Birmingham City Council: Knife crime campaigner's fears over youth services amid council crisis

Anxious campaigners and residents across Birmingham have voiced their fears over what the city council’s alarming budget could mean for vital youth services.

Anti-violence campaigner Alison Cope, whose teenage son Joshua Ribera was killed in a knife attack in 2013, is among those who have spoken out, arguing that youth services are vital to “counteract” the negative influence of social media in schools.

She also urged Birmingham City Council to consider their priorities and make sure “lives are not lost” as it prepares to carry out a wave of cuts to local services. The crisis-hit council’s budget was passed following a fiery meeting earlier this week, which means cuts and ‘reviews’ are now set to impact bin collections, libraries, cultural organisation grants, leisure fees, street lighting and much more.

The Labour-run authority has found itself struggling with its finances due to a perfect storm of issues including Birmingham-specific factors, such as an equal pay fiasco and the disastrous implementation of a new IT and finance system, as well as the rising demand for services and the impact of years of austerity.

Among the cuts and changes put forward by the council in its budget was a proposal to achieve savings through an “independent review of the careers, youth and 14-19 services.” It adds the redesigned service “will need to deliver statutory duties to support young people not in education, employment or training, and ensuring 14 to 25 access to employment, training and education, with a particular focus on excluded groups and young people with SEND.”

The council’s bleak situation has sparked concern over what its budget proposals mean for the future of Birmingham’s youth services. Alison Cope, 50, regularly visits schools to share her son’s story and help educate young people on the realities and consequences of youth violence.

She said she was particularly concerned about fights in schools being filmed as well as the impact that controversial influencers were having on young men.

“We are seeing the consequence of social media,” she said. “School staff are worried about how young men are presenting themselves.” The campaigner, from Moseley previously said that social media can also help glamorise the ‘gangster lifestyle’.

Amid the current crisis which has engulfed the city council, she warned: “Parents, schools and youth services are all struggling already.What is the priority for Birmingham? What does the council want? Does it want Birmingham to be a place where people feel welcome and safe to travel?

“They are going to make cuts but let’s make sure it’s not going to result in lives being lost.”

Concerns over Birmingham’s youth service also emerged during Tuesday’s heated budget meeting, with Conservative councillor Matt Bennett warning that young people could become more vulnerable to “criminal elements” if they lose access to their youth centres.

Green Party councillor Julien Pritchard for Druids Heath and Monyhull meanwhile read out heartfelt letters from those who spoke about how important Maypole Youth Centre is to them.

“Maypole Youth Centre in my ward is so vital to young people who use it, providing support, a safe space and activities for young people,” he said.

As the debate unfolded inside the council, a crowd of protesters gathered outside the building – including those from the Save Birmingham Youth Service campaign group.

Its petition, which has been signed more than 1,000 times, says the city’s youth service has a long history of delivering high-quality youth work and supporting young people.

“These centres and projects provide safe spaces for Birmingham’s young people and are run by professionally qualified youth workers who dedicate their lives to improving the lives of young people,” it continued.

“Birmingham Youth Service is a lifeline for many young people who rely on its services for support, guidance, and safety.”

“Our children and teenagers need us now more than ever before”, it added.

In response to the wave of concerns over youth services, a spokesperson for Birmingham City Council said: “We continue to work with our partners in West Midlands Police and schools across the city to engage with young people. "We will do all that we can to minimise the impact on the frontline services that protect young people and their families right across our city.”

Previously addressing the alarm that budget cuts would cause to parents and families across the city, council leader John Cotton said: “What’s really important is that we use our statutory consultation processes to engage with families and to engage with citizens around how we take those proposals forward.

“But this is a very difficult budget to bring forward and we’ve very much aware of that and the decisions we have to take.”

During Tuesday’s meeting, he pointed the finger at the Conservative Party and warned there was “raging crisis” across local government.