Jeremy Miles MS, Minister for Education and Welsh Language
I am delighted to announce that Sharon Lovell MBE has been successful in her application to Chair the new Youth Work Strategy Implementation Board. This new Board has been established to take forward the ambitious recommendations contained within the Interim Youth Work Board’s report, ‘Time to deliver for young people’ published in September 2021. I announced my intention to establish this Board in my Written Statement of 20 December alongside an allocation of £11.4m over three years to support the implementation of the Interim Board’s recommendations.
The changes we are looking to make in response to the Board’s recommendations will help to provide a strong basis for youth work as we build a sustainable youth work model. This is part of my wider commitment to ensure that wellbeing and children’s rights are front and centre of all our reforms.
Sharon’s appointment means that we will continue to have a Board that is led by an experienced and knowledgeable leader in the youth work field, and I am confident her passion and enthusiasm will help to deliver results.
With the Chair in post, I am pleased to announce that the application process for Board members is now underway. I encourage a wide and varied range of people to apply in support of my ambition to establish a diverse Board.
Sharon will work with the recruitment panel and the Young Persons Committee to create a Board with the knowledge and expertise necessary to ensure we develop youth work services for all our young people. That must include increased equality and diversity of opportunity regardless of where young people live. The swift establishment of the Board is vital to enable us to build on the momentum created by the work of the Interim Board and the engagement with our stakeholders and young people, including through the Young Persons Committee and the Strategy Participation Groups.
I once again extend my gratitude to the Interim Board members, the Young Persons Committee and the wider youth sector for their valuable contribution to youth work, and for getting us to this point. I look forward to working with the new Board as we transition towards this implementation phase.
To make an application please visit the Welsh Government public appointment website: Public Appointments