Education union ‘Violence linked to youth work cuts’

BRISTOL needs properlyfunded youth services to tackle the rise in knife crime. That’s the view of members of the National Education Union, who believe that cuts to services have led to an increase in violence among young people.

Knife violence in Bristol increased by 33 per cent between 2022 and 2023.

Education workers who support the most vulnerable children in our city say cuts in youth provision and social services mean schools are often picking up the slack.

Micheala Wilde, a pastoral support worker at City Academy, said: “More young people are presenting with more severe problems and it’s become much more serious in the last 12 months.”

The education workers often find that there are fewer youth workers and services to refer children to and some have long waiting lists. Children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) who may be school avoidant or faced with exclusion, are sometimes left with no support at all because their needs are considered too high.

Jackie Kramer-Arden, SEN manager at Fairfield, added: “I work with some of the most vulnerable students in our school. I hear directly from students about their fears for themselves, their families, and their friends”

Alongside other education and youth workers, Jackie and Micheala attended a knife crime summit at the weekend organised by Bristol NEU. The meeting was a chance for those working directly with young people in the city to draw up a charter that will inform city leaders of what needs to happen to increase the safety of children and young people on Bristol’s streets.

Bristol NEU president Amber Williams said: “There’s a massive amount of exclusions. So essentially we have a lot of children who are not accessing a lot of services.

“Cuts to services means people don’t want to go into social work. We really need the pastoral and youth workers, but they are not being paid enough. Sometimes it’s about school avoidance but we need the people on the ground who can support those children in going back into school. Children who are allowed to go out in the evening are entitled to do that, but they shouldn’t just be left with nothing to do.”

The National Youth Agency reported in 2023 that youth services have been cut by 77 per cent in more than a decade while violent offences among young people ‘remain at unacceptably high levels.’

The NYA found in its report that it costs four times more in public spending for a young person to enter the criminal justice system by 16 than it does to help them avoid it through youth work provision.