Cheshire’s down-sized youth service not ready to take over in just one week

Mar 24 2011 by David Holmes, Chester Chronicle

A DOWN-SIZED youth service takes over in just one week’s time yet still nobody knows what it will mean for staff or young people.

Negotiations are ongoing between the council-owned Connexions service and unions to agree the structure of the service, which currently includes careers advice in schools, supporting vulnerable teenagers and running youth centres.

The new contract is due to start on April 1, with 100 job losses predicted in West Cheshire, although at the time The Chroniclewent to press nothing had been decided.

Newly-appointed chairman Cllr George Miller, who sits on Cheshire West and Chester Council, didn’t wish to comment while discussions are ongoing.

Ray McHale of Cheshire West Unison branch said: “The fact is the new service and the new contract starts on April 1 yet still we are in the process of making people redundant and no-one really knows what the new service will look like. It just means it’s a really hard time for everyone.

“It’s difficult for both service-users, who want to know what support they are going to get, and for staff who want to know what they are doing.”

Mr McHale said management appeared to have backed off from changing the workforce’s terms and conditions. Instead of going ahead with a proposed 5% cut in wages, there was a plan for some staff to volunteer to reduce their working week by two hours to 35 hours.

Mr McHale wonders what will be in place for school leavers this year as he suspects there will be “a big drop off’ in support with fewer advisers covering more schools.

Cheshire West and Chester Council says it is committed to ‘maintaining current levels of youth services’ although this is dismissed by the union as ‘not possible’ given the government-imposed funding cuts.