Youth services remain splintered

Youth services should be better co-ordinated, less rationed by
age and more influenced by young people, according to a report by
the government’s social exclusion unit published today,
writes Mithran Samuel.

In an interim report from its Young Adults with Troubled Lives
project, it says youth services remain splintered between a number
of agencies and calls for greater co-ordination, through
initiatives like local area agreements.

The report suggests agencies should relax age restrictions on
services, to stop vulnerable young people falling between
adolescent and adult services.

It also calls for young people to have more of an influence on
services saying national policy takes too little account of their
thinking and behaviour.

The project, launched last August, is designed to improve life
chances for vulnerable young people.

• The report is available from www.socialexclusion.gov.uk