@cam.ac.uk or via Twitter: @HenryBTam
This new approach has been widely praised and supported by: Julie Thorpe (Head of School & Youth Programmes, the Co-operative College): “It is vital that young people understand the problems of power inequality if we are to bring about change and Kuan’s Wonderland offers a unique, imaginative, way of introducing them to the issue. We highly recommend it!” Rachel Roberts (Director, Phoenix Education Trust; & Supporter, Student Voice): “Kuan’s Wonderland and the resource guide which accompanies it … [provide] an innovative and valuable way of engaging young people to explore issues surrounding equality and democracy in a way which speaks to them.”
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Dr. Henry Tam is the Director of the Forum for Youth Participation & Democracy at the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge. More information about his works can be found at ‘Henry Tam: words & politics’: http://www.hbtam.blogspot.co.uk/
Ideas bank Empowering Children and Young People as Active Researchers
NCVYS Affiliate: Di Collins Outdoor Learning can begin at home: Developing a Sense of Place
At the Open University’s Children’s Research Centre, we are passionate about enabling children and young people to have a research voice in society. It was very exciting to be given the opportunity to work with ENVOY members and to provide them with skills to carry out research projects important to them.
A major part of working with young people is concerned with facilitating the exploration and development of their identities. These identities can be closely bound with place. My identity is closely related to the places that members of my family and I have referred to as ‘home’, places to which I have a sense of belonging. These places have stimulated my development into an outdoor educator and enthusiast. They feed my enthusiasm for adventure, offering physical and creative challenges, as well as providing opportunities for relaxation and reflection.
The Children’s Research Centre (CRC) was established in 2004 with the aim of enabling children and young people to have a research voice in society and to make valuable contributions to knowledge from their perspectives. Through the CRC, children and young people are supported to understand about research and research methods, to carry out their own research and to disseminate their findings to a wide audience. Since its launch in 2004, the CRC has worked with several hundred children through links with schools, youth organisations and charities nationally and internationally. A group of six ENVOY members joined Professor Mary Kellett and me for a day’s training session in Lincolnshire in April. The enthusiasm and energy of all the young people about the prospect of carrying out their own research was certainly warming on a cold, damp Spring day. Mary led a comprehensive training session exploring what research is and why research is important. Through a series of group exercises we examined the importance that research must be ethical, sceptical and systematic. Together we looked at the different methods of data collection, from designing questionnaires to how to carry out interviews and focus groups. The ENVOY members had a range of exciting topics which they were interested in researching and the training session ended with formulating their research questions and creating a plan to start their research. There is a great depth in the variety of research projects amongst the ENVOY members and the range of different methodologies they have decided to employ. The range of topics include:
However, unless we work for an organisation that specialises in informal learning in the outdoors, incorporating outdoor learning into our curricula can be fraught. There are health and safety and insurance issues, as well as the need for additional outdoor specific qualifications. In addition, the costs of venturing to another location can prove prohibitive.
“We have worked our socks off, but the effort has definitely been worth it! The outcome of our results is absolutely amazing!”
Is the perception of young people portrayed by the media shared by the public, how youth organisations contribute to the self-development of young people, young people’s participation in their local communities and boys involvement in dance clubs? Aimee Knights and Ashleigh Daly worked together on a research project exploring how effective their charity, Children’s Coach, is in building self esteem amongst six and seven year olds: “We have worked our socks off, but the effort has definitely been worth it! The outcome of our results is absolutely amazing! We wanted to carry out our research to find out how much of a difference we make in our local community in greater depth. We have learnt loads through the training session and gained new skills which will use later in life. We have met inspirational and amazing people along the way who have been really supportive and helpful. We hope to use our research with our organisation, The Children’s Coach, to go forwards, to promote our organisation and to become more known for the work that we do to help, support and guide the young people in our local community to become confident young people. We feel really privileged and grateful for this opportunity as it has helped us greatly, and feel that we have benefited from it.” With the tools and skills acquired from the training day, the ENVOY members involved have independently carried out their research. The CRC has provided ongoing support with the ENVOY members’ research, providing the young people with the skills necessary to analyse their findings and writing up their report. The majority of ENVOY members are now in the final phase of writing their research report. The reports will published on the Children’s Research website which reaches an international audience. www.open.ac.uk/researchprojects/childrens-research-centre Emily Mann – CRC Consultant
I have recently prepared for a Japanese delegation to NCVYS. I was to speak about informal learning, outdoor learning and youth work. In seeking common ground and a starting point, I researched aspects of Japanese culture, which might have parallels with or contribute to our work with young people in the UK. I was struck by the concept of ‘huudo”, in which aspects of the cultural landscape support the development of an understanding of and belonging to place. Stories associated with that place and the relationship between human, nature and spirit are interwoven (Kameoka, 2009; Maeda, 2005). In my work, I often encourage young people to develop their own fictional and factual stories associated with place. They sometimes recall these stories and the positive emotions associated with the story creation, as they reflect on what is happening to them in their lives. This does not necessarily entail travelling to some distant location. I have prompted them to think about how they can make their home location an even better place in which to live. I am conscious that it is too easy to start from a negative stance, hence my choice of words. Thus, outdoor learning can begin at home. The additional expenses of gaining specific outdoor qualifications, insurance and travel can be avoided. The outcomes might contribute to a shift in attitudes, as the young people explore and develop their identities and associations with place. References Kameoka, Y. (2009) Cultural dimensions of outdoor education in Mt Koya, Japan: Co-existing patterns of universalist and local outdoor education approaches. http://www.latrobe.edu.au/education/downloads/2009_ conference_Kameoka.pdf Downloaded 29.09.13 Maeda, K. (2005) Community-based outdoor education using a local approach to conservation. http://www. freepatentsonline.com/article/Australian-Journal-OutdoorEducation/146935733.html Downloaded 29.09.13
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PRACTICE DEVELOPMENT
The Young People’s Health Partnership The Young People’s Health Partnership (YPHP) is a seven-strong consortium of organisations working with the Department of Health, Public Health England and NHS England as strategic partners to raise the profile of the health agenda across the voluntary youth sector. The partnership will champion young people’s health needs whilst providing a conduit for youth organisations, the state and young people to work towards reducing health inequalities. The partnership is led by the National Council for Voluntary Youth Services (NCVYS) and includes, Addaction, the Association for Young People’s Health (AYPH), Brook, CLIC Sargent, StreetGames and Youth Access. Key priorities • improve the voluntary sector ability to influence health and wellbeing services for young people • give young people a voice and opportunity to participate in health and wellbeing policy • ensure health and wellbeing policy and practice meets the needs of young people • empower young people to be independent users of health services available to them • act as champions for young people’s health and wellbeing. “NHS England and our partners is passionate about young people that is why we are working with the Young People’s Health Partnership to make sure young people get a better deal from health and social care services. Our system partners, Department of Health and Public Health England are working with us to help join up the system so it makes sense for younger patients. We encourage members of the NCVYS network to work with the strategic partnership to help improve health outcomes with us for young people.” Olivia Butterworth, Head of Public Voice, NHS England
About the partners The National Council for Voluntary Youth Services (NCVYS) The National Council for Voluntary Youth Services (NCVYS) is the leading representative body for voluntary and community youth organisations working with or on behalf of young people in England. NCVYS supports a diverse network of 300 members, including regional and local networks. NCVYS has been working since 1936 to raise the profile of youth work, share good practice and influence policy that has an impact on young people and the organisations that support them. Addaction Addaction works locally by brokering partnerships to support the range of young people with whom they work. Nationally they also develop partnerships to evidence best practice and influence the commissioning and delivery of young people’s services. This approach has given them extensive links with specialist and universal children, family and adult services and clients in the schools, primary health and criminal justice sectors. They are active participants in national forums such as the Youth Taskforce and the Transitions2Adulthood Alliance. Association for Young People’s Health (AYPH) Association of Young People’s Health (AYPH) brings together 850 professionals and organisations across the UK to improve young people’s health and well-being. They aspire to develop high quality practice, working through their networks to: • promote more effective communication between practitioners; • improve access to information, resources, innovation & best practice; • promote evidence-based practice through research; • raise the profile and understanding of young people’s health needs. Brook Brook is the UK’s leading provider of sexual health services and advice for young people under 25. The charity has 45 years’ experience of working with young people and provides free and confidential sexual health information, contraception, pregnancy testing, advice and counselling, testing and treatment for sexually transmitted infections and outreach and education work, reaching more than 290,000 young people every year.
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CLIC Sargent CLIC Sargent is the UK’s leading cancer charity for children and young people and their families, providing clinical, practical and emotional support to serve 2000 16-24 year olds diagnosed with cancer. Their support services begin from diagnosis, helping the whole family deal with the impact of cancer, its treatment, life after treatment and, in some cases, bereavement. They also campaign to raise awareness of the needs of children and young people with cancer and improve the support they and their families receive. Focus areas include specialist information support and help with social isolation, education and employment issues. StreetGames StreetGames is a sports charity that changes lives and communities. They do it by supporting a network of projects that give sports and volunteering opportunities to young people in disadvantaged communities across the UK. Doorstep sport is StreetGames’ delivery method, whereby they bring sport close to the home in disadvantaged communities at the right time, for the right price, to the right place and in the right style. The aim of each StreetGames project, accredited by StreetMark, is to be sustainable and become part of the fabric of the community. This leads to stronger and safer communities, a championing of social action and volunteering, as well as improved health and wellbeing. Youth Access Youth Access is the national membership organisation for young people’s information, advice, counselling and support services (YIACS). YIACS provide a holistic response to young people’s social, emotional and mental health needs through a range of services provided ‘under one roof’, including social welfare advice, advocacy, counselling, health clinics, community education and personal support. Their members respond to over one million enquiries a year on a diverse range of issues, including homelessness, benefits, debt, mental health, sexual health and relationships.
Contact Email: Faiza@ncvys.org.uk Twitter: @YPHealth
PRACTICE DEVELOPMENT
Achievement Coaches Groundwork The world would be a much simpler place if all children entered school at five and emerged at 18 with a clutch of A-levels ready to go to university or take up a promising job opportunity.
“Studies have found that disadvantaged young people receiving mentoring support are more likely to thrive and improve their academic performance.”
Of course it’s not like that. One size will never fit all when it comes to helping young people to fulfil their potential. A raft of external forces can have a negative impact on their chances, but the net result is usually the same – a disconnection from the mainstream and a crippling lack of aspiration. Studies have found that disadvantaged young people receiving mentoring support are more likely to thrive and improve their academic performance. However, what makes an effective mentor is poorly defined, leading to difficulties in identifying and replicating good practice. At the same time, spending cuts are reducing the scope and quality of mentoring provision. One of Groundwork’s guiding aims is to help people reach their potential. Our youth and community workers are experienced in building relationships with “hard to reach” groups and engaging them in worthwhile projects.
To take part in the programme, young people must be: the same time we are enabling the development of a competence framework and qualification for practitioners and a training programme for volunteers, which will offer a model for others in the youth sector. There are 11 Achievement Coaches projects across the country – 10 supported by the Department for Education (DfE) and one by the Burberry Foundation. The ambition is for the programme to be scaled, commercialised and marketed as a service which could be commissioned in future on a results basis.
To this end, we have been testing an integrated approach to education and employment support together with signposting to “wraparound” services. In our trials, 70% of students who would previously have been likely to withdraw from education have completed their studies.
Groundwork is identifying and recruiting staff to act as Achievement Coaches – youth practitioners with expertise in youth work, advice and guidance, careers advice and coaching – who will manage a caseload of young people, helping them to access relevant activities, support and opportunities, and assisting their personal and learning progress. Groundwork will also recruit local volunteer coaches with relevant expertise.
Based on these tests, we have launched a new Achievement Coaches programme to build on this local experience and deliver at national scale. At
Staff from Burberry will act as volunteer coaches with young people near to the company’s Keighley and Castleford operations.
• 11-17 years old (i.e. secondary school aged, following the raising of the participation age) • Referred by a school, pupil referral unit or other educational establishment • At risk of under-achieving (indicators could include poor attendance, behavioural problems, mental health problems, low educational attainment, personal or social problems). Groundwork’s partners in the project are the Brathay Trust, which will provide volunteer training, and FPM, which will develop and deliver a Level 4 Certificate and Diploma in Achievement Coaching for Young People. The programme is scheduled to run until March 2015. By Sir Tony Hawkhead Chief Executive Groundwork UK www.groundwork.org.uk
Qualification News NEW Units added to the L2 Award and Certificate Working with Young People framework – Two more Awarding Organisations have applied to carry this qualification as part of their portfolio, making even more training providers able to deliver to employers and young people. Update: OCNWMR have developed a L1 Working with Young People qualification with some interesting new units in; Building relationships with young people; beliefs and values; personal and professional boundaries and ethics. There are also new Level 2 units in; Enterprise activities, understanding gang culture, working with adolescents and working in partnership. Update: ABC are in the process of updating and enhancing their framework to deliver new units in: Provide information to support clients to overcome barriers to learning and work; Support clients to apply for learning and work; Engaging with young people (L3); and Supporting young people in the development of employability skills.
NEW: NCVYS are working with members to develop a new Level 2 Award in Young Leaders, launching in January 2014. Please contact Isabelle@ncvys.org.uk if you would like to help. NEW: Twelve Workbooks have been written to support the L2 Award and Certificate in Working with Young People – see below for contact details NEW: Introduction to Working with Young People, a Non accredited framework developed under Catalyst, in partnership with ASDAN. Its primary audience is for young people and volunteers to gain a basic introduction to the skills and knowledge needed to work with young people. It is completely compatible with the L1 and 2 Working with Young People Award and Certificate. NEW Ilm Endorsed Advanced Programme– Managing Safeguarding Practice in the Voluntary Youth Sector This programme has been specifically designed by NCVYS and members to support managers,
trustees and designated safeguarding officers working in a young people based environment who have responsibility for either the day to day running of the project/organisation OR who are supporting managers with implementing safeguarding practice. The qualification is delivered over three days with an additional 15 hour assignment which completes the programme. NEW NCVYS are now delivering bespoke training courses at competitive rates on various topics e.g. safeguarding, coaching, mentoring, leadership, management and youth participation. Training is delivered either by experienced NCVYS staff or by one of our skilled training affiliates who have extensive experience in the voluntary and community and statutory youth sectors. We also have a pool of talented young people available to work as trainers or researchers. Further information: www.ncvys.org.uk/Train.html. For more information please contact Isabelle@ncvys.org.uk
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LEADERSHIP AND INNOVATION Unleashing the shackles: Leaders of Youth Organisations develop an Open Source community These are exciting and challenging times for the leaders of youth organisations. There is massive potential and an opportunity for everyone involved in the third sector to come together to lead the effort to shape a modern mixed economy, to engage with issues of fair trade and environmental responsibility, create authentic work and tackle social justice to a make a real difference. The recent Youth Organisation Social Enterprise Leaders’ Programme, which was commissioned as part of the work of Catalyst and delivered by Real Partners CIC, provided a tailored programme designed specifically for 35 leaders of youth organisations, charities and community organisations. The programme was designed to inspire and equip talented people from any sized organisation with the tools to address the challenges within the sector and create sustainable youth organisations. The programme focussed on leading, managing, marketing a vibrant and scalable organisation fit for the future. Learning was centred around three cohorts who worked together to meaningfully explore current issues, increase their leadership capability and organisational capacity to ensure they could enhance every area of their business model and maximise potential to deliver social value and return on investment. The Catalyst programme finished in April 2013 and it became abundantly clear from the feedback from many of the participating leaders that they wished to continue to learn from each other and create further
value from the content of the programme by forming a network that could exist beyond the work that was funded. To that end 16 leaders signed up to the network and are a passionate about unleashing the shackles from the youth sector through an innovative programme of open support and enterprise development which will facilitate real independence. They know that effective social enterprise leader cannot just to wait for Government to act, but must do what they can for themselves. It is early days for the newly formed Open Source Youth Leaders Community to determine how they can work together to reshape services and reinvest significant resources to where they are most needed. They understand that they need to think differently and more innovatively and that working together makes so much sense if they are to have a commercially viable proposition that is sustainable in the long-term. Open Source communities are beginning to spring up in a number of sectors and are operated on a number of simple principles: that learning and knowledge content should be free and open for use and re-use; collaboration between participants should be easy; individuals (and organisations) should get credit and publicity for contributing to research, content production, design and delivery; that concepts and ideas, services and programmes are linked in unusual and surprising ways and, finally, that new membership to the community requires authorisation and sign up to the principles of reciprocity completely.
The Mosaic Workforce
In everyday terms, borrowing from an Apple slogan, the best Open Source models can be described as allowing its members to prosper because of a greater opportunity to “Create, Rip, Mix, and Burn”. • Create: to create content and resources and contribute them to the repository • Rip: to replicate existing materials and resources and customise them • Mix: to mix the resources together in collaborative work spaces to offer new content • Burn: to create together original finished products and services for re-sale Pro-activity is key to Open Source working, youth organisation leaders must come together and take action from within, create innovative approaches together and put pressure on Government to respond to the demand for a truly mixed economy, one which stretches further than current dominance of the public and private offerings. When both the collective voice and resources of frontline organisations are used together they are immensely powerful. Now is the time for great social enterprise leadership and now is the time for the leaders of youth organisations to flourish. Michelle Livingston michelle@realorganisation.co.uk Real Partners CIC
Typical Workforce Disconnection Negativity
Frustration Differences Confusion
What if everything and everyone worked well together? In 2012, Susan Popoola brought together her significant knowledge gained from 15 years of experience in a book called Consequences: Diverse to Mosaic Britain. Susan has worked on numerous private, public and voluntary sector human resource and community-related projects, empowering people and organisations through practical business solutions with a human perspective. In the book Susan advocates the need to go beyond the diversity argument to inclusive workplaces that take account of differences whilst at the same time integrating to realise the optimal value that all employees have to offer and thus creating a Mosaic Workforce. Since, Susan has not only received an award as an author, she has gone on to develop The Mosaic Workforce Model which aims to reward inclusion and engagement with optimal value and return. The Mosaic Workforce Model is not about diversity strands, rather the Mosaic model views organisations as systems with values hopefully shared by its people. Most of these people want to fit in and be accepted – the mosaic model aims to highlight the shared values and similarities that people have; to recognise the value that people bring to an organisation; enabling them to work effectively within the organisational system for optimal results. Also identifying the bottlenecks, blindspots and distortions that may get in the way. Susan hopes the model will be especially beneficial to organisations facing concerns such as high levels of staff turnover; skill shortages and a need to attract the right people; tension within the workforce; and uncertainty around managing a young workforce. http://mosaic-britain.susanpopoola.com/home 16
Disengagement
Distortion “Us” “Them”
Bottlenecks
Discord
Isolation Mistrust
Blind spots Dissatisfaction Detachment
Resentment
Mosaic Workforce Respect
Satisfaction Common Goals
Support Shared Vision Inclusion
Ethos & Values
Integration
Productivity Commitment Engagement Acceptance Enthusiasm
Fulfilment “We” Loyalty
Brand Ambassadors
International links Jeanna Park, UK Youth’s Education Training and Development Officer has returned from Guyana, where she trained volunteers to run UK Youth’s Youth Achievement Awards. I travelled for 18 hours to Guyana via Trinidad to train and prepare a group of volunteer leaders to integrate the Youth Achievement Awards (YAA) into their out-of-school programmes with young people. It was a Church initiative that took me to South America, and I stayed at a Jesuit priests’ seminary; hosted by Rev Dr. Eddy Bermingham who used to work in Sunderland and knew of UK Youth and the Youth Achievement Awards before he went to South America. He is very aware of the potential of learning in non-formal settings and saw that the Youth Achievement Awards could offer a route to educational recognition for many young people in Guyana. This is a direction for young people that was shared by the Bishop of Guyana, Fr Francis Alleyene who I met to discuss how YAA would be implemented and he was in full agreement about the benefits of informal learning and asked to be kept fully informed of the progress of the young people undertaking the Youth Achievement Awards. He was very aware of how there is a whole raft of skills young people have that cannot be evidenced though their academic career, and how important it is to look at young people as a whole and not only by the letters that follow their exam results. With this ethos in mind they decided to invest some of their limited funds in developing an infrastructure for recognising and accrediting the learning of their youth group members, through the Youth Achievement Awards. The volunteers were amazing participants in the training, they were a bit quiet at first, this idea of being able to evidence and accredit all the fantastic work that the young people were doing outside of the classroom, such as setting up a community kitchen for the homeless in Georgetown; was all very new to them. However I reminded them that I would only be with them for a short time and they needed to ask me all the questions they had, from then on it was non-stop until late in the night! And bear in mind that all these people are volunteers and attended the training straight from work or college. One night it was after eleven o’clock, before we even looked at the clock and realized the time! They developed their plans to use the awards with a group of young people who are putting a show together for their community. Their Ideas mushroomed as their imaginations took over, and it was a fantastic learning environment, where everyone worked together, it was so exciting to watch them realise all of the skills they could offer to the young people they would be working with, some were interested in doing the awards themselves, especially the platinum where they could evidence their own voluntary work by using the awards. For the young people they are working with; they were delighted that it would mean that being part of the show will gain them recognition and accreditation, as well as being a part of a fabulous learning experience. I was very aware that it cost them a lot of money to get me there and they are really keen to maintain their links with the UK and with the Youth Achievement Awards in particular. I will be very much in touch with everyone I met in Guyana and Trinidad, (where I also met some very committed people working with community projects on bullying, domestic violence and child abuse), and they were delighted when I told them I have now changed my job title to Development Officer, North West, West Midlands and Guyana!, It was an experience that has changed my view of the world, and I would repeat in a heartbeat, having seen the challenging circumstances some families face there and the awe-inspiring commitment of the youth work volunteers in Guyana. For more information please go to UK Youth, Youth Achievement Awards: http://www.ukyouth.org/accredited-learning/youth-achievementawards.html#.UnC3cV9FD4g
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Humanitarian and Leadership An interview with Kate Davis, Learning and Development Manager for Humanitarian Leadership Academy What is the Humanitarian Leadership Academy? It’s an exciting initiative across the humanitarian sector and new partners from the technology industry, private sector and universities to help communities become more resilient in the face of disaster and give them the training and skills to respond to crises in their own countries. Who is involved? Collaboration is at the heart of the Academy. Although Save the Children initiated it, we’ll be working across the humanitarian sector to ensure that information, knowledge, learning and resources are shared to make us all more efficient in this time of growing pressure. We will also be bringing in people from outside the sector too – from technology companies to universities. Why are standards in training humanitarians workers important?
Louis Howell, NCVYS Young Facilitator with Kate Davis, Learning and Development Manager
At the moment, there’s a lot of variable quality in the training that’s provided to humanitarian workers. What we want to do is turn round that situation into something which is much more integrated, coherent and consistent.
So how can the use of technology and the digital platform benefit advances in up skilling the workforce of humanitarian workers?
Training humanitarians is also important because crises are becoming more frequent, more widespread and more complex. By 2015, over 375 million people a year will be affected by climate-related disasters. This is over 50 per cent more than have been affected in an average year during the last decade. To meet these challenges we will spread best practice and knowledge of what works so that the delivery humanitarian aid is more effective at a scale and has much greater impact. The humanitarian system needs to expand to bring in new and more people, to train them up and develop new knowledge and skills. What kind of work will the Humanitarian Leadership Academy do with young people and the voluntary sector with regards to skills and training? We work with partners across the entire system to create career paths for humanitarian professionals and those with an interest in humanitarian. We are looking to equip the next generation of humanitarian leaders and responders and to give them the skills and resources they need to effectively determine and deliver their own responses in their own countries and communities. So in terms of how we train the next generation, it’s about increasing the range and the quality of the courses that are available. It’s about working with other organisations, increasing awareness and taking up of standards that are globally recognised good practice so that the training that is provided really meets the need and results in people having good training and qualifications that they then have that have traction, to take with them to develop their career.
While running our engagement events in South East Asia, East Africa and London, we it was made very clear that the future users of the Academy will be in their teens, or younger and many of them will have a different relationship with technology to people that work in the sector now. So one of the things we really need to do is bring on-board the technological side of learning and make it much more widely available – which will bring a whole new dimension to humanitarian and disaster related work. We want to make use of online communities, forums and social networks, which actually enables a more cost effective learning environment. We can have people from different countries, sharing in a learning event just being able to get into an online forum. That’s one of the things we are really interested in exploring as well so that we really harness technology and then access to really good quality online learning that’s directed to this particular sector. Why is this different? The programme is different because it: • works with partners across the entire system • is based on collaborative approaches at local, national and regional level • draws on experience and the expertise of non-traditional humanitarians • approaches the problem from a global perspective • implements international quality standards for learning and development • includes continual learning and evaluation as we build evidence on what works. Interview conducted by Louis Howell, NCVYS Young Facilitator for the London region.
In the next five years: • we’ll establish ten centres reaching out to over 40 countries, starting in the UK, Kenya, Indonesia and Philippines
• we’ll develop at least 100 case studies on good practice and innovations and translate them into a range of local languages
• we’ll help over 100,000 people from a wide range of organisations to take high quality training courses
• we’ll create partnerships with organisations around the world
For more information, check out our website at: www.humanitarianleadershipacademy.org 18
• we’ll formally recognise the skills of 150,000 humanitarians • we’ll work with training providers so that at east 60 incorporate cost recovery into their business model.
HEADS UP A day with the NHS England Executive Board – Invitation to Young People On Thursday 28 November 2013, NHS England are seeking young people aged 11-25 to share what matters about healthcare and to discuss ideas for improvements. NHS England and Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) want to involve young people in healthcare and are running an interactive workshop in Leeds to share their experiences of using health services. Travel expenses can be covered and spaces are limited, so if you are interested in this opportunity, please contact Faiza Khan at NCVYS: faiza@ncvys.org.uk.
Takeover day with NHS England There’ll also be opportunities for young people to shadow key staff at NHS England for the day on the 22nd November either Leeds or London and then to blog about their experiences. If you’d like to do please send us a short paragraph of why you’d like to do this to Faiza@ncvys.org.uk and ideas you’d like to share. We will then be in touch to let you know if we can accommodate you.
Member benefit survey and leaflet Nichola Brown, our Head of Membership and Engagement is currently carrying out a review of NCVYS member benefits, the outcome of which will result in a better offer for almost 300 organisations. We’ve also been working on a new NCVYS leaflet for members and potential new members. A digital copy will go up on the website and we’ll let you know about it as soon as possible.
Youth Participation in Action Conference 2014 In February 2014, NCVYS will deliver a conference focussing on exploring meaningful and practical ways to engage young people in the decision-making processes of an organisations work. The day will feature practice sharing workshops and discussions as well as an opportunity for you to actively network with others. Further information will be available in the next month on the NCVYS website: www.ncvys.org.uk.
Our Decision A package of support based on the development and distribution of an ‘Our Decision’ resource that will provide voluntary and community sector (VCS) organisations and groups with a range of support opportunities that helps them to protect children and young people and gain clarity around Disclosure and Barring Services (DBS). The resource is focused on:
‘Supporting VCS organisations who effectively now have to use their discretion in deciding the level of supervision or checking required, and providing complementary support to the DBS based provision’.
Keep up to date with NCVYS’s information and policy services NCVYS publishes a range of policy and information services through a number of channels. You can follow us on twitter at twitter.com/ncvys, watch videos from our events like the Young Partners Award at youtube.com/ncvys and listen to audio interviews at www.audioboo.fm/ncvys. We continue to provide our weekly Strategic Intelligence Service bulletin every Friday afternoon, our NECTAR ‘news from the sector’ update in the middle of each month and our funding update at the start of each month. In addition, our policy team regularly updates our financial monitoring blog www.ncvyspolicy. wordpress.com with details of service cuts and financial news affecting the voluntary and community youth sector. Last but not least, all our news, policy and information documents go up on the website at www.ncvys.org.uk. Check back regularly to see updates about our work.
Exchange now online NCVYS publishes an online version of Exchange magazine, aimed at readers in the voluntary and community youth sector. Readers can view previous issues for free by visiting the link below. NCVYS will still continue to print and distribute issues of Exchange, which members receive free as part of their membership to our network. See www.issuu.com/ncvys
It will feature: • An organisational resource, tailored to the needs of the sector, that complements existing VCS orientated resources that focus on safeguarding and governance • A capacity building model via Children England, Safe Network in the Regions, and NCVYS, that enables the information to be drilled down to the smallest frontline groups • A mix of inset, session and seminar direct support including access to specific subsectors such as play, arts, youth and disability VCS • Digital support via web, new media, webinar and Go to Meeting support and the input of partner agencies including DBS , LSCB and key local personnel such as LADO’s. Please contact Isabelle@ncvys.org.uk for more information.
Exchange distribution Exchange is read across the voluntary and community youth sector. We can send bulk copies to offices requiring 10 copies or more. If you or a colleague is receiving Exchange and would like us to stop sending copies, please email the Exchange Editor at: E: press@ncvys.org.uk
Feedback and contributions If you have any publications, events, training or projects that you would like to be featured in Exchange or would like to send in letters, comments or ideas for future articles, please contact the Exchange Editor at: E: press@ncvys.org.uk
Cover illustration by: Ria Dastidar www.uberpup.net
Exchange is a regular magazine, bringing together a unique collection of news, policy analysis and practical advice for voluntary and community organisations and networks working with young people. Exchange contains articles by expert contributors from the sector and beyond. The magazine is distributed throughout the youth sector, reaching around 5000 readers in print and offline. Designed/produced by arc. www.arc-cs.com
Editorial
If you would like to promote your work in Exchange, please email news and press releases to: press@ncvys.org.uk or contact the office on: 020 7843 6471
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