Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It's off to Putney I go!

Hey!

I am excited yet very sad at the same time today. I got my flight dates through today and I'm off to do my training tomorrow in Putney, London 'til Friday. So I fly now, on the 18th of May, big set back I know but you have to look on the bright side of things. At least I have more time to say good bye to people and I get to say a last goodbye to the young people I worked with.

It's such a shame, a few of them have said they'd like to keep in touch, so I might make another Blog, young people friendly for them to read. Hmm. We'll see.

I am pretty excited still. bit more nervous now and definitely nervous, especially about coming back.

1. What state is the country going to be in? 
2. Will I get uni sorted so I can be a full time lazy student? 
3. Where am I gonna live?
4.  If I get my full time studentness planned, I'm not gonna be here for the start of term... ahh!

Tonight on the news there was a piece on how young people across the country are suffering from the cuts in youth services. It was really good to see that people are picking this up finally. youth and community work is so valuable and important and you very rarely get to hear anything about it in the news unless it's linked with a school.

I was really lucky to have contact with youth service when I moved. At first I took part in a project for young people who were leaving school and then I got involved in the Duke of Edinburgh scheme and then with the Team that I am now leaving after working with for three and a half years or so.
Before moving I had always been involved in other things, like a church youth club, volunteering and Army cadets, I found them great fun and they gave me a boost. But the youth service stuff, it was different, I felt like I could make decisions for myself, I was in charge of my life, I could ask questions and be what I want to be, not just follow instructions.

This is what young people have been telling us about what we do. If I were to be me again at sixteen when the changes and cuts to services are made, I wouldn't be able to take part in any of the activities. I wouldn't be classed as vulnerable. So therefore the council would spend the least amount of money and time on me as possible. In reality, I was vulnerable at 16, as most people are, I lacked direction, I needed guidance and interaction with positive role models and other people my age in a positive environment, the majority of what I knew about sex and contraception was from dirty jokes I'd heard at cadets and on TV. When I was worn down from bullying at college and packed it in I was picked back up and helped to make a decision as to what to do with my life. Without that support I wouldn't be a youth worker and probably wouldn't be studying at Uni at all.

How can someone in an office dictate that youth workers should select and deselect people to work with based on their perceived vulnerability?

Tonight's rant has been inspired by shock. Two bosses from my team how now been refused their jobs. They re-applied for the same or similar job to what they do now and neither of them got the position. I am absolutely gutted. My colleagues and friends in the whole of the service are slowly being chipped away at  personally. They're breaking people all to come back round again in a few years time when some bright spark realises that they need to pay attention to Britain's future workers and adults.

That's all for now.

x