ESN at InterCITY conference

Delegates from local authorities responsible for youth work and policies and national youth associations met at the InterCITY conference (European Peer Learning on Local Youth Policy) in Helsinki on 9-10 December. The aim of the event was to promote peer learning amongst professionals in youth policies and work, and to talk about the steps that need to be taken to create a network of European youth work and policies. Policy Officer Lisa Schönenberg presented ESN’s recent activities in the field of youth.

One of the central discussions throughout the event questioned the responsibilities and interfaces between youth work, youth policies and youth welfare services. It was argued that youth work happens “out-of-school” and consists of activities with and for young people of a social, cultural, educational or political nature (often also run by volunteers); while youth policy supports young people to develop the knowledge, skills and competences to integrate into society and the labour market. Youth welfare services are designed to ensure care and protection of young people at risk.

Together with youth research, youth policy and youth work form the youth sector triangle. The relation between the different areas was also discussed in light of changing circumstances in local areas: “We are dealing with an extremely diverse group of young people in a constantly changing of Helsinki: there are new residential areas, there is a higher number of migrants, there are many differences in terms of culture, disability, sexual orientation, socio-economic status - we have to consider this diversity in our work”, said Tommi Laitio, Director of youth services in Helsinki. Although there are different concepts of youth work and policies in Europe, delegates agreed that both should be implemented through a holistic approach at the local level, focused on autonomy and wellbeing of the young person. They also underlined that comprehensive youth policies and work should exist at the European, national, and local level. At European level, a youth strategy is being implemented by Member States and the new Erasmus plus programme form 2014, which will grow by 40% under the new EU budget. At the local level, public authorities play a specific role: they bring different actors together, monitor the quality of youth services and develop strategies to include young people.

Delegates also agreed that the aim of youth work and policy should move away from teaching young people how to participate in society towards an approach which is more focused on listening to them: “We should add participation of young people to the triangle of the youth sector with youth work, youth research, youth policies”, stressed Hans-Georg Wicke from the German National Agency for the implementation of the EU Youth in Action Programme. As an example, a German project was presented that supports early school leavers to get back into education or employment. Participants shared the difficulties they face to get back into employment or education; they particularly stressed that delays in support and benefits can lead to increasing debt and young people losing their flat.

Delegates also discussed the role of general youth work in a changing Europe with high youth unemployment rates. Some representatives of local authorities noticed a stronger focus on youth policies targeted at young people at risk, and a move away from general leisure and informal learning activities. David Wright from the Confederation of Heads of Young People’s Services in the UK said that only a small part (1.5%) of the overall budget of local authorities goes to youth work and further restrictions are likely to apply in the future due to a growing demand in the adult social care sector. Other delegates said that in many regions the main focus is to minimise youth unemployment, but due to the economic situation, this might only bring a small amount of young people into employment; it is essential that the rest still have the opportunity to develop their skills, interests and needs through youth work. In this sense, youth work can also act as a preventative measure as it can provide a perspective for young unemployed people or reach out to young people at risk.

ESN looks forward to working together with the network for European youth work in the future.