October News

Will and Kate open Youthscape HQ

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been praised for having a, “Heart that cares for young people,” after visiting Christian charity Youthscape. William and Kate officially opened the organisation’s new headquarters at Bute Mills in Luton and met with young people who have benefited from projects set up by the charity. The visit was part of their long running campaign to raise awareness of mental health issues.

Talking to a young person about the difficulties she faced when her mother died, Prince William told her: “The fact you have gone through it and got where you are now... you should be really, really proud.” During the visit the royal couple also unveiled a mural to officially open the building which has recently undergone a £3m redevelopment.

While Kate told a group playing Uno that the game was her favourite, William showed off his cue action on the pool table before joining in a game of FIFA, playing as his favourite team Aston Villa. Youthscape’s Luton Director Alex Drew told Premier Youthwork she was encouraged by their attitude to those they met. She said: “I think they have a heart that really, really cares for young people. They really want to see change spend time and energy in seeking change for young people; that’s really exciting.”

Childline takes call from suicidal young people every half hour

NSPCC’s helpline Childline says it is carrying out an average 53 counselling sessions every day from children and young people with suicidal thoughts. Over the past year, 19,481 calls were made by those considering ending their own lives – double the number from five years ago.

The charity says the major triggers for these calls are a turbulent home life, abuse, school pressures and mental health conditions. One 15-year-old caller said: “I’ve got exams coming up which is causing arguments with my family. I don’t know if I can cope much longer so I’ve been thinking about suicide and have planned how to do it.”

NSPCC is calling on society to address the triggers and better understand what brings young people to this point. Chief executive, Peter Wanless, said: “We have to understand why so many children are reaching such a desperate emotional state that they feel they have no option but to end their lives. As a society, we cannot be content that a generation of children feel so worthless, alone and cut off from support; it is up to all of us to help them feel that life is worth living.”

Alan Slough, a Christian who lost his son Tom to suicide in 2004, told Premier Youthwork the key to helping young people is to give them space to open up. He said: “If somebody’s feeling rubbish then they need to be able to tell somebody that they’re feeling rubbish without thinking, ‘oh gosh I’m supposed to be happy and smiley because I’m a Christian’. It’s quite an unseen pressure that’s put on people.”

Girls were six times more likely to be counselled by Childline about suicidal thoughts and feelings than boys, while the most common age for these sorts of calls was 12 to 15.

Nearly £400m cut from youth services in six years

Youth services across the UK have seen an estimated £387m cut by local authorities over the past six years according to a new report from UNISON. The study suggests the cuts have led to the loss of nearly 140,000 places for young people and more than 3,600 youth work jobs, as well as the closure of more than 600 youth centres since 2010. The union is also warning of further cuts over the next year, which could see 45,000 more youth service places removed, 800 more jobs lost and more than 30 youth centres closed.

UNISON general secretary Dave Prentis said: “Youth workers are tireless in the support they provide to young people. It is youth services which prevent problems happening in the first place by reducing feelings of isolation among young people and helping teenagers to lead positive lives. But they’ve been relentlessly cut and undermined at a time when they are needed more than ever. This is damaging young people’s life chances, especially those from poorer backgrounds, and raising the risk of mental illness as well as anti-social behaviour.”

Defending the cuts, Minister for Civil Society, Rob Wilson, said: “We are clear that local authorities need to make sensible savings while protecting frontline services. I urge [local authorities] to look at new ways to secure youth provision now and long into the future.” Theresa May recently announced an extra £80m of funding for youth projects in England, saying that groups in deprived areas would be able to bid for the grants to fund sport, drama and voluntary work.

Churches are being encouraged to bridge the funding gaps across the UK. Alastair Jones of Frontier Youth Trust said: “While I have a deep sadness at the loss of youth services for young people I thank God for Christians and their commitment to seeing youth work transform the lives of young people. Over the past years we have encouraged and nurtured, Christian youth workers able to deliver both professional and diligent youth work to fill some of those spaces left in our communities for young people. Young people are not getting a great deal of attention outside of school at the moment and I am so thankful for passionate workers who aren’t content to see young people marginalised.”

News in brief

Dream jobs for young people

A survey of those aged 12 to 25 found that 92 per cent of young people didn’t want to follow in their parents or grandparents’ career footsteps. 50 years ago, the top dream jobs were teacher, scientist, footballer, sportsman and doctor, but 2016 saw writer ranking highest, closely followed by being a YouTube sensation, artist, photographer and clothes designer.

Young people in debt

Almost one-third of young people are considered to be in debt, according to National Debtline and the Money Advice Trust. The average debt among 18-24 year olds has reached nearly £3,000. Joanna Elson, chief executive of Money Advice Trust said: “We know that far too few young people are seeking the advice they need when they fall into financial difficulty.”

Porn damage

An NHS doctor has issued a warning to young people about the dangers of watching pornography. Psychosexual therapist Angela Gregory says more and more men in their late teens and early 20s are suffering from erectile dysfunction as a result of becoming addicted to watching online pornography.

High number of RE GCSE students

The number of pupils studying GCSE Religious Education in England and Wales is at its highest level since 2002. There were 284,057 entries on the full course this year, up 0.1 per cent on 2015. The rise comes as the overall number of GCSE entries across all subjects is down by 0.5 per cent. Daniel Hugill, chair of the National Association of Teachers of RE said: “Teachers, parents, employers, and students themselves, all recognise that GCSE study in Religious Studies makes a key contribution to preparing young people for adult life in our pluralistic society and global community.”

New director of mission for YFC

British Youth for Christ have appointed Prince Laryea as their new director of mission. Prince founded and led youth charity Acts 29 and was one of the founding members and manager of UK hip-hop band, The 29th Chapter. Prince says: “More than ever, young people need a clear relevant voice, communicating the truth and hope which is the gospel of Jesus. It’s an honour for me to join this organisation of passionate evangelists, missionaries and youth workers. I look forward to making a lasting contribution to this exciting work.”

Jesus’ crucifixion in virtual reality

Jesus’ story is to be told using virtual reality technology. The feature film Jesus VR has been shot in the hyper-immersive 360° format, which helps viewers feel like they are part of the film. The film’s director David Hansen said: “The viewers truly feel they are there with Jesus and his disciples. This is the most powerful story of all time and virtual reality is the perfect way to tell it.”

Mark Zuckerberg visits the Pope

Pope Francis welcomed Mark Zuckerberg, the founder and CEO of Facebook, and his wife Priscilla Chan to the Vatican. They spoke about how technology can be used to alleviate poverty, encourage a culture of encounter, and communicate a message of hope, especially to the most disadvantaged. The Pope doesn’t have a Facebook page but has nearly ten million followers on Twitter.