Agenda item

Following the decision of the Exeter Board on 17 July (Min. No. 8) that:-

 (1)       Devon County Council be recommended to establish two youth hubs in Exeter, one at Westside and the other at the Phoenix Centre, Wonford;

(2)        in order to facilitate and promote the provision of youth services across the City, including at the Knight Club and the 100 Club, Devon County Council be requested to work with Exeter City Council to establish a Youth Strategy for Exeter; and

(3)        a Working Group be established comprising Members and Officers of Devon County Council and Exeter City Council to progress the Youth Strategy.

The response of the County Councils’ Cabinet Member for Children, Schools and Skills is set out below:-

1. the 100 Club will be Exeter’s youth hub and the centre of the network of provision for the city. It is a DCC owned building which includes office accommodation.
2. the Joint Exeter Board be invited, at its meeting on 25 September 2014, to consider making, from the Exeter Board Community Grant Fund to support the development of community capacity in the other three sites across the City. Devon County Council would like toemphasise that delivery out of the other three venues (and anywhere else in the City) will be determined by the degree in which others come forward as partners, and that beyond the first year of any capacity building funds available, other resources will need acquiring from outside of DCC.
3. the Joint Exeter Board be advised that the DCC would favourably consider grant funding, from the £200,000 allocated by Cabinet, for community capacity building in Devon.
4. the DCC Youth Service will coordinate discussions with the groups and organisations interested in developing youth services in Exeter with the support from Services for Communities as appropriate.
5. a joint youth strategy for Exeter would need to cover issues such as: play, housing services and health and wellbeing. The development of this Youth Strategy may take many months and would include a wide selection of partners, consultations and input. It is not clear who would be those most appropriate ‘lead’ on this piece of work but it is envisaged that DCC would be a major partner alongside others. 

Peter Stephenson of Exeter YMCA and Richard Cummings of ISCA Church have been invited to participate in the debate.

The County Council’s Head of Youth Service reported on progress with establishing the 100 Club as Exeter’s youth hub and the centre of the network of provision for the City. The re-structure would see a reduction in County wide staff from 210 to 55, the new structure to be operational from 8 November 2014, when 50% of the staff work would be youth centre based and 50% targeted outreach. The County Council Youth Service was co-ordinating discussions with groups and organisations interested in developing youth services in Exeter and who were offering to take on the operation of the three youth centres at Phoenix Centre, Wonford, the Knight Club, Beacon Heath and Westside Centre, St Thomas, Cowick. It was suggested that a further priority would be the development of a joint youth strategy for Exeter for the betterment of teenagers in the City and would need to cover issues such as play, housing services and health and wellbeing. The development of this strategy would include a wide selection of partners, consultations and input. A Member asked for particular attention to be given to play area provision which, he felt, was in danger of being neglected.

The Cabinet Member for Children, Schools and Skills had asked the Board to support the development of community capacity in the three sites from its Community Grant Fund so that the County Council could favourably consider grant funding, from the £200,000 allocated by Cabinet, from the Community Infrastructure Support Fund, for capacity building in Devon.

The Chair welcomed Peter Stephenson of Exeter YMCA and Richard Cummings of ISCA Church to the meeting, their organisations having come forward with offers to take on the running of the three youth centres in the City.

Peter Stephenson circulated a paper (attached to minutes) outlining proposals to run the above centres at Wonford, Beacon Heath and Cowick. The YMCA proposed a different format to that of the County Council Service in that management of the centres would focus on the whole community whilst retaining an interest in serving young people and generating a surplus to enable YMCA Exeter to deliver youth work in each location. A wide range of individuals and organisations would be encouraged to use the YMCA Centres and it was the intention for many services to be delivered by other organisations.

He emphasised the complex nature of the project and the legal obligation under charity legislation to carry out due diligence. It was currently collating information on building conditions, community needs etc. to develop a robust business plan. Whilst it was believed that the centres had the potential to generate a surplus to cross subsidise youth provision in each location there would be a minimum of two years for an effective business to emerge. Pump priming was therefore vital to cover initial losses. The YMCA was working on an interim plan to deliver two sessions per week in each of the three Exeter centres over 12 months at a cost of £35,500.

Richard Cummings of ISCA Church, based in Beacon Heath, spoke on the Church proposal to run the Knight Club. The Church had been active in the area for a number of years, ran two after-school clubs and was keen to ensure the continuation of a youth service in the area. It was aware of the YMCA proposal and prepared for it to the run the Centre if its proposals were supported. If the Church was the viable alternative, it acknowledged that the continuation of the service would be on the basis of serving the whole community.

Members referred to the short timescale to respond to the County Council’s decision for the City’s youth service to operate out of a single hub and of the urgency in reaching agreement to ensure the maintenance of a robust youth service in Exeter. It was crucial to secure, in the first instance, an interim youth service and to maintain a physical presence with the three remaining centres to remain open during the transition period. Urgent clarification was therefore required on funding commitments and appropriate management mechanisms. The YMCA, or other organisations would need to be re-assured that assuming initial management responsibility would not entail long term responsibility for the buildings and that an appropriate, interim lease arrangement would therefore need to be secured to allow for the early occupation of the buildings. Longer term agreements for occupation could then be developed. The County Council Estates Department was working on this.

For the County Council to consider grant funding for the three centres from the £200,000 Community Infrastructure Support Fund, a funding commitment was sought from the Board. Such bids had already been submitted from other towns in Devon with view to match funding. It was noted that the Board had already identified £15,000 for support for the identified centres but further guidance from the County Council Cabinet was required on the level of its contribution as well as the contribution proposed by the Board. Peter Stephenson asked for a firm commitment to provide funding in order for the YMCA to proceed with its preparatory work. Without funding identified and the leasing arrangements confirmed, it was likely that the youth centres would be shut for a certain period.

The Chair thanked Peter Stephenson and Richard Cummings for attending.

RESOLVED that:-

(1)        the Board agree to nominally offer £15,000 match funding to ensure continuation of the Youth Centres;

(2)        the Cabinet Member for Children, Schools and Skills be asked to clarify the level of funding from the £200,000 allocated for capacity building in Devon; and

(3)        if necessary, a Special Board Meeting be held in light of the County Council’s Cabinet Member’s decision.