Five Rivers Child Care Highlights the Positive Impact of Youth Work on the Care Sector

At Prime Minister’s Questions on 26 June, Ben Bradley, the MP for Mansfield, highlighted the pressure surrounding youth work qualifications.

Commenting on his blog, Mr Bradley said,

I asked the Prime Minister to personally see that funding and support for Youth Work is approved as soon as possible. Back in April Government committed to a review of youth work qualifications that are vital to ensure we have a workforce equipped to deliver youth services. The funding for that review has been delayed, putting those qualifications at risk.

Following this, the Parliamentary Review asked Pam McConnell, the CEO of Five Rivers, to comment on the importance of youth work qualifications and their impact on wider youth issues.

Speaking from the perspective of a provider of a wide range of care services for young people across England and the Republic of Ireland, Pam echoed the MP’s comments, saying,

Five Rivers’ experience confirms how important youth workers can be at a challenging time for young people. We have noticed that the loss of youth clubs across many areas has hampered the ability of our children to make better relationships in their communities when moving towards independence. It has also led to a major gap in their social and emotional wellbeing provision.