- The programme is a component of the government’s commitment to ensuring that young people have access to more activities, away-from-home experiences, and volunteer opportunities.
- An announcement was made after 418 youth projects received £12 million in cash that was distributed more quickly to those in need earlier this year.
Young people’s health, welfare, skills, and opportunities are being improved by a £368 million fund, and youth services in the nation’s most underserved areas are being urged to apply for a share of the money.
Today, 45 local authorities and more than 600 district wards in some of England’s most underprivileged communities are invited to submit applications for the Youth Investment Fund, which was created to develop, enhance, and increase neighbourhood youth facilities and services.
Over the next three years, it will offer financing to develop or renovate up to 300 youth facilities, creating safe places where young people can interact and take part in a variety of activities, including those that will facilitate their transition into the workforce.
The financing is a component of the government’s “National Youth Guarantee,” which is backed by a £560 million investment and ensures that every young person in England will have access to regular after-school activities, trips away from home, and volunteer opportunities.
Through these possibilities, individuals will be able to acquire the skills necessary for both life and the workplace, enhancing their welfare and employability.
The guarantee also includes expanding access to social action projects or the chance to meet new people while learning practical life and career skills like money management or public speaking through the National Citizen Service.
The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award will also be made available to every state secondary school for the first time.
Minister for Civil Society and Youth Nigel Huddleston said:
We are committed to ensuring that no young person is left out of reach or left behind, and have put it at the heart of our drive to level up this country.
I encourage eligible youth services to apply for this life-changing funding.
Nick Temple, CEO, Social Investment Business said:
All young people deserve access to high-quality youth services and great youth facilities to thrive in life, but youth provision across the country is sadly unequal. That’s why we’re proud to be able to apply our 20+ years’ knowledge and experience of grant programmes and capital projects to design, manage and deliver the Youth Investment Fund.
Working alongside our partners National Youth Agency, Key Fund and Resonance, we’ll enable up to 300 youth facilities to be built or refurbished over the next three years. This is a wonderful opportunity to prioritise the needs of young people in England and create a more equal society for future generations.
Early this year, local youth services in need of funding received a fast track allocation of £12 million from the fund.
The goal was to fund small-scale capital improvements like giving youth groups new laptops, small building and facility renovations, and bettering transportation like giving a youth club a new minibus so they can keep kids safe and expand activities beyond their local area.
The Youth Investment Fund’s first phase’s grant administrator, BBC Children in Need, granted cash to 418 qualifying youth projects in the most in-demand sectors, including:
- The Community Court Yard in Northampton, a social enterprise delivering traditional youth work, bespoke alternative education and creative workshops based on the youth work curriculum. It was awarded a grant of more than £44,740 to fund a vehicle for detached youth work, gaming booth equipment, CCTV and the refit of the gym area. It will help build positive behaviours and communication skills for disadvantaged young people.
- IMO (Inspire, Motivate, Overcome) Charity in Blackburn and Darwen, which aims to help local young people and their families to combat disadvantage and overcome challenges they face. The grant of £32,155, has funded equipment and furnishings for a new Youth Hub which will provide programmes, activities and a safe environment for young people who struggle at school with their mental health and who are in poverty.
- Brunswick Youth and Community Centre in Bootle, which provides a wide range of activities for young people, received £10,325 of funding to update a community garden space for the youth community centre. It will help promote wellbeing and healthy eating programmes for young people facing mental health challenges and/or at risk of exposure to gang culture.
Leigh Middleton, CEO, National Youth Agency said:
High quality, universal youth provision supports all young people to have somewhere safe to go, to socialise and learn new skills, with a trusted adult who is skilled and trained to support them.
We are delighted to be partnering with Social Investment Business on the design and delivery of the Youth Investment Fund. This provides much needed investment for youth centres and dedicated spaces for young people to go in their communities, as part of the government’s National Youth Guarantee.
Working with SIB, youth sector partners and young people directly, our shared aim is to ensure the funding enables high quality youth work which will have the best outcomes for young people, and for communities to thrive.