Agenda item

Officers thanked Members for the opportunity to present this update.

Cabinet approved the delivery of the new Youth Offer in September 2023, and officers noted that they were on a journey of this implementation.

The Youth Offer consisted of three key teams: Universal, Targeted, and Community and Voluntary Sector.

The Universal team currently delivered a number of youth work and detached sessions from multiple community locations across the borough.

The Targeted team aimed to respond to emerging needs and their programmes were co-produced with young people.

The Community and Voluntary Sector team delivered the Holiday Activity and Food Programme (HAF) as well as support groups for young carers, Hillingdon Autistic Care and Support (HACS) and transition to Excel.

The implementation of the Youth Offer required a comprehensive and diverse approach, closely collaborating with organisations delivering programmes to children, and the National Youth Agency.

A five-year strategy had been developed that provided infrastructure for delivery and accountability of the new Youth Offer. This strategy focused on nine priority areas.

A workforce development plan had been created to guide recruitment and training. This included mandatory training and bespoke professional development. The ‘Stepping into Hillingdon’s Youth Offer’ training programme had been designed and delivered to the first cohort of new recruits in August and will continue to be rolled out with all new recruits as part of the induction process.

The teams continued to utilise flexible assets in the community including three young people’s centres, Uxbridge Family Hub, Hayes Family Hub, schools, libraries and community spaces. This ensured accessibility seven days a week.

A new communications strategy had been co-produced with the Corporate Communications team to advertise the Youth Offer. A thee-month campaign, named #NextGen by children and young people, was due to be launched with a launch event at the young people’s centre in Harlington. The communications strategy involved the creation of photographic materials and TikTok videos all co-produced with children and young people.

A young person who had been referred to the Targeted team was in attendance and addressed the Committee.

They had been referred to the team as they had been struggling with their mental health.

They now worked as a targeted reviewer and had been up and down the country undertaking consultation work for Hillingdon.

They had also been involved in two NCS trips, to Thorpe Park and to the Brentford Community Stadium.

Three members of the Youth Council were in attendance and addressed the Committee.

The first young person said that the Youth Offer was a good idea that brought everything together. It would help everyone and was accessible.

The second young person, who noted that they were a young carer whose mother had immigrated to the UK, noted that the Offer was impressive, and made it easier for everyone.

The third young person highlighted the use of TikTok, as this was a platform that was widely used by young people.

Members thanked the young people for attending, and asked officers about the most and least attended projects. Officers noted that the holiday programmes were well-attended, especially in the summer. Officers further noted that it would be difficult to highlight lesser attended projects as this would depend on the type of project. For example, some were group sessions while others were 1-2-1. Officers noted that they could provide a further breakdown of all programmes.

Members further congratulated the young people and noted that the Youth Offer had been a long time coming. Members noted that as of January 2023, the plan had been to offer 29 universal sessions per week; that the launch had been delayed; some posts were unfilled; and that the transporter bus had been decommissioned. Members asked if 29 sessions were currently being delivered. Officers advised that the current figure was 23 and that recruiting was ongoing.

Citing page 15 of the agenda, Members highlighted some concern about the spread of activities within the borough, especially in the south. Officers noted that outreach work was delivered, and officers were working on a plan to make use of the top of the new Jubilee Centre. Further, there were football events held at the Skills Hub on Tuesdays.

Members asked about training for volunteers compared to staff members.  Officers noted that as well as specific training for mentors, and a professional qualification for LINK counsellors, volunteers can access the same training and development resources as staff members.

Members asked about programmes for careers and managing finance. Officers noted that while there were not programmes specifically for this, these topics were covered under programmes for boys and young men, and girls and young women.

Members asked about remote delivery to increase engagement. Officers noted that there was some of this already in pace. Officers further highlighted the blended approach for virtual plus face-to-face provision, noting that young people had advised via consultation that face-to-face provision was often preferable.

Members highlighted the decommissioning of the transporter bus and asked what impact this had had. Officers noted that detached work was ongoing and they were looking to secure two new buses.

Members asked about what challenges could be expected over the next two to five years. Officers noted the need to keep up to date with new technologies, and also noted evolving demographics.

Members asked about how work was coordinated with the voluntary sector. Officers noted that work was underway to develop a Youth Offer Partnership Board including service providers and stakeholders working together to deliver a coordinated programme to respond to identified need. Officers had been working with colleagues across the Council on developing a new improved directory of services which was easier to navigate and categorised services for children and young people. The new directory was currently under construction, but the existing directory was still accessible. A new Volunteer Strategy, which will be implemented over the next 5 years, would highlight four key priorities for developing the volunteer programme: Promoting the volunteer programme, Welcoming and building a community of volunteers, Celebrating and supporting volunteers; and Providing a quality experience.

Members noted that they had been invited to the launch in Harlington but noted it had been delayed. Members asked when this would now take place. Officers noted that this would be done in the new year – it was noted that December was not the best time to launch anything.

Members suggested having a further update in future to include any further information on new transporter buses.

Members asked about representation on the Youth Council. The Youth Council sat under the Participation Team. Officers noted that they were in contact with all schools as part of an ongoing two-year project. There were currently 13 regular attendees at the Youth Council. When asked about any gaps in representation, officers noted that there was little representation from Hayes. However, officers were communicating with all schools on this.

RESOLVED: That the Committee noted the information presented within the report