Session 3 – 11th April – 15.45 – 16.35

Title of Presentation:           Extending Entitlement and Missed

                                               Opportunities in Wales

Presenter:                             John Holmes,

Organisation:                 University of Birmingham

Summary:

This is a discussion paper on current youth policy in Wales linked in particular to the conference theme of ‘Social inclusion and inclusive curriculum’. It is a completed paper, drawn from extensive links with youth work in Wales. It has been accepted for publication in the UK journal ‘Youth and Policy’, and is due to be published in the next edition.

This paper gives an overview of Welsh youth policy, concentrating on ‘Extending Entitlement-supporting young people in Wales’ and how this has been implemented since the Learning and Skills Act (2000) through Young People’s Partnerships. It critically analyses this policy initiative in relation to the traditions of youth work and the position of the Welsh Youth Service in terms of social inclusion, partnership working, and models of learning. It argues that the dominant current youth policy is emerging as ‘Learning Country: Learning Pathways 14-19’ and that this is likely to pose challenges and difficulties for youth work in relation to the models of social inclusion, partnership and learning implicit in this policy. In particular the emphasis on employability is seen as problematic.

The paper draws on a range of sources including government publications, and writers such as Frank Coffield, Tony Jeffs and Mark Smith, Ruth Levitas, Robert Putnam, John Rose and Howard Williamson.