Written question WQ84839

The Welsh Government provides substantial funding for youth and sports clubs to support young people through early intervention and prevention services which help those who may be at risk of involvement in gangs and violence. As the Children and Young People’s plan states, support for our young people is a cross government issue.

Youth work and youth engagement

In terms of youth work, the Welsh Government provides funding to local authorities and the voluntary sector via the Youth Support Grant and the National Voluntary Youth Work Organisation Grant (which will become the Strategic Voluntary Youth Work Organisation Grant in April). In 2021-22 we provided £10.7m to support youth work activities across Wales through these grants.

Youth work has a significant role to play in helping young people understand their rights, socialise, develop skills and access support with a range of issues, including their mental and emotional health or wellbeing. It supports young people to play an active role in their communities. Complementing this, the Youth Engagement and Progression Framework helps young people to stay engaged in education, employment or training, and take a positive pathway when they leave school. Together, the preventative nature of this work can help and support young people at risk of violence for example by giving them access to trusted adults to talk to when they have concerns.

In many local authority areas across Wales, close links are being made between partner organisations, including services like the police, to help identify and address issues around county lines, knife crime and anti-social behaviour. Being able to use youth work methodologies as part of this approach can often lead to stronger engagement with young people and result in more positive outcomes.

Community safety

The Welsh Government invests a further £1.98m through the Wales Police Schools Programme which is match funded by the four Welsh Police Forces. The programme provides lessons and support on topics including substance misuse and wider community and personal safety issues. It is a programme tailored to school year groups from reception to year 13 and allows children to express and discuss issues and problems that affect their lives and supports them to deal with emerging crime and threats facing young people. The programme extends beyond a lesson-based approach to a ‘whole school’ approach, with a wider pastoral role for the Schools Police Officers that is adapted to the specific needs of particular schools or units.

Sport

The Welsh Government provides annual grant funding to Sport Wales, who in turn make funding available to support sports clubs and activities for young people across Wales. Examples of activities and projects that have taken place are:

• Streetgames and Sport Wales working collaboratively on a project with the PCC/Youth Crime Prevention.

• Tiger Bay Boxing club, who provide young people with positive opportunities and purpose away from violence and crime.

• The Levelling the Playing Field project in Newport, which uses the power of sport and physical activity to engage and improve health and life outcomes for ethnically diverse children who are more likely to enter, or already involved with, the criminal justice system.