It is vital that Ramsgate, a town of 40,000 people, and a number of wards with very high levels of deprivation, retains its youth centres with their professional KCC staff. Especially at this time we need greater investment in our young people, not less.
On reaching 1000 signatures the matter will be referred to the most appropriate local level meeting (e.g. Local Board, Locality Board or Joint Transportation Board)
This ePetition ran from 16/08/2011 to 08/11/2011 and has now finished.
68 people signed this ePetition.
I have noted your comments in regard to the proposals for a transformation in the way services for young people are delivered across the county.
A period of 90 day consultation with young people, staff, partners and stakeholders has recently closed, and officers are now preparing a detailed report that I will use as the basis of making a decision in the near future. I have also been meeting with elected members from the County Council as well as District and Borough Councils to hear their views; clearly, the views of young people are very important to me, and I have taken the opportunity to meet face to face with young people from across the county over recent weeks.
As you will be aware, the proposal for consultation was to
deliver a core service level in each district of KCC staff
delivering a Youth Hub, Street-based Youth Work and
school- based Community Youth Tutor(s). Under the proposals, this
‘core offer’ would be supplemented by the commissioning
of youth work services at a local level to continue to ensure the
delivery of youth work opportunities and thus in its entirety
ensuring the delivery of a first class Youth Service for the young
people of Kent whilst working closely with local communities to
make decisions on what youth provision would best serve them.
A common misconception with regard to the proposals has been the assumption that a Youth Hub will be the only form of youth work provision in an area, with the concern that young people would have to travel large distances in order to access services. I must be clear that this was never suggested in the proposed model.
The intention of the proposals has always been to look for new opportunities for communities to have a greater role in shaping and even running their own services. As such there has never been a decision to close either Concorde Youth Centre or the Artwise Centre in Ramsgate.
We recognise that local communities are, rightly, very proud of their local youth service provision which is why we do not intend to make any rushed decision. My officers will work alongside the Locality Boards over the next few months to ensure that we commission exactly the right kind of services for Thanet.
Yours sincerely
Michael Hill, OBE
Cabinet Member for Customer and Communities