Youth services
Youth justice is in need of a redesign
Shocking television exposure of aggressive staff behaviour towards children at the Medway Secure Training Centre should have been a watershed moment, but five years on this is still not the case, says Charlotte Ramsden
Putting youth at the heart of regeneration
Barnsley’s partnership with OnSide to invest in a state-of-the-art youth centre is an embodiment of a regeneration vision to create a place where young people will flourish, says Cllr Tim Cheetham.
'Lost generation' warning over missing fund
A £500m fund first promised by the Government two years ago has still not been made available.
Voyage for improvement
Blackpool Council’s new model of practice is shifting service culture away from a focus on process to one that works with families to achieve optimum impact and outcomes for their children, writes Victoria Gent.
Children outside cities being overlooked
Young people in rural areas are at risk of being left behind, a new report has warned.
Changing Futures in Westminster
Westminster City Council’s successful bid for a project under the Changing Futures programme will enable more support for young people and moves the borough a step towards its City for All vision says Cllr Heather Acton.
How digital disruption can deliver better futures
Disrupting youth crime and exploitation through technology provides a chance to find and support the vulnerable and achieve radical change, say Dr Carol Homden, Amanda Kelly and Tim Aldridge.
Preventing young offenders signing up for a life sentence
Steve Ainsworth explores alternative ways to engage young people and help them turn their back on crime.
Getting to the root of youth violence
Jenny Coles urges all parts of the public sector, including Government, to work in a co-ordinated way with the voluntary sector for a holistic public health strategy to combat violence among our youth.
Lessons from a year of challenges
As the first anniversary of ‘lockdown 1.0’ approaches, Beate Wagner reflects on how Wakefield Council rose to the challenge of supporting children and families, and looking after staff wellbeing.
Don’t forget our youth workers
Government needs to put as much focus on resourcing the children and young people’s workforce as it does on ensuring the sustainability of the of the sector in the short term, argues Jenny Coles.
Listening to and acting on young people’s lockdown stories
Innovation Unit has drawn up a set of recommendations for any local authority to build an ecosystem of support for the wellbeing of young people, says Daisy Carter.
Putting social value into procurement
Claire Preston hopes the Social Value Toolkit will promote a ‘whole council’ approach that encourages organisations to put helping care leavers at the heart of procurement.
Building back better services for children
Chief executive of the National Children's Bureau Anna Feuchtwang asks how local and national government can build back children’s services that are better equipped to meet needs in the ‘new normal’.
Keeping our young people centre stage
Jenny Coles talks to Ann McGauran about her early days as ADCS president and the work being done by councils and schools as they rise to the challenge of COVID-19.
Helping other care leavers in Hull during the coronavirus crisis
Mark Jones outlines how a group of Hull care leavers has set up a walk-by food hub to help others in their position, making more than 20 donations a day.
Local government are the systems thinkers and the time to act is now
Systems thinking - considering the whole, not just the parts, and how those parts interact - brings new rigour to identifying possible actions and their consequences for children's social care, says Tim Hobbs.
'Safe places' needed in Greater Manchester to divert youth from violent crime
Communities in Greater Manchester feel there is an urgent need to create safe places and strong relationships to divert young people from violent crime, new research has found.
‘Ten years or life’
New research aims to understand the drivers of recent hikes in violent crime involving young people in Greater Manchester as perpetrators and victims – and has come up with insights and recommendations. Ann McGauran reports.
Working with young people across Medway to reduce the number of NEET
Medway Council has achieved significant falls in the number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET). Ian Sutherland explains how this has been achieved.
