30.01.20
£7m government investment in youth projects
Urgent needs in the youth sector are set to be addressed by the Youth Accelerator Fund. The fund will also allow further development for projects ran by Sport England, National Lottery Heritage Fund, Arts Council England and British Film Institute.
Organisations and youth clubs in sports, arts, film and heritage will obtain a share of the fund, to deliver a variety of positive activities for young people to develop skills and contribute to their local communities.
The announcement comes in light of the Culture Secretary visiting ‘Soap Box’, a youth centre based in Islington, London later today (Jan 30), where she will illustrate the Government’s commitment to supporting young people across the nation.
UK Youth, the membership organisation for youth clubs in the UK, will distribute £1.15m to run a small grants programme to provide extra sessions in youth clubs and youth groups across England.
The funding will be received by the following:
- Sport England, who will use £1.32m to develop grassroots programmes and offer extra-curricular sport to young people in deprived areas.
- National Lottery Heritage Fund, who will receive £1.27m for additional investment into ‘Kick the Dust’, a project for young people to enjoy, learn and lead heritage-based activities in their communities.
- Arts Council England, who will expand their Youth Music programme with £500,000. They support music making for young people in challenging circumstances.
- British Film Institute, who will receive £155,000 to expand the weekly BFI Saturday Clubs to more areas of the country.
Furthermore, over £2m of the funding will be put towards forming new Local Partnerships across the country. Areas will be encouraged to bid for a Local Partnership, that will bring together existing providers, statutory partners and the private sector to deliver programmes for young people.
The investment follows the Chancellor’s declaration last year of a £500 million Youth Investment Fund for the five years from April 2020, to give young people something positive to partake in, somewhere to go and someone to communicate with.
Nicky Morgan, Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sports said: “I’m thrilled this funding will allow even more young people across the country to participate in fantastic activities, whether at their local youth centre or through sport, arts, film and heritage organisations.
“This investment will pave the way for our ambitious, long-term plans to support young people that we will deliver over the next five years.”