BYC Manifesto 2012-2014
General Overview
Youth Services
At the heart of youth services is an underlying aim to support
young people's personal and social development, to help give them a
meaningful role in society and provide positive ways for young
people to spend their time. Youth services provide informal
learning opportunities for young people and can take many forms
including Youth Centres, Youth Drop in Advice Centres, Sports
Clubs, Peer Support and Sexual and Mental Health support and
advice. A positive youth work experience can, and will, set
many young people on the path to success by addressing and tackling
issues faced by young people at an early stage. Both Ofsted and a
report by the National Youth Agency recognise that youth work has a
distinctive and important role in contributing to successful
outcomes for young people.
Fair Treatment at Work
In 1998 the UK Government made the National Minimum Wage law in
order to make sure that employees in all 4 Nations are provided
with "decent minimum standards and fairness in the workplace". The
National Minimum Wage is the minimum hourly rates of pay that
employers can offer across the UK, so it is the lowest amount you
can legally be paid.
At the moment there is a three-tiered system that means that
workers get paid a different rate of the National Minimum Wage
depending on your age.
The rates of the National Minimum Wage (from 1 October 2012 to
the present) are:
£6.19 per hour for workers aged 22 years and older. This rate
is called the adult rate.
£4.98 per hour for workers aged 18 to 21 years. This rate is
called the youth development rate.
£3.68 per hour for all workers aged 16 to 18, who no longer
have to be at school. This rate is called the youth rate.
£2.65 per hour for apprentices under 19 or those in their first
year. If you're 19 or over and past your first year you get the
rate that applies to your age.
The National Minimum Wage rates are set by the UK Government.
However, there is an independent public body, the Low Pay
Commission (LPC), which advises the Government every year on what
the rates should be. The LPC use surveys, data, research projects
and many other forms of evidence from a variety of sources to make
recommendations on wage rates to Government. The LPC has to
research how changing the rates will affect people's pay and their
jobs. After looking at the LPC's yearly report the Government then
makes an announcement about the rates of the National Minimum
Wage.
Specific Issues
Youth Services
England
A recent joint Unite and Children and Young People Now survey
has revealed that one in four council youth services in England
face cuts of between 21 and 30 per cent, a massive three times more
than councils are facing generally*1. The main reason for this is
that councils are having their funding cut but are not being told
how to manage this. This means that they are able to prioritise
other services and make large, disproportionate, cuts to youth
services. A recent statement made by Michael Gove to the Education
Select Committee indicated that the government intends to further
relinquish its responsibility for youth policy to local
authorities. This is likely to lead to a huge variation in the
quantity and quality of services offered across different
authorities.
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
The evidence that we have for the cuts across youth services in
these 3 Nations is much less complete than for England. There are,
however, indications that young people are being failed across in
these Nations as well. The YMCA says 23 per cent of community,
learning and development staff in Scottish local authorities lost
their jobs. Keith Towler, the Children's commissioner for Wales,
said budget cuts and changes to the way that children and young
people's services are funded risk pushing youth provision across
Wales to the "bottom of the priority list". It is for this reason
that we want your help in building a clear picture of what effect
cuts to youth services are having on young people from across the
UK. (See Campaign Activities)
Fair Treatment at Work
England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland
Over the last 9 years the minimum wage for 16 - 17 year olds
across all 4 Nations has risen by just £0.68 whilst during the same
time period their over 21 counterparts have seen a rise in their
wages of £2.51. Following a report from the Low Pay Commission
(LPC) the government has raised the minimum wage for those aged 21
and over, but has frozen the pay for younger workers. This means
that despite working for the same number of hours, and carrying out
the same job, the gap between what a 16 year old can be paid and
what a 21 year old can be paid continues to grow.
It is not just the unequal levels of pay that is an issue,
however, as even the higher rate of minimum wage is well below that
of the 'living wage'. The living wage is a figure that has been
calculated according to the basic cost of living in the UK. At
present this stands at £7.45 for those that live outside of London
and £8.55 for those living inside London. Raising the minimum wage
to the level of the Living Wage is not just beneficial for
employees though. An independent study of the business benefits of
implementing a Living Wage policy in London found that more than
80% of employers believe that the Living Wage had enhanced the
quality of the work of their staff, while absenteeism had fallen by
approximately 25%.
Campaign Focuses for the British Youth Council's Central
Team
The British Youth Council will demonstrate with the National
Union of Students to set an agenda of public investment in
education and creation of employment for young people, come the
2015 General Election.
The British Youth Council will demonstrate with the TUC and
Trade Unions to call for improved opportunities for young people to
have a decent life including improved job opportunities and high
quality public services.
The British Youth Council will continue to lobby for a reversal
in the disproportionate cuts that youth services are currently
facing. It will do this via its role in the Choose Youth coalition
and will start by assisting in the development and launch of its
new manifesto.
The British Youth Council will lobby government, alongside other
organisations in the sector, to try and reverse the government's
decision to relinquish its responsibility for youth policy to local
authorities. We will argue that there needs to be a centrally
coordinated policy framework that covers all aspects of youth
services from health to community engagement.
The British Youth Council will become an accredited 'Living Wage
Employer'
The British Youth Council will use the information gained from
the below activities to form part of its evidence to lobby the Low
Pay Commission to recommend that the minimum wage is raised to the
living wage rate and is applicable to workers of all ages.
Campaign Actions for Our Members
What do we want?
To build a clear picture of the impact of cuts to youth
services across the UK
How will we get it?
The British Youth Council wants young people from across all 4
Nations to tell us how youth services have been affected in your
area over the last 12 months. Maybe you have had money spent on
improvements, maybe new services have been introduced or maybe you
have suffered cuts to services. (See campaign timetable)
Who can help?
English, Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish Members
What do we want?
For people of all ages to be paid a wage that is both equal and
sufficient to live on.
How will we get it?
Action 1:
We would like to assess and publicise the difficulties faced by
young people from all 4 Nations trying to live on the current
minimum wage. This will be done by young people producing case
studies of 'A week on minimum wage' where they will document what a
typical week is like when you are trying to subsist on a minimum
wage salary. (See campaign timetable)
Action 2:
The British Youth Council wants young people from across all 4
Nations to lobby their local council asking them to become "Living
Wage Employers". (See campaign timetable)
Who can help?
English, Welsh, Scottish and Northern Irish Members
BYC @ NUS Demo 2012
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