Highland Council boosts youth work

Youth work activity in the Highlands received a £110,000 funding boost yesterday (22nd May) as members of The Highland Council’s Education, Culture and Sport Committee agreed to ring fence and allocate £5,000 to each Council Ward for youth work throughout the Highlands.

The funding boost is a result of The Scottish Government’s allocation of additional funding for youth work as part of the Single Outcome Agreement.

The Council’s Programme for Administration commits to placing a youth worker in each of the twenty-nine associated school groups (ASGs) secondary school catchment areas in Highland.

Members of the committee were informed that fourteen out of twenty nine youth worker posts have already been appointed, and fifteen are currently held vacant pending a review. Using a formula, which allocated posts to, associated school groups; the four ASGs of Wick, Lochaber, Tain and Alness were allocated 1.5 fte posts. The majority of the other ASGs were allocated 1 fte post, and some small rural ASGs a 0.5 fte post.

For reasons of deprivation and size, the associated school groups of Wick, Lochaber, Tain and Alness Wards have an additional 0.5 fte allocation. Members agreed that the decision on whether to use the £5,000 ring fenced budgets for additional staffing or project work is made locally by Ward Managers in consultation with Ward Members and local Education, Culture and Sport Service staff.

Councillor Bill Fernie, Chairman of The Highland Council’s Education, Culture and Sport Committee said: “This decision today firmly puts the resources and support directly to each of our Council wards at a local level where we can utilise it in youth work activity priorities as they emerge. This will enable our youth workers to work with and help the many local groups already providing support for young people, such as youth clubs, youth cafés; uniformed organisations; and sports clubs.”

This approach to funding youth work in the Highlands will be regularly reviewed to assess its impact and to establish the added value provided through the use of the additional funding provided by the Scottish Government. Further reports on the progress made by funding youth work in the Highlands will be made to future Education, Culture and Sport Committees.

.