The will be a review of the funding for youth services in Brighton, which will examine the current £384,000 provided by the council. It will also explore the potential for a new ‘Central Youth Hub’.
This review was called by a report to Brighton & Hove’s Children, Young People and Skills committee, in an effort that has been well received by Green councillors.
Councillor Hannah Clare, Green Group lead on Youth Services said:
“More investment in youth services is critical for our city’s young people.”
The current funding goes towards organisations such as the Hangleton and Knoll Project, Trust for Developing Communities, and Allsorts. The potential new addition of a Central Youth Hub has the possibility of being set up at the current Brighton Youth Centre location.
Funding arrangements will be extended to March 2021 in order to complete the review and avoid disruption of current youth services,
In the meantime, Greens are pushing for support from the council for a proposal brought by Brighton Youth Centre and Outside Youth Zones, a national charity. This proposal discusses the idea of developing a new youth centre in Brighton that is fully fit-for-purpose.
Clare, who mentioned that the days of sizeable investments in youth services seem to be a thing of the past, emphasised the importance of supporting external youth service providers.
She said:
“Having seen for myself what Onside Youth Zones look like, I am particularly excited about the proposal to support Brighton Youth Centre and what these plans could do for the city.”
Clare also recognises the importance of listening to young people’s input about what they want to see out of the council’s investment in youth services.
Greens have requested that the council organises a funding application for the new Government Youth Investment Fund. This is a move to improve and protect future youth service provision.
Featured Image: © Brighton Youth Centre (BYC) Facebook
