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'Add youth workers to loans schemes' A trade union is pressing for youth workers to be given the same access to subsidies to buy homes as social workers and other professions.

The Community and Youth Workers Union has written to deputy prime minister John Prescott demanding that youth workers have access to key worker housing to tackle recruitment and retention problems.

Under the schemes, some public sector professionals, including social workers and teachers, can receive government loans to put towards buying a home or buy part of a housing association property.

Doug Nicholls, the union's general secretary, said a lack of cheap housing was exacerbating the sector's recruitment and retention problems. He said about 4,000 more youth workers were needed to meet government targets.

The average house price in England is more than £190,000 - nearly 11 times the average youth worker's salary of £18,000, according to government figures for April.

The government has just finished consulting on plans to revise the categories of employee eligible for key worker housing and will present initial findings next month.