Test for green paper on youth

The success of the government’s forthcoming green paper on
youth should be judged on five main areas, according to the chief
executive of the National Youth Agency.

Tom Wylie said that the paper, which is expected by the end of
the year, should be subject to five tests, just as the Chancellor
of the Exchequer is using five tests to decide whether the UK
should join the euro.

Things for young people to do should be turned into an
“explicit set of entitlements” that can be expected
everywhere, Wylie said, and young people must be involved in its
design.

The duties of local authorities and other agencies need to be
made clear and all young people regardless of age, gender, and
location, should be able to access youth services. 

There must be an end to the “quick fixes” and
“funny money”, and instead staff, who are the
“foundation for good relationships with young people”,
should be effectively supported, he added.

The green paper could be a defining moment for young
people’s issues, he said. If parts of it find their way into
an election manifesto it could set out how young people’s
issues should be tackled for the rest of the decade.