The future approach to commissioning positive activities was considered by Worcestershire County Council’s Cabinet on Thursday 15th October and funding for 3 years from April 2016 was approved. This followed a review of positive activities requested by Cabinet in July 2014, a survey of young people, and a councillor-led review carried out by the Children and Young People’s Overview and Scrutiny Panel, which were summed up in a Cabinet report. The report showed that in 2014-15, commissioned activities had reached 10,121 individual young people across Worcestershire. Additional key points were that:

• Removal of all county council commissioned services would leave some parts of the county without any open access youth work provision;
• Commissioned services are reaching and positively impacting on individual vulnerable young people;
• Diversionary function of locally accessible positive activities was making a significant contribution to lowering of levels of reported anti-social behaviour;
• County Council’s investment in the voluntary youth sector has enabled commissioned bodies to secure further funding to enhance their work with young people;
• 47% of young people responding to the survey said they did not access any other activity provision in their community other than that provided at school.

Cabinet accepted the recommendations of the report and approved:

• a budget of £600,000 to re-commission the voluntary sector from April 2016. This figure will fall to £500,000 and £400,000 in succeeding years;
• the priorities for the new commissioned organisations including the need for voluntary sector youth organisations to work towards a sustainable future that is less reliant on public sector funds;
• consideration be given to revising high level objectives to include prevention and support of young people’s low level mental health issues and reducing demand on social care.

To see the full report go to http://worcestershire.moderngov.co.uk/documents/g366/Public%20reports%20pack%2015th-Oct-2015%2010.00%20Cabinet.pdf?T=10

More information about the commissioning process will follow soon.