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GREAT YARMOUTH YOUTH ADVISORY BOARD
9 March 2012 – 10.00 am
PRESENT:
Rob Gregory (in the Chair); Wendy Ellis (MAP), Mr Tim Eyres (Norfolk County Council),
Karla George (MAP), PCSO Gemma George (Norfolk Constabulary), Tracey Jones (GYBC),
Robin Konieczny (Norfolk County Council), Councillor Rex Parkinson-Hare (Norfolk County
Council), Mrs J Ratcliffe (GYBC), Sandy Ratcliffe (Great Yarmouth College), Sergeant Dan
Smith (Norfolk Constabulary) and Karline Edmonds (GYBC).
Apologies for absence were received from Mr Trevor Cockburn and Councillor Peck.
1.
INTRODUCTION
Tim Eyres explained to the Group that in February 2011 Norfolk County Council decided to
close the Youth Service as a consequence of spending cuts. However, the Norfolk County
Council Cabinet allocated £9,000 through its Early Intervention Grant to continue to provide
support to young people. It was agreed in order for youth work to continue across Norfolk
Youth Advisory Boards would be created. These would be a strategic body which would
work together to respond to the needs of young people. He reported that all the agencies
that had been invited to this initial meeting have a responsibility to make a difference to
young people’s lives in the communities and this is why seven Youth Advisory Boards were
created. It was agreed there would be a need to decide who would chair the Youth Advisory
Board for Great Yarmouth and how often they would meet. He reported that this Group
would not be a talking shop and they had carried out two things in order to prevent this, they
had gone out to consultation to five voluntary sector organisations which had been awarded
a contract of £50,000 per year to support youth and community work and MAP had been
selected for Great Yarmouth. He stated that this should not be an adult group of people who
would decide what children and young people need. There was a need to decide how
young people would be part of the decision making process. Each Youth Advisory Group
would have £45,000 in 2012-13 to support and initiate work that would be young person led.
MAP’s role would be to:


Support the Youth Advisory Board to operate effectively
Support young people to be engaged in the community
Support networks and partnerships in the community that carry out youth work.
Tim Eyres would sign off a plan for Great Yarmouth, once the board had created one. He
reported that the age group being targeted was 11-25 but this would predominantly be for
13-19 year olds. Rob Gregory pointed out that there was a need for young people to design
the services and to be involved in the decision making.
Great Yarmouth Youth Advisory Board
2.
9 March 2012
PRESENTATION ON YOUTH PARTICIPATION
The Youth Advisory Board received a presentation from Robin Konieczny. Robin reported
that the Youth Advisory Board needed to involve young people and to ask them what they
think and what they would like. He stated that youths need to be involved in the
commissioning, service development and quality assurance aspects of the projects. Robin
stated that there were some questions that needed to be asked from the start which
include:
What was the Youth Advisory Board trying to achieve?

Where had they got to so far?

What would young people get out of this?

Were they prepared to resource this properly?

Why had this not been done before and what were they prepared to do to involve
young people from the start?

Were they being honest with young people?

What were their expectations?

Were they prepared to give up some power?

Were they prepared to take criticism?

Did they recognise the long term commitment?

Were they prepared to build in changes long term and not just a once-off event?
He then stated there were involvement methods which included consultations, practice
initiatives, undertaking simulation activities, website for young people, large scale events,
advisory and reference groups, network groups, making use of existing groups and
structures, parallel structures, shadow councils and committee places.
The Group then spoke of the Young People and Children’s Staying Healthy Group which
was set up by Health East, along with the Police Authority who were creating a Youth Group.
Tim Eyres stated there was a need to have a joined up approach from each of the various
agencies around youth work through the Youth Advisory Board. Sergeant Dan Smith spoke
of the Hive which would map the youth provision in Great Yarmouth. Karla, the Youth
Worker from MAP spoke of the need to know all local groups and then to explain to them
what the Youth Advisory Group does whilst making this fun for young people. There was a
suggestion that Youth Action Groups could be created and that there would be three that
would link into the Neighbourhood Management Areas. Tracey Jones expressed concern at
this as this would miss the use in the Northern and Southern Parishes. Tim Eyres stated
that the money would be live from April and he hoped that by June the Group would know
what its priorities were in the Borough. However, the Group agreed that it was its intention
to create a Youth Engagement Plan to recognise the networks and channels available. It
also agreed that the mapping exercise should not be too complicated and the focus should
be on doing good work across the community. Sergeant Dan Smith stated that Tesco’s had
given £10,000 for youth activity in Great Yarmouth and that this should have been directed
through the Youth Advisory Board.
Great Yarmouth Youth Advisory Board
9 March 2012
3.
ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION
to cover:



Needs Profile
Mapping existing provision
Future form/structure of Youth Advisory Board
Next steps.
Action 1: It was agreed that there needed to be a clear understanding of the needs of young
people in the Borough. Wendy Ellis stated that she would be preparing a two page
Summary of the Analysis that she had already received for the next meeting. It was reported
that Caroline McGrath from Great Yarmouth Borough Council could assist with any further
data from across the Borough. Tim Eyres stated that if local intelligence and young people’s
perspective was added to this data they already had this would be sufficient to start work.
Jane Ratcliffe stated that Norfolk County Council has family data which was sent to the
Children’s Services Family Information Service and that Health East have data for networks
and clubs that doctors can use. It was agreed that this data should be included in the data
already received. I
Action 2: MAP will also start to plot current youth provision in the borough. It was agreed
that Karla and Dan Smith would meet to talk about the Hive.
Action 3: MAP will also start to consider the elements of a Youth Engagement Plan given the
earlier considerations. Jane Ratcliffe spoke of plans to make the Town Centre WiFi
accessible.
Action 4: Rob Gregory agreed to pursue members who had not been able to attend this
meeting.
It was reported that Tricia Fuller from Norse would be the Business Representative on this
Committee and that Public Health and Youth Staying Healthy representatives should be
sought from NHS Great Yarmouth and Waveney. Tim Eyres explained that other agencies
that are involved with youth could be included in the Board. The Town and Parish Council
representative would be Mr Ledbetter (Scratby Parish Council). It was agreed that it was
important to look at young people to see where representatives could be sought and a
mechanism in place where these could be changeable so that the same people were not
used each time. It was reported there would soon be an announcement of the Great
Yarmouth for the Youth Parliament representative and this young person should be offered a
place on the board.
It was agreed that at the next meeting the frequency of the meetings for the future would be
agreed, along with structure and the election of a chair. The next meeting would be held on
Friday, 27 April 2012 at 10.00 am.
4.
CLOSURE OF MEETING
The meeting closed at 11.30 am.