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Contact: Chris Crossley - Senior Youth Worker, Tel: 01252 311786

Val Webster - Youth Service Manager, Tel: 01962 846805

1. Summary

1.1 This report provides information about Youth Service work in Rushmoor District, including references to significant achievements and key issues being addressed. Information is included on current work and planned developments. To complete the snapshot picture, a list of current Youth Service projects and details of other networks, projects and initiatives are attached as appendices.

2 Background

2.1 The Youth Service District of Rushmoor is co-terminous with Rushmoor Borough Council. It is situated at the extreme North East of Hampshire and borders Hart District Council and Surrey County Council. The Borough of Rushmoor covers an area of 3,905 hectares and is divided into 15 wards. Rushmoor includes the towns of Aldershot and Farnborough, 60% of which is urban. 45% of the Borough is in Ministry of Defence ownership with Aldershot being known as `Home of the British Army'.

2.2 Rushmoor has a dual population of 33,070 in Aldershot and 55,050 in Farnborough, including 5,000 service personnel and 1,000 of their dependants. Around 7,000 are aged between 13 and 19 years. Attendance at Youth Service projects in July, August and September was 2,576.

2.3 Overall, Rushmoor is relatively affluent; however, there is a stark economic contrast between the two towns. In a recent property assessment on the performance of town centres, Aldershot was scored 230^th out of 242, Farnborough in contrast, is a developing town and is increasingly a dormitory town for commuters. Between the two towns is the older settlement of North Camp, which has a village style atmosphere.

2.4 The relative affluence of Rushmoor betrays the fact that there are pockets of deprivation in five wards in the Borough. The Youth Service is part of an interagency New Opportunities Fund bid to regenerate these wards. North Camp has also been recognised as a week community and the Civic Trust is involved in a regeneration project.

2.5 Key issues across Rushmoor include a lack of leisure facilities, poor transport links and the territorial nature of Aldershot and Farnborough. The recently published Community Safety audit has identified the incidence of violent crime and vehicle crime as key issues. It also highlighted a predominate quality of life issue as the perception of intimidating gatherings of young people in public areas.

3. Youth Service Projects in Rushmoor

3.1 The Youth Service provides a wide range of opportunities for young people across the District. This is delivered through 17 projects, details of which can be found in Appendix 1.

4. Progress Report On Current Work

4.1 During the two years since the re-focusing of the Youth Service in September 1999, significant developments have taken place in Rushmoor. Staffing, premises and curriculum development have all been improved in a systematic manner.

4.2 Despite the difficulty of appointing both full-time and part-time staff, principally caused by high competition from neighbouring authorities who can pay London Fringe Weighting, the District has a staffing level of 95%. The District has been split into three areas, each with its own Area Worker responsible for supporting and developing youth work. Where it has not been possible to appoint full-time staff, posts have been split to create more substantial part-time posts providing current part-time staff with greater career opportunities. Disappointingly, it has not been possible to appoint Duke of Edinburgh Award staff. However, the district is working with partner agencies to develop this area of work.

4.3 There is a high commitment to training with four staff completing the Youth Work Certificate Course last September, one staff member doing a part-time course leading to a national qualification. There is a skilled staff team in Rushmoor who are keen to develop new areas of work.

4.4 One of the challenges in Rushmoor is to acquire new premises for youth work. There is a lack of appropriate venues in Rushmoor, particularly in Farnborough. The following progress has been made:

· Capricorn Youth Centre on Connaught School site in Aldershot has been totally redecorated with new flooring

· Hampshire Youth Bureau (HYB) has moved to shop front premises in Aldershot town centre with the aid of a grant from Government Office of the South East (GOSE).

· A joint project with Rushmoor Borough Council is being developed to secure new town centre premises in Farnborough which can become a Connexions base in the north of the district.

4.5 Increased motivation and the enthusiasm of newly appointed staff has led to a wide range of developments in youth work over the past year. The following is a snapshot of some of these achievements:

· A youth shelter was established in North Camp, which provides a safe and secure meeting place for young people, to work them away from potential flash points.

· Project Bogart was established as a pilot interagency project using detached youth workers to target disengaged young people.

· A Total Parents pilot was established working with young parents and focusing on parenting and budgeting skills.

· Hampshire Youth Bureau relocated to new town centre premises developing a multi-agency One Stop Shop.

· Detached youth work has been developed throughout Rushmoor to establish contact with and support young people not using established youth projects.

· The Peer Training Project produced a drugs misuse CD-ROM and a video on sexual health services.

· Fifteen young people from the District visited Lapland in Finland as part of an ongoing exchange programme.

· A pilot counselling service has been established to support clients using Hampshire Youth Bureau.

· Work in schools has been strengthened with the successful launch of an Inclusion Project at Connaught School. Plans are in hand for a further project at Oak Farm School.

· Youth Workers have supported Say No and Phone(SNAP) discos in Rushmoor providing advice and information to young people.

4.6 The above work has given a firm foundation to further youth work in Rushmoor. Targets for 2002/03 include:

· Playing a proactive role in the development of the Connexions service in Rushmoor, and further developing partnerships with other agencies.

· Developing Hampshire Youth Bureau services throughout Rushmoor, to include the development of mediation, counselling, support and mentoring services.

· Working in partnership with Rushmoor Borough Council to establish a new town centre premises in Farnborough with a cyber café, information, advice and support points for young people.

· Developing an accreditation programme for young people where their work can be recognised and recorded.

· Developing the Duke of Edinburgh Award in Rushmoor.

5. Work With Partner Agencies

5.1 The Youth Service is working closely with a number of agencies to develop joint strategies to meet the needs of young people. These include partnerships with: Emmaus Projects to support the Daylight Project; the Citizens' Advice Bureau to develop training for HYB staff, and Rushmoor Borough Council and Hampshire Social Services to develop HYB's new services.

5.2 The Youth Service is participating actively in a number of partnership groups including the Community Safety Partnership and Healthy Rushmoor. These forums have enabled the importance of working with young people to be highlighted, and have secured increased resources for the district.

5.3 The Youth Service has initiated an interagency group "Action On Youth", which is now the pre-Connexions forum for Rushmoor. This represents all agencies working with young people and provides a strategic focus for youth work initiatives. Advisory Forums in Aldershot, North Camp and Farnborough have been established. These enable local people and Councillors to become involved in and support youth work.

5.4 A list of other projects, networks and initiatives, the youth service is involved in are detailed in Appendix 2.

6. Resources

6.1 The Youth Service's delegated budget for Rushmoor District in 2001/02 is £210,600.

6.2 External funding secured in 2001/02:

· Government Office of the South East £25,000

· Rushmoor Borough Council (HYB) £ 7,000

· Hampshire Social Services £ 9,000

· Primary Care Group £ 4,000

· Eastleigh Action For Skills £ 3,000

· Hampshire Police Authority Crime Prevention Panel (shelter) £ 4,000

· Rushmoor Borough Council (shelter) £ 4,000

· North and Mid Hampshire Health Authority £ 4,950

Total £60,950

7. Recommendations:

(1) That the current developments in youth work in Rushmoor be welcomed.

(2) That the development of the One Stop Shop in Aldershot and Cyber Café in Farnborough be supported.

Section 100D - Local Government Act 1972 - Background Papers

The following documents disclose facts or matters on which this report, or an important part of it, is based and has been relied upon to a material extent in the preparation of this report.

NB: The list includes:

1 Published works

2 Documents which disclose exempt or confidential information as defined in the Act.

Nil

Appendix 1

Hampshire County Youth Service

Rushmoor District: List of projects

Appendix 2

Name Youth Service Role

Action on Youth Lead Agency

Area Advisory Forums - Aldershot, North Camp Lead Agency

and Farnborough

Blackwater Valley Housing Forum Member

Benefits Agency Liaison Group Member

Community Safety Partnership Member

Cross Border Forum (Hampshire and Surrey) Member

Drug Reference Group Member

Legal Services Commission Strategy Group Member

Mayfield Partnership Member

North Camp Regeneration Group Member

North Hampshire Refugee Support Group Member

North Town Interagency Group Member

Rushmoor Youth Committee Member

SNAP Discos Working Group Member

Army Welfare Youth Service Liaison

Gateway, Aldershot (Hard of hearing) Liaison

The Source Café Joint Working

Totlands Youth Café Liaison

UB40 Homeless Project Liaison