Youth discount card scheme mooted in government Green Paper on teenagers.
Artists and arts organisations are being encouraged by their funders to respond to the latest Government Green Paper, ?Youth Matters?, which proposes new strategies for providing opportunities, challenges and support for young people, and reforming service delivery to meet key objectives. Arts Council England (ACE) will be responding to the paper to tell government how the arts can make a contribution to the lives of today?s teenagers, and is encouraging practising artists who have experience of working with young people to contribute their views and experience to help shape its response.
The Green Paper criticises mainstream organisations currently providing services and help for young people for ?not working together as effectively or imaginatively as they should, with the result that money and effort are wasted?. It also states that not enough is being done to prevent young people from drifting into a life of poverty or crime, and that youth services are failing to exploit the full potential of the Internet, mobile phones and other new technologies. The proposals in the document address four main issues: how to engage more young people in positive activities and empower them to shape the services they receive; how to encourage them to volunteer and become involved in their communities; how to provide better information and guidance to enable them to make informed choices about their lives; and how to provide better and more personalised intensive support for each young person who has serious problems or gets into trouble. Among the initiatives proposed, is the distribution of ?opportunity cards? which would provide discounts for young people on a range of things to do and places to go. Subject to piloting, the government plans to establish a national scheme to support the roll-out of local opportunity cards. Legislation may be introduced to clarify local authorities? duty to secure positive activities for all young people, and establish a set of national standards for the activities that young people would benefit from accessing in their free time. Capital funding worth £40m over two years from April 2006 will be available for local authorities to develop new approaches to strategic investment in youth facilities, and further funds will be earmarked for an ?opportunity fund? in each local authority to be spent on local projects that young people want, which could include arts projects.
ACE has developed a downloadable questionnaire featuring a series of questions with specific relevance for the arts sector, drawn from the 29 questions the government is asking all respondents, and will use these to formulate its response to the Green Paper. To participate in this, go to www.artscouncil.org.uk. Other consultation responses should be made online direct to the Department for Education and Skills at http://www.dfes.gov.uk/consultations. The consultation closes on 4 November.