€15m rise in spending on youth work would help 32,000 youngsters, says Foróige

A music mash-up with Foróige, Music Generation Cork City, Cope and Voices of Cork, at Fitzgerald's Park in Cork City in 2019. In a pre-budget submission, the body, which works with almost 50,000 young people, said the youth work sector was under 'immense pressure'. File picture: Jim Coughlan

Ireland’s leading youth organisation has said that its proposals for a €15m increase in youth work expenditure in next week’s budget would provide help to almost 32,000 young people.

Foróige said this provision would only bring the youth work budget back to 2008 funding levels — which research found was the second-hardest area cut in the community and voluntary sector during the recession.

In a pre-budget submission, the body, which works with almost 50,000 young people, said the youth work sector was under “immense pressure”. It said it had been hit by a triple-whammy of continued underinvestment, a rising young population (up 10% between 2006 and 2022) and "rising levels of need” among young people.

It said ESRI 2023 research highlighted the importance of out-of-school structured activities and spaces for young people in promoting civic engagement and strengthening communities.

The research institute said youth work also played a vital “buffering” or protective role for young people in areas with “weaker social infrastructures” and reduced the adverse effects on the lives of those youths.

Foróige said that a post-Budget 2024 analysis conducted by the Wheel found that youth organisations were the second-worst affected area, within the community and voluntary sector, since the recession, with a 16% drop in funding since 2008. This was estimated to equate to a shortfall of €15m.

The submission said youth work provides a wide range of benefits to young people and wider society: positive and safe social spaces; mental health support; reducing poverty and social disadvantage; preventing risk behaviours (drugs, alcohol and early sexual activity); reducing anti-social behaviour; improving employability and educational success; lessening rural isolation; instilling a sense of belonging in local communities and fostering volunteerism.

It said an extra €15m in the youth work budget would provide:

• 34 universal youth hubs, assisting 20,160 young people, employing 136 new staff, at a cost of €7m;
• Pay parity for youth staff with the public service and additional support for volunteer-led youth work, helping 7,500 children, at a cost of €3m;
• 14 additional specialist digital youth work staff, working with 1,400 young people, at a cost of €1m;
• Employment of 16 additional dedicated mentoring staff for 400 young people, at a cost of €1m;
• Additional seven staff for specialised and integration services, assisting 225 young people, at a cost of €500,000;
• 15 additional UBU Your Space Your Place Scheme to work with young people experiencing disadvantage or marginalisation, helping 1,200 such youths, at a cost of €2m;
• Youth participation, by appointing 930 Comhairle co-ordinators at local authority level, at a cost of €500,000 

Youth Minister Roderic O’Gorman told the Dáil last week that, between 2020 to Budget 2024, current Exchequer funding for youth services and programmes increased from €61.79 million to €77.95m (up 26%).

He added: “In the context of Budget 2025, I am committed to supporting this important sector which provides positive and transformative opportunities and supports to young people.”