Current status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 13 March 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what work (a) it and (b) its agencies carry out with (i) local authorities and (ii) youth organisations to assess the economic value of youth work.
The Scottish Government recognises the valuable support provided to young people through high quality youth work. This work contributes to the Scottish Government’s priority of eradicating child poverty and tackling inequality.
The Scottish Government regularly engages with Youth Scotland and YouthLink Scotland in connection with the grant funding provided to each organisation from the Community Learning and Development (CLD) budget.
Funding is focused on supporting the workforce to deliver high quality youth work, which, in turn, contributes to Scotland’s economic growth by providing disadvantaged young learners with the confidence and skills needed to overcome barriers to progression and enter the workforce.
As part of the independent review of CLD, the Scottish Government published a detailed literature review on the value and impact of Community Learning and Development, including youth work. This includes external research carried out on the economic value of youth work. The literature review was prepared in consultation with a range of CLD stakeholders, including from the youth work sector, and can be accessed at: www.gov.scot/publications/community-learning-development-scotland-internationally-literature-review/.
In addition, HM Inspectors of Education review and report on the quality of CLD provision across Scotland and evaluate the progress that local authorities and their CLD partners are making to improve the quality of provision and services in their areas.