Agenda and minutes

(1) RESOLVED: that the minutes of the meeting held on 27 June 2011 are correctly recorded and that they be signed by the Chairman.

(1) The Chairman advised Members that Mrs Jean Law had replaced Mr Robert Brookbank on the Cabinet Scrutiny Committee.

(1) Referring to the recommendation relating to the item KCC’s Performance Management Framework, the Chairman explained that the meeting with the POSC Chairmen, Leader, Deputy Leader, Leaders of the other parties and Mr Lees was due to be held after the meeting of Cabinet Scrutiny Committee.

RESOLVED: that the Cabinet Scrutiny Committee note the follow-up items report and responses to previous recommendations.

RESOLVED: that the Cabinet Scrutiny Committee approve the notes of the Informal Member Group on Budgetary Issues held on 15 July 2011.

Mr M Hill, Cabinet Member, Customer and Communities, Ms A Slaven, Director of Service Improvement, and Mr N Baker, Head of Integrated Youth Services have been invited to attend the meeting from 2.15pm to answer Members’ questions on this item.

A number of external witnesses have also been invited to attend the meeting, including a representative of the trade union, UNITE, and the Chair of Kent Youth County Council.

Mr M Hill, Cabinet Member, Customer and Communities, Ms A Honey, Corporate Director, Customer and Communities, Ms A Slaven, Director of Service Improvement, Mr N Baker, Head of Integrated Youth Services, Mr D Farrell, Save Our Services, Ms T Miah, Chair of Kent Youth County Council, Mr D Frost, Maidstone Coalition of Resistance, Mr D Nicholls, National Secretary, Community and Youth Workers in Unite, Ms P Hawkins, District Councillor, Middle Deal & Sholden Ward, and Mr L Knight, Former Trustee, Aylesham Youth Club, were present for this item.

(1) Mr Hill introduced the item, explaining that:

• the decision taken at Cabinet was to consult
• it would be a genuine consultation, because it was what the young people of Kent deserved and what he and his officers needed to inform the proposals
• Kent had an excellent Youth Service, which he supported greatly
• rather than being driven by savings the proposals were an opportunity to reform, reshape and update the Youth service
• that the proposals were based on three important principles:
  • the ‘jewels in the crown’ (the Duke of Edinburgh Award, outdoor education and youth participation) would be preserved
  • a robust in-house service would be maintained; and
  • that the proposals would be fully discussed and consulted upon before implementation

(2) Mr Baker gave a presentation about the proposed new operating model of the Kent Youth Service (KYS), which covered:

• The challenge
• The proposal
• Rationale
• The offer
• The plan – direct delivery
• The plan – commissioning
• National context; and
• Consultation

(3) The external witnesses were then invited to give their statements:

Dara Farrell, MYP, Save Our Services

(4) Mr Farrell welcomed Mr Hill’s comments on his approach to the consultation; he felt that there was great concern among young people across the county, having seen proposals which suggested that some youth centres were to close. He spoke of his own experience as a young person growing up in a single parent family in Stanhope, how involvement of the Youth Service had helped him go on to meet borough councillors, county councillors and MPs and then represent Kent Youth County Council (KYCC) all over Europe, whereas many of his peers had already done prison sentences.

(5) Mr Farrell expressed a view that, whilst he agreed that there should be a consultation, it should have been preceded by discussions with young people. He went on to express the following concerns:

• that the voluntary sector might not be supported by the use of Youth Service centres and the advice of staff in future
• that the number of street-based youth workers may be reduced; that the large number of valuable face-to-face contacts with young people would diminish; and that current level of provision and its corresponding benefits to young people would not be maintained
• that ‘hubs’ in the proposals were presumably chosen due to accessibility, but that other factors such as deprivation should have been taken into account
• that private companies and the voluntary sector would replace youth workers with three years of training, and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 32.