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Written question asked by Shahid Malik (Labour) on Friday, 4 November 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 8 November 2005. It was answered by Baroness Hughes of Stretford (Labour) on Wednesday, 16 November 2005 on behalf of the Department for Education and Skills.

Youth Work Projects

Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps she is taking to ensure accountability of voluntary and community sector (VCS) run youth work projects under the new youth service inspection arrangements, with particular reference to (a) the registration of VCS units with the local authority, (b) training and qualification of personnel and (c) inspection.
Answer

Voluntary and community organisations are important partners in delivering the outcomes we want to see for children and young people. We expect that local authorities will engage with their local voluntary and community sectors in line with guidance relating to the Children Act 2004. Whether or not a local authority chooses to operate a system of registration for voluntary sector organisations they are funding and the nature of any registration system, including how this covers the training and qualification of personnel, is a matter for local decision.Organisations in the voluntary and private sectors that work with children and young people need to work effectively with Local Safeguarding Children Boards (LSCBs) which will come into force from April 2006.LSCBs will be responsible for establishing effective policies and procedures, based on national guidance, for checking the suitability of people applying for work with children and young people and ensuring that the children and young people's workforce is properly supervised, with any concerns acted on appropriately.On inspection, joint area reviews of children's services, by several inspectorates, assess how services contribute to outcomes for children and young people. They include assessing the contribution of local authority funded youth services, whether provided by public or voluntary and community sectors. A joint area review will take place in each local authority area between September 2005 and December 2008.

Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
26681; 439 c1290W;439 c1292W
Session
2005-06
Subjects
Inspections Registration Standards Vetting Voluntary organisations Training Youth work
Link
View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk