Young people need 'affordable and safe' places to go

Youth leader Julie Nerton said the government needs to listen to what young people need

Young people need to have "affordable and safe" places to go to help prevent anti-social behaviour, youth workers have said.

In the last 10 years national funding for youth provision has been cut, resulting in the closure of 643 youth centres across the country.

Julie Nerton, from Youth Unlimited in Bridgwater, said the government needs to look at how this has affected the behaviour of young people and is calling for more funding for youth services.

The government said it is investing in youth programmes, but Somerset Council said it does not receive any direct funding for youth clubs.

"It's really important that young people have somewhere to go, somewhere that is affordable, somewhere that they can meet their friends, somewhere that they are safe, somewhere where they have got someone to talk to," Ms Nerton said.

"The government needs to actually look at the behaviour of young people out there.

"Have they noticed an increase in anti-social behaviour since they shut all the youth clubs? Have they noticed that there is a lot of problem with young people's mobile phones, a lot of young people don't like going to school?

"They have taken away a service young people used to trust."

Serena Wootton said she is "devastated" that the Chard Young People's Centre is closing

Ms Nerton's comments come as Chard Youth Club prepares to close after 70 years because of a lack of funds.

Serena Wootton, a trustee of the Chard Area Youth Committee, said she is "devastated" by the decision, but ultimately the building and insurance had become too expensive.

The centre, which was attended by about 270 young people across the week, will close its doors on Friday.

"We could see year on year it was getting more and more challenging to stay open and this (closure) felt like the only option for us," she said.

The Rollercoaster youth centre in Bridgwater has been taken on by the town council

A recent report by the YMCA found that nationally there has been a 73% drop in funding for youth services across England – a cut of £1.2bn.

It has left some estates and villages across the county without a place for young people to go.

Mum-of-seven Tasha Reid said she is concerned that a lack of things for young people to do in Priorswood, Taunton, is fuelling anti-social behaviour (ASB).

"There are a lot of children, some as young as 10, running around with knives, sometimes terrorising the local neighbourhood," she said.

Avon and Somerset Police said while it has seen an increase in anti-social behaviour in young groups within Somerset generally, possession of weapons offences remain average, with no increase for Priorswood specifically.

Insp Joe Piscina, of the Somerset West neighbourhood policing team, added: "We continue to target youths causing ASB within the area and as a force we target knife crime both through enforcement and through early intervention and engagement."

He said the force is actively using social media, beat surgeries and school talks to engage with the community.

But Ms Reid said more needs to be done. She is now trying to set up her own youth club, but said it is much harder than she thought.

"There is a lot of funding that needs to be gained, lots of training that you need," she said.

"It has not been easy at all and knowing where to go to get that help has been quite hard."

Craig Lloyd, co-director of Youth Unlimited, described the youth sector in Somerset as "fragmented"

One of those also trying to help is Craig Lloyd, who has spent 30 years working in youth services in Somerset.

He was made redundant when council youth cuts were made 10 years ago and has since set up his own community interest company called Youth Unlimited.

It runs six youth clubs, including one at the Recreation Centre in Bridgwater, which is funded by the town council.

But he said the sector is "fragmented" and provision is dependent on whether town and parish councils or private individuals have stepped in with funding or practical help.

"We've got a lot of people in small communities really trying to do their best and the difficulty they have is they are working in isolation," he added.

Julie Nerton has been running youth clubs in Somerset for the past 15 years

In a statement the government said that over the next year it is investing £145m into youth programmes across the country adding: "As part of our Plan for Change we have carried out the biggest listening exercise with young people in a generation."

It added that local authorities have a "statutory duty to secure sufficient leisure-time activities and facilities in line with local needs".

But Somerset Council said it receives "no national funding" for youth clubs.

"Due to national challenges, all Somerset services are under pressure and the council continues to work with partners and local organisations to seek innovative solutions," it said.

"We are very encouraged by the energy and ambition within communities to work with us in this area to improve access and provision."