PLAY WALES ARE RECRUITING!

Play Wales is an independent charity funded by the Welsh Government – their area of charitable remit is Wales.

They work to raise awareness of children and young people’s need and right to play and to promote good practice at every level of decision making and in every place where children might play. They provide advice and guidance to support all those who have an interest in, or responsibility for providing for children’s play so that one day Wales will be a place where we recognise and provide well for every child’s play needs.

They are looking for a new Digital Communications Assistant to join our small team in Cardiff Bay.

Location: Cardiff
Hours: 37 hours per week
Salary: £20,751 – £21,589 per annum
Closing date: 27 August 2019 (9:00am)
Interview date: 5 September 2019

For more info please visit:
http://www.playwales.org.uk/eng/jobsdigitalcommunicationsassistant

ASH WALES WELCOMES PROPOSAL TO END SMOKING IN ENGLAND BY 2030 AND URGES WELSH GOVERNMENT TO FOLLOW SUIT

ASH Wales has urged Welsh Government to follow in England’s footsteps after proposals to end smoking by 2030 were announced.

Under the plan contained in the Government’s Prevention Green Paper, every smoker being admitted to hospital would be offered help to quit. The paper proposes raising revenue to support smoking cessation services which would be focused on those groups most in need. It highlights the role that technology can play in delivering focussed, personalised support.

The paper also proposes setting an ultimatum for the tobacco industry to make smoked tobacco obsolete by 2030 so that smokers would quit or move to less risky products like e-cigarettes instead.

ASH Wales supports these proposals and believes there would be strong support for similar action in Wales. According to its latest YouGov survey into attitudes towards tobacco control in Wales, 68% of Welsh adults would support new government action to reduce smoking rates to less than 5% by 2035. Meanwhile 47% of Welsh adults feel the government is not doing enough to reduce smoking prevalence in Wales.

The Welsh Government target is to reduce smoking to 16% of the population by 2020 as part of its Tobacco Control Action Plan.

Suzanne Cass, CEO of ASH Wales, said:

“We whole heartedly support this ambitious target to eliminate smoking in England in 2030 and believe we should strive for the same goal here in Wales.
“Tackling smoking has become a key priority for the UK government and there is a new sense of urgency around the issue which we hope will create opportunities to provide innovative solutions to reduce smoking.

“Here in Wales smoking kills around 5,388 adults every year and costs the Welsh NHS £302 million a year. It is the cause of stark health inequalities across the country, hitting our most deprived communities the hardest.

“We know how challenging it is to reach smokers, with 17% of all adults in Wales continuing to smoke, despite free smoking cessation support being widely available from Help Me Quit. And, despite concerted efforts to raise awareness of the harms of smoking among young people, 9% of 11-to-18-year olds in Wales continue to smoke at least weekly.

“Wales will only become a smoke free nation if innovative and targeted smoking cessation support is provided for those adults and young people who need it most, such as social renters, people experiencing mental health problems and those living in our poorest communities.”

She went on to say that any plan to tackle smoking prevalence must be accompanied by efforts to tackle illegal tobacco, which is sold at pocket money prices across Wales, undermining tobacco control policy and allowing smokers in deprived communities to continue to smoke.

“A big challenge we face here in Wales is illegal tobacco which accounts for 15% of all tobacco sales in the country currently. Any efforts to stamp out smoking must be accompanied by robust enforcement action to prevent illegal tobacco from undermining the government’s tobacco control measures.”

CWVYS ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

CWVYS held its AGM at the Urdd Gobaith Cymru centre in Cardiff Bay on 10 July.
We were delighted to welcome so many friends and colleagues from a range of organisations and partner agencies.

Thanks go to Wayne David MP, who we are very pleased to say will continue as CWVYS President; and to the newly elected CWVYS Executive Committee with Claire Cunliffe (Chair), Sharon Lovell (Vice-Chair) and Marco Gil Cervantes (Treasurer) as Officers.

The event concluded with a stimulating session involving all attendees in a Trustee-led set of round table discussions based upon the five themes of the new Youth Work Strategy for Wales. Those findings have been written up and relayed to the Interim Youth Work Board and to the Welsh Government for further consideration, with an open invitation for continued, future discussions.

A list of CWVYS Presidents’ Group Members plus Members of the CWVYS Executive Committee is here: Trustees and Presidents

Here is the CWVYS Annual Report 2018/19.

YOUTH PARTICIPATION SURVEY

Some of you keen-readers may recall that CWVYS are partners of EurodeskUK, which is based at Ecorys in Birmingham. Ecorys forms one half of the UK National Agency for the Erasmus+ programme (the British Council being the other half!), Ecorys is carrying out a study on behalf of the European Commission.

The study aims to gather evidence on youth participation in democratic life within the EU, to inform the ‘Engage’ strand of the European Youth Strategy (2019-27).

The first stage is a survey of youth NGOs and networks in Europe. The survey is now live and will remain open for a month (until August 16th). Our colleagues overseeing the study are hoping to reach as many youth NGOs as possible across the EU, whether they operate at EU, national or local levels.

We would be very grateful if you could support this important work by raising awareness of the survey with youth NGOs in your local area as well as your partner organisations across the EU. You can do this by sharing the following link via your mailing lists (email and/or social media):

Youth Participation Survey

CARDIFF MET YOUTH & COMMUNITY WORK COURSES RECRUITMENT

Cardiff Met Courses Recruitment
Since the launch of the Education Workforce Council (EWC) registration process the Youth & Community Work team has had numerous enquiries about professional training opportunities. As a result, they thought it useful to provide details to the youth work sector, and please feel free to share these details amongst your own networks.

They offer three youth and community work courses:

Foundation Certificate in Youth & Community Work
This course incorporates the Level 2 & 3 Youth Work qualifications, giving EWC Youth Support Worker status, and preparation for study at university. Upon successful completion of this one-year full-time course there is automatic progression onto the BA (Hons) programme.

BA (Hons) Youth & Community Work
This degree programme is professionally endorsed by ETS Wales for Youth Work and provides EWC Youth Worker status – the full professional qualification.

Post Graduate Diploma / MA in Youth & Community Work
These level 7 qualifications are professionally endorsed by ETS Wales for Youth Work and provides EWC Professional Youth Worker status. Read Daniel’s blog about his study experiences and how he is making an impact.

Study options
• The Foundation Certificate can be studied full-time (Usually 2 days per week plus placement*)
• The BA degree programme can be studied full-time (Usually 2 days per week plus placement*) or part-time (1 day per week plus placement*)
• The PGDip/MA can be studied part-time (1 evening per week and block study options on some modules, plus placement*)
*If you are employed in a youth and community work job you may be able to use this experience as your placement.

Fees and funding
Many employers support the day (or evening) release of employees to study on professionally endorsed courses such as these.

A 50% fee reduction can be obtained for practitioners undertaking the
PGDip in the coming academic year (placement / partnership arrangements apply).

Please note: Grants and loans are available from the Welsh Government to cover full-time and part-time undergraduate study (Foundation Certificate and BA routes)

Postgraduate loans and funding are available for students choosing postgraduate study (MA only)

How to apply
Full-time study – apply via UCAS
Part-time study – apply online

If you would like an informal chat or require any additional information please contact:

Gill, Louise or Julia to discuss the Foundation Certificate or BA (degree) programmes on 029 20 417247 and 029 20 205947 or respectively or email gprice@cardiffmet.ac.uk or lcook@cardiffmet.ac.uk orjrooney@cardiffmet.ac.uk

To discuss the PG Dip and MA programmes call 029 20205948 or email cjames@cardiffmet.ac.uk

They look forward to hearing from you!

SENEDD AND ELECTIONS (WALES) BILL PROCEEDS TO NEXT STAGE

On Wednesday 10 July, the Assembly debated and approved the general principles of the Senedd and Elections (Wales) Bill. A link to a video recording and transcript of the Plenary debate will be available on the Bill’s web page in due course.

The Bill will now progress to Stage 2 of the legislative process, during which it will be considered line by line, and Members will be able to suggest changes to the Bill. Stage 2 proceedings are expected to take place in October in a Committee of the Whole Assembly. You can find out more about the legislative process on the Assembly’s website.

We will keep you informed of any significant developments as the Bill progresses through the Assembly’s scrutiny stages. If you have any questions or would like more information about the Assembly reform programme, please visit the Constitutional Change webpages.

2019 WELSH GOVERNMENT APPRENTICESHIP SCHEME

The Welsh Government is advertising up to 25 apprenticeship opportunities in August. Those successful will start to be placed in January 2020. They will be contacting those interested in due course with further details on where and how to access the application.

This new 2019 Welsh Government Apprenticeship campaign aims to encourage more people to apply from all different backgrounds ensuring that Welsh Government builds on being representative of the communities they serve. There are numerous policies and practices in place which support colleagues and line managers to ensure Diversity and Inclusion is key in what they do and how they support staff.

Earn £19,240 a year while you train.
Get 31 days holidays, 10 public holidays and flexible working arrangements to help you achieve a good work/life balance.
Study towards and gain an NVQ Level 3 for 18 months

Visit the Welsh Government Talent Bank to Register

For this Apprenticeship Scheme they’ll be adopting anonymised sift as well as ensuring the interview panels are made up with a diverse range of colleagues.

There are a number of staff diversity networks which have a healthy membership and allies schemes, these are forums where you can get advice and guidance, as well as enjoying network events and social activities.
These are:

• Disability Awareness and Support
• Minority Ethnic Staff Network
• PRISM (LGBT+)
• Women Together

An apprenticeship is a great career choice whether you are leaving school or college, returning to work after starting a family or looking for a new career.

CWVYS ‘STORIES FROM YOUTH WORK IN WALES’ GOES TO WESTMINSTER!

It was a thrill to visit the House of Commons yesterday (2nd July) in order to attend a reception event for the CWVYS ‘Stories from Youth Work in Wales’ report.

The reception was kindly hosted by Wayne David MP, who, as our President, continues to be wonderfully supportive of all things CWVYS. Thank you, Wayne!

Kath Allen and Paul Glaze were ably joined by fellow intrepid travellers Mike Cook (Youth Worker), Morgana and Gethin (Young People) from Senghenydd Youth Drop-in Centre (SYDIC) plus Andy Borsden and Keith Towler.

It was a fantastic opportunity to share the ‘Stories’ report and films with the 10 MPs who attended the event but also to discuss the benefits of youth work in Wales, how the voluntary sector operates and the current context and issues (including the new Youth Work Strategy).

We were struck by not only the willingness of MPs to engage in those discussions but also to relate to their own experiences, including how youth work had played a fundamental and hugely positive role in their respective lives whilst growing up in Wales.

Oh, and Wayne also took us on a fascinating tour of the Palace of Westminster; where we marvelled at the surroundings, drank pop and tea, ate chocolate and were told off for taking photos in the wrong places!

You can find the report and the embedded video links *here*

BRIGHTSKY: A FREE SUPPORT APP FOR ANYONE EXPERIENCING ABUSE OR UNHEALTHY RELATIONSHIPS

At last week’s Youth Work Week Showcase event CWVYS met Rachael, a promoter of BrightSky, who’s post is funded by the Home Office.

Bright Sky is a FREE app for anyone who may be in an abusive relationship. It also provides support for friends and families of victims, practitioners and employers who are looking for information about domestic and sexual abuse, sexual consent, online safety, stalking and harassment.

Bright Sky contains a UK-wide directory of Specialist Support Services. The help includes short questionnaires to assess safety of a relationship and steps to consider if leaving an abusive relationship. It provides information on healthy relationships, different forms of abuse, types of support available, how you can help and so much more. It has a function to record evidence in a Private Journal and provides a guide to on-line safety.

In an effort to raise awareness of Bright Sky Rachael can deliver brief demonstrations to smaller groups e.g. trainers/managers/safeguarding leads/youth workers and other key people.

These presentations then allow organisations to see first-hand how this app could benefit them and the people that come into contact with their service.

There is NO COST associated with Bright Sky. It is endorsed by the Home Office, supported by Welsh Government\WCVA and is the only app that is licensed by Secured by Design.
More information can be found on www.hestia.org/brightsky

Rachael will be present at the next CWVYS Workforce Development Group meeting on the 25th of September. To learn more in the meantime visit www.hestia.org/brightsky or download the app on your phone, tablet or computer FOR FREE from the app store.

NEW YOUTH WORK EXCELLENCE AWARDS WEBSITE

We’d like to share with you the new Youth Work Excellence Awards (YWEA) website, which contains information about all our 2019 finalists.

As with every year, we were blown away by the quality of the nominations and the sheer breadth and variety of youth work happening all over the country. It was a difficult task for the judges to shortlist from such a strong field and we are immensely grateful for their time and expertise. A special mention should go to our young judges who demonstrated great integrity and wisdom in selecting the three finalists under the Making a Difference category.

We hope you find the video testimonials as inspirational as we do and that it will encourage you to nominate someone from your own area or organisation for next year’s awards. The 2020 awards will be open for nominations from November 2019 – all of the information you will need to apply will be on the website.