November's Reading List

This article, by former Youth and Community Work lecturer John Holmes, offers a provocative exploration of the place of ‘work’ in youth work. He encourages youth workers to consider the role of work in society and young people’s lives, and where youth work sits (or, should sit) in relation to ‘employability’ and ‘work readiness’. The article poses some interesting tensions, for example reflecting on the enduring link between work and paid employment, whilst also highlighting the central role of work in developing relationships, mental health, and meeting a desire for individual achievement. It offers much food for thought, encouraging a division between youth work and work, whilst recognising that young people bring their issues and concerns to youth work spaces, which necessarily reflect their working lives. Holmes invites a youth work agenda that keeps discussions of work with young people purposefully political, open and hopeful. – Jo, Project Manager
 

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“Enriching Education Recovery - The role of non-formal learning, extra-curricular and enrichment activities in driving a transformational catch-up experience for children and young people” is a new paper from the Centre for Education and Youth (CfEY) and the NCS Trust, which argues that young people need increased access to community-based out of school activities, youth clubs and youth workers to support the recovery of their learning and development post-covid. The paper highlights data suggesting that covid has reversed a decade’s progress in closing the attainment gap between socio-economic groups. Interestingly, the paper argues that as providers of ‘universal services’, schools represent a potential ‘gateway’ to non-formal learning provision for young people, and more could be done to integrate non-formal learning opportunities into the existing school day. The authors also suggest that Ofsted’s role in supporting schools to ‘understand what constitutes excellence in non-formal learning’ should be explored, alongside revisiting the statutory duty on local authorities and the definition of ‘sufficiency’. Finally, the paper calls for the forthcoming £500m Youth Investment Fund to support partnerships between school and non-formal learning providers to expand access for young people. – Bethia, CEO

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Time’s Running Out, a new report published jointly by the National Youth Agency and  YMCA calls for urgent action to protect, build and grow youth services to ensure sustainable access to quality youth work for young people. The report highlights the statutory duty of local government to secure ‘sufficient’ services for young people locally, and therefore the need to protect the health of the local youth sector. The report pushes for a commitment to young people and that they are prioritised as integral to post-COVID recovery. The NYA and YMCA posit a national strategy to support young people in the long term, through a three-point recommendation plan: a fully-funded youth service supported by strengthened statutory guidance for local authorities; an immediate release of the £500 million Youth Investment Fund to act as down-payment towards levelling up opportunities with young people; and long-term investment into youth services through the upskilling of 40,000 adult volunteers, with additional entry-level youth worker placements for 20,000 young people and volunteers. – Zunaira, Research and Projects Assistant

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The Law Family Commission on Civil Society, a sector-wide review into civil society, has launched Better data, bigger impact: A review of social sector data. The report, co-authored by Anoushka Kenley and Karl Wilding, explores the role of data across civil society. It charts how data on the social sector and volunteering is rarely acknowledged in UK official statistics or public policy. Too often, relevant data is inaccessible, unavailable, untimely and poorly formatted, making analysis difficult. It highlights significant data gaps across the wider social sector. This includes the sector’s demography, resources and capacity, and its overall 'health' – organisations’ sustainability and resilience. There is a lack of data on the social sector's contribution - the value or impact of what the social sector achieves - and around volunteering and participation. Nearly thirty detailed recommendations are presented, including calls for cross-sector Social Sector Data Standards and Coordination Working Group to develop a National Social Sector Data Strategy. – Tom, Executive Director
 

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YouthLink Scotland’s published Research Ethics Policy is a strong example of a policy that outlines key ethical considerations when conducting research and/or evaluation with young people. Often there is not a clear-cut set of rules to follow when it comes to research ethics with young people, however taking a formalised and structured approach to reflecting on ethical dilemmas can allow youth sector organisations to make the right decisions for their context and, importantly, provide sound justification for those decisions. A checklist of questions to consider is organised under four key principles: need, integrity & accountability, consent & confidentiality, and safety. – Mary, Research and Methods Lead
 

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In this essay for London Funders, John Hitchin at Renaisi poses some key ideas and questions about place-based funding. Although the paper is geared towards the capital city, it offers a helpful exploration of the many ways to think about and apply the concept of ‘place’, alongside common strengths and questions that any funders might consider when reflecting on their role in place-based work. For those whose work does focus on London, it also shares five ‘provocations’ about London’s context going into 2022, as well as specific issues, opportunities and challenges for thinking about place practically in London. – Catherine, Organisational Learning Lead
 

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The Resolution Foundation has recently published its third Intergenerational Audit which provides an analysis of economic living standards across generations in Britain. It looks at four themes: jobs, skills and pay; housing costs and security; taxes, benefits and household incomes; and wealth and assets. The report finds that whilst young people were especially badly hit in terms of negative employment change (job loss, furlough, pay reduction), 2021 has seen a strong recovery. Younger people are, however, still more likely to work in insecure and lower-paid roles, with 18-29 year olds twice as likely to be working on a zero hours contract, or to be working part-time because they cannot find a full-time job. With housing, the prevailing story of younger generations being less likely to own property still holds up. In respect of household income, whilst median income after housing costs for young people has risen by 3.5%, this is not enough to overturn a longer-term decline. The report also found that there has been zero change in family wealth for 20-24 year olds, whilst older generations have seen increases. - Steve, COO
 

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Nominet Social Impact recently published its ‘Digital Youth Index’ which is a free-to-use national benchmarking and barometer report. It states that it “…identifies and monitors the key drivers, issues and opportunities in young people’s relationship with digital technology across the UK”. In addition to making the source data freely available to registered users, there are easy to understand graphics and useful filters that help users to truly explore the datasets. The Index also provides analytical reports on data collected, including these thought-provoking ‘key insights’ papers. These reports delve into the relationship between the digital world and young people, both in terms of the current and anticipated impact on their careers, helping to illuminate the factors and shaping influence of digital on the lives of young people. – Josef, Data Lead
 

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In this article, Associate Professor Pathik Pathak from the University of Southampton reflects on the decision by the Belgrade Theatre to no longer use the term ‘BAME’. Building on this increasingly popular approach, he argues against the use of the phrase "Equality, Diversity and Inclusion," exploring where it falls short and how it may be harmful to the individuals and communities it seeks to uplift. In turn, Pathak proposes an alternative which centres around belonging and equity. This new approach focuses on creating spaces where people feel psychologically safe and brilliantly redirects the conversation towards the multiplicity of factors that play into who gets to thrive, be included and feel like they truly belong. Pathak illustrates beautiful how changes in language, though seemingly insignificant at times, matter. – Soizic, Enterprise Development Programme