Youth work in Wales - delivering for young people: children's rights impact assessment

The decision being impact assessed is the Welsh Government’s proposal to introduce a new statutory framework for youth work in Wales. This decision centres on implementing new statutory guidance and associated statutory directions that would set requirements on local authorities in terms of how youth work for those aged 11 to 25 years is planned, delivered, and monitored across the country. The framework includes national standards for youth work, including the requirement to ensure youth work is formed through engagement with young people and is easily accessible to them. Other aspects of the framework include requirements for local authorities to develop a five‑year youth work strategic plan, report annually on progress, and work collaboratively with voluntary and other partners to deliver a comprehensive local youth work offer. These measures form part of a shift toward a more structured, rights‑based, and accountable approach to youth work across Wales.

Existing research and data informing the policy

Extensive engagement, alongside formal consultation, has been undertaken to develop and refine the statutory framework for youth work. This has included:

• a series of engagement events with representatives across the youth work sector and beyond to explore specific issues and themes prior to consultation
• formal consultation running from October 2024 to January 2025
• inviting youth workers with pre-existing relationships with young people to discuss the draft proposals and feedback their thoughts and areas for improvement
• targeted engagement with focus groups of young people
• a taskforce of representatives from across the youth work sector to consider the issues that emerged across these various engagement exercises and explore approaches that addressed those issues

Across these different strands, we have involved:

• Children and their representatives

  Youth workers were specifically encouraged to facilitate discussions with young people to help them understand the proposed changes and to support them in sharing their experiences and opinions with Welsh Government on our proposals and how they could be strengthened. A series of focus groups with young people were also held in autumn 2024 to gather structured feedback from a range of young people.
   

• People with protected characteristics

  Across the various strands set out above, responses were invited from a wide range of individuals and organisations, including organisations involved in the design and delivery of youth work. This also included organisations with a particular focus on supporting young people with protected characteristics, helping us to better understand how the framework could be strengthened in terms of its support for underrepresented groups.

The targeted engagement with focus groups of 22 young people through discussion sessions and 19 young people via a survey. Those young people who participated in the focus groups were aged between 11 and 21 years old and came from three different local authority areas. Discussions were facilitated by an organisation with expertise in co-production and citizen involvement. Survey respondents were aged between 16 and 24 years and came from at least 7 local authority areas (some respondents chose not to share details about where they lived). These respondents included five Welsh speakers.

We heard that young people wanted youth work to be accessible, welcoming, flexible, and genuinely co‑designed. They felt the definition of youth work within the draft framework was too formal and emphasised the importance of recognising the relational, informal, and voluntary nature of youth work. They described barriers such as transport, confidence, awareness, disability, and unsuitable opening times. They described their ideal provision as offering safe spaces, varied activities, supportive adults, and opportunities for creativity and socialising. They strongly favoured meaningful participation, including peer‑led evaluation and regular feedback with visible “you said, we did” responses. Their input shaped the emphasis on clearer communication, minimum participation standards, and balancing universal and specialist needs within youth work planning.

Welsh speakers and organisations who place a particular focus on providing youth work through the medium of Welsh, have provided responses to the consultation on our draft proposals. The consultation also included specific questions in the consultation in relation to the Welsh language and how the proposals could support our wider ambitions as set out in Cymraeg 2050. The taskforce established to work in detail with us on refining our proposals included a representative from a voluntary organisation centred around providing opportunities for children and young people through the medium of Welsh.

Furthermore, in addition to the strategic vision embedded in the guidance, the national standards for youth work within the final framework focus on ensuring youth work is accessible, responsive to diverse needs, and co‑produced with young people themselves. The proposed guidance also reflects cross‑government priorities and existing policy frameworks related to education, well‑being and children’s rights, demonstrating that youth work policy intersects with wider policy areas such as wider education aims, Welsh language policy, and the importance of youth participation.

Anticipated Positive and Negative Impacts on Different Groups of Children and Young People

Youth work services are designed to be inclusive and accessible to all young people aged 11 to 25. Youth work supports young people from a wide range of backgrounds and identities, including those with additional learning needs (ALN), disabled young people, those living in poverty, Black, Asian and minority ethnic young people, migrants, care‑experienced young people, LGBTQ+ young people, and Welsh speakers. Youth work is sometimes delivered as universal provision as well as through targeted support for groups who may face additional barriers or vulnerabilities.

The introduction of statutory duties for youth work is expected to create more consistent, dependable access to support for young people across Wales. Young people and practitioners highlighted the importance of trusted relationships, informal education, and clarity around what they can expect from youth work; the new framework strengthens these elements by requiring strategic planning and accountability. This benefits young people who currently face inconsistent provision, including those in rural, disadvantaged, or previously underserved areas. The framework’s emphasis on voluntary engagement and working collaboratively with young people supports their participation rights and ensures youth work is shaped around their identified needs. The emphasis on areas such as providing Welsh‑medium and culturally relevant provision strengthens opportunities for Welsh‑speaking young people and those seeking culturally affirming support. A more professionalised youth work sector, supported by clearer pathways and increased engagement with training, is anticipated to enhance the quality and stability of provision, whilst the framework also acknowledges that others who may not hold professional qualifications play an important role in the delivery of a rich and diverse youth work offer.

Youth work is widely recognised as an important service in developing young people’s confidence, resilience, and wellbeing. Collaborative and localised delivery approaches may also increase accessibility and reduce duplication, indirectly supporting more sustainable and community‑focused opportunities for young people.

Despite these positive intentions, several risks may affect different groups of children and young people. The strengthened statutory duties will require additional capacity from local authorities, voluntary organisations, and partners, particularly during early implementation. Whilst this may result in some temporary disruption or reduced access to youth work, affecting young people who rely on consistent support, this impact is not envisaged to be significant. Funding uncertainty presents a significant concern, as uneven financial capacity across regions could lead to unequal improvements, with some communities experiencing slower progress. This may disproportionately affect young people already facing disadvantage or those in rural areas. Ambitions to expand Welsh‑medium youth work may be limited by the current shortage of Welsh‑speaking practitioners, risking inconsistent access for Welsh‑speaking young people. If resources are stretched, specialist or targeted provision, for example for disabled young people, LGBTQ+ young people, or those from ethnic minority backgrounds, may become more difficult to sustain, reducing inclusivity. Overall, without sufficient investment and workforce development, the benefits of the framework may not be realised equally for all groups of children and young people. However, it is important to acknowledge that these risks have not arisen as a result of the introduction of this statutory framework. Addressing the challenge of achieving a sustainable delivery model for youth work, and to deliver a youth work offer that meets the needs of young people, requires a systemic approach across a number of workstreams.

Consultation responses also identified concerns from representatives from some voluntary organisations in particular that the framework may result in a ‘two tier’ sector rather than drive greater collaboration between organisations across the sector. 

The framework introduces a new planning and accountability approach for local authorities in relation to youth work. Whilst recognising that resourcing provision will be a key consideration in setting objectives within Youth Work Strategic Plans, it is important to note that challenges in relation to funding youth work provision are not as a result of the introduction of this framework. The framework will provide a consistent approach to the planning and accountability of youth work, aiming to build a clear link between the needs of young people and action to be taken by local authorities – with their partners – to address those needs. This will help build a greater understanding of the impact of youth work, which in turn will help protect and secure resources for youth work.

Participatory Work with Children and Young People

A range of participatory approaches involving children and young people was used to shape the development of the statutory framework for youth work in Wales. Youth workers with established relationships were encouraged to hold discussions with young people, helping them understand the proposals and supporting them to share their views directly with Welsh Government. This helped ensure that young people’s lived experiences and priorities influenced the design of the framework, and that these conversations were contextualised around their current engagement with youth work provision. 

Targeted engagement was also undertaken through structured focus groups held in late 2024. These sessions gathered detailed insights from young people across different backgrounds, enabling officials to explore how proposals might impact diverse groups and to identify areas where the draft could be strengthened. 

In addition, a task and finish group, comprising representatives from across the youth work sector worked collaboratively with officials to consider the issues raised through consultation and engagement processes. Many of these representatives were closely connected to young people and brought forward their perspectives, helping to refine solutions and ensure the policy reflected the needs and aspirations of those directly affected.

Analysing the evidence and assessing the impact

Based on the evidence in the Integrated Impact Assessment, the proposal is unlikely to create any specific negative impacts on the rights of EU, EEA, or Swiss citizens under 18.

Youth work services are designed to be inclusive and accessible to all young people aged 11 to 25, including those from migrant, asylum‑seeking, or minority backgrounds, who are explicitly recognised as groups that may experience discrimination or barriers to participation. The guidance highlights that such groups often face compounded risks and may have poorer mental health outcomes or reduced opportunities due to exclusion, and that youth work should address these inequalities through tailored, rights‑based provision and accessible local youth offers. Since EU children and young people living in Wales may share similar vulnerabilities, the framework’s emphasis on inclusion, non‑discrimination, safe spaces, cultural responsiveness, and participation helps ensures that their rights are supported in line with the UNCRC. No elements of the proposal introduce residency‑related conditions or restrict access to youth work based on nationality, and therefore the framework aligns with, rather than challenges, the rights of EU, EEA, and Swiss young people up to age 18.

The analysis of impacts will inform ministerial advice by clearly highlighting that the statutory framework delivers substantial benefits for young people, such as improved consistency, stronger rights‑based practice, enhanced participation, and better wellbeing outcomes, while also identifying realistic implementation risks relating to workforce capacity, funding pressures, and voluntary‑sector strain. These findings will support balanced advice that emphasises both the strategic value of introducing the duty and the need for risk mitigations, including the ongoing risks to youth work around sustained investment, strengthened professional learning, support for Welsh‑medium delivery, and proportionate expectations for local authorities and the third sector. This will ensure ministers receive a full and honest assessment of expected outcomes alongside the steps required to ensure the framework is deliverable and equitable, reflecting the evidence of capacity constraints and funding uncertainty raised through consultation and impact analysis.

Youth work organisations were specifically asked to gather young people’s views on the draft framework by using their pre‑existing, trusted relationships to facilitate discussions, helping young people understand the proposals and supporting them to share their experiences, priorities and suggestions with Welsh Government. As the framework moves to completion, we will build on these same channels by communicating the final outcome back to young people through youth work organisations, local participation structures and focus groups, ensuring the feedback reaches them in ways that feel familiar and accessible. In addition, we will draft bespoke, age‑appropriate communications to clearly show how their contributions shaped the final framework and to ensure all young people, whether or not they engaged directly, can easily understand the decisions and what they mean for them – including a young person’s friendly version of the final framework.

The CRIA will be monitored and reviewed in line with the wider monitoring arrangements set out for the statutory framework. The overall impact of the statutory framework for youth work will be reviewed through statutory mechanisms requiring each local authority to produce a five‑year strategic youth work plan, accompanied by annual progress reporting and inspection‑linked accountability structures, which together provide an ongoing evidence base for assessing delivery and outcomes. The first plans will commence in April 2027 and run to March 2032. These same cycles provide the foundation for reviewing the CRIA. As part of post‑implementation review, we will revisit this CRIA, update the assessment in light of emerging evidence, and integrate findings into any changes that may be made to the framework.

Based on the current analysis, no immediate revisions to the policy itself are required; however, the wider IIA notes key implementation risks, particularly workforce capacity, ongoing funding uncertainty, and variability across local authorities, that may require adjustments to implementation rather than to the substance of the framework. The review process may therefore identify the need for strengthened support for local authorities and voluntary organisations, enhanced workforce development (including Welsh‑medium capacity), or clearer guidance to help ensure more equitable delivery. Any such revisions would focus on implementation support, not on altering the core statutory framework, ensuring the policy continues to uphold and enhance children’s rights while remaining deliverable. The framework also includes a review point, whereby Welsh Ministers will be required to assess the extent to which the planned objectives for this framework have been met and whether other approaches may need to be adopted.