Huge cuts to youth services risk creating a “lost generation” of young people unable to access vital support at a crucial time in their lives, UNISON says today (Saturday).
New research conducted by the union has found that funding cuts have led to the closure of more than two thirds of council-run youth centres in England and Wales since 2010.
The loss of so many facilities and the specialist workers who run them has put teenagers at risk of isolation, being swept into gang and knife culture, or taking part in anti-social activities on the streets, says UNISON.
The data, compiled through freedom of information (FoI) requests over many months by the union, shows the scale of cuts that have left many communities with precious few resources.
The research found more than four in ten (42%) councils in England and Wales no longer operated their own youth centres by the end of the period the union monitored*.
A total of 1,243 council-run youth centres closed during the data-gathering, which took place from 2010 to 2023. Just 581 centres were still in operation at the end of March last year.
For some local authorities the closures ran into high double figures. They included Tower Hamlets Council, which closed 57 youth centres, while Gwynedd Council shut 49 and Birmingham City Council reduced its total by 42.
The data is being released today ahead of UNISON’s annual local government conference which begins tomorrow (Sunday) in Brighton.
Separate research conducted by the union paints a bleak picture of the impact on communities and the young people who no longer have access to services.
Youth and council workers told the union this has left teenagers without guidance and positive mentors, as well as taking away social hubs where young people can gather.
One council worker said: “Many young people have nothing to keep them off the streets away from exploitation, and potential violence at home. Knife crime has increased.
“Mental health has been hit due to less social interaction with positive peers and adults. Young people are increasingly isolated.”
Another said: “There’s been an increase in young people not attending school, and more exclusions too. It’s led to a breakdown in community relations, youth offending is up and there are more young people who aren’t in education, employment or training.”
Mercury Prize-winning musicians Little Simz and Ezra Collective are among those who have credited their experiences at youth centres for being important stepping stones in their careers.
Youth services continue to be at risk of being targeted for cuts by authorities with severe financial difficulties such as Derbyshire County Council, Birmingham City Council and Nottingham City Council, the union warns.
UNISON says the issue has to be taken seriously by the next government when it considers the financial support given to councils.
The union says there must also be a new emphasis on rebuilding the network of council youth centres and investment in training for the workers who staff them and help vulnerable teenagers.
UNISON head of local government Mike Short said: “Put simply, austerity doesn’t work. Years of cuts have hit communities hard and left vulnerable youngsters high and dry.
“In the past, youth centres were able to help keep teenagers on the right path, providing guidance and advice to youngsters who perhaps weren’t getting any support at home. They’re also places to develop new skills and passions.
“But when youth services are axed, there’s nothing positive to fill that space, allowing criminal elements to move in and exploit naive young people.
“Councils and the youth workers they employ can do a lot of good for local communities and help keep the streets safer too. But only if they are given the funding to do so.
“Sadly a decade and more of austerity has undone much of the previous good work and created a lost generation of youngsters.”
Notes to editors:
– UNISON’s report can be read here. The data was gathered through FoI requests, looking at the period between the financial years 2010/11, when austerity began under the coalition government, and 2022/23.
– *One of the authorities the London Borough of Tower Hamlets has subsequently opened a small number of youth centres, following the cut-off point for UNISON’s research (the end of the 2022/23 financial year).
– Case studies:
Youth worker, Yorkshire & Humberside (where 100 youth centres have closed):
“We have teenagers who are getting kicked out of lessons who come here to play pool and chat. We could speak about knife crime and get more out of them in the two hours they’re here than anyone at school over two years. Even parents feel more comfortable speaking to us.
“Kids have nowhere to go now, which is why you see groups of young people just sitting around vaping. They’ve got no other outlet. Nowhere to go and nothing to do. They might end up walking around Tesco and one of them causes a bit of bother, then they’re banned. They want to socialise but a whole generation is losing the space to do that.
“It’s going to lead to kids getting bullied and depressed because they’re sitting on their own in the park. It’s a dangerous path towards getting involved in things they shouldn’t.
“One lad would come down two nights a week and he’d be waiting outside before we opened. He told us his mum wanted him leave the house because her boyfriend was coming around. He had nowhere to go and couldn’t share this information at school or with a teacher. The youth club was his safe place. There’s probably another hundred more just like him in the same situation.
“As qualified workers, we could advise on drugs and drink and sexual health. If a kid’s coming in and you notice something’s up, you can sit down and have a chat with them. They’re happy to speak to you because it’s not like you’re getting pulled out of a lesson at school. If they’re struggling at school or in their personal lives, you can get that out of them, whereas you can’t on the street. They don’t want to speak in front of ten of their mates.”
Youth worker, Wales:
“It’s really important for kids to have a safe space with stable adults where they can enjoy themselves and have opportunities to do things they otherwise wouldn’t.
“We’ve been working with the hardest-to-reach, most disengaged kids; some are drug addicts and even homeless kids in care. They wouldn’t engage with social services, but they would engage with us. And then they find their youth centre has suddenly gone.
“These kids may not come from a loving, caring family; they’ve been through some form of abandonment, and now they’re being abandoned again. They’ve nowhere to go and no one to ask for advice.
“We’ve worked with young people who were deemed unreachable and into every type of antisocial behaviour you can imagine. But they began to engage with a team in a youth club and were progressing well until their centre was shut down. It takes time to engage young people, build trust and relationships. Then as soon as you start getting somewhere, it’s pulled.”
– UNISON’s annual conferences take place from Sunday 16 to Friday 21 June at the Brighton Conference centre. Further details of the conferences can be found here.
– UNISON is the UK’s largest union with more than 1.3 million members providing public services in education, local government, the NHS, police service and energy. They are employed in the public, voluntary and private sectors.
Media contacts:
Anthony Barnes M: 07834 864794 E: a.barnes@unison.co.uk
Liz Chinchen M: 07778 158175 E: press@unison.co.uk