The Olympic Cultural Framework is a community resource and tool that can provide a tangible social, strategic and economic approach that can complement, enhance and assist the implementation of the Every Child Matters and Youth Matters policy agenda. The Olympic Cultural Framework also provides an opportunity for the London 2012 Olympic Games, to deliver the youth inclusion and regeneration themes identified within its winning bid document. This in turn will benefit young people from some of the most challenging and disadvantaged communities. The Olympic cultural Framework also attempts to reflect as well as take forward key recommendations of the many documents written on this subject to date.
The Olympic Cultural Framework provides sport and creative activities as a mainstream part of the delivery of public services for the pre 16/post 16 age group. The wider benefits also contribute to the Government’s benchmarks of Best Value and Beacon Status. The Olympic Cultural Framework will be delivered through the existing and exciting ‘Citizenship in Action’ initiative developed as a result of 1000 Young people from 10 communities of social deprivation from the nine English regions visiting the 2002 Commonwealth Games. Social and cultural benefits of this approach are already being realised with a needs assessment and delivery plan completed over the last 3 years. This Olympic Cultural Framework also delivers the practical and tangible effects of social inclusion and regeneration benefits that can be realised as part of the build up, delivery and legacy of the 2012 Games.
Citizenship in Action© is the social responsibility and active citizenship for young people and community cohesion. Capacity and leadership with volunteering are other potential benefits to the Games both in the lead up to and the delivery of the 2012 Olympiad and as a sustainable and tangible legacy to communities throughout the UK and beyond.
Evaluating any investment is difficult given the conflict of interest that always sees the self-interest of provision satisfied first. The economics are clear: £7,000 to educate; £52,000 to incarcerate yet our prison population is the highest it has ever been. The 8,500 young people (15-21 years old) sentenced or remanded to a secure facility represent our collective extreme response to disaffected and disillusioned communities. Greater Manchester leads the way in issuing some of the 7,356 ASBOs of which nearly half have been handed out to under-18s; this represents over 3,000 young people who have been further excluded from society. Given this tendency to concentrate on the negative aspects of youth culture: How do you set targets that engage, motivate and inspire young people and communities to adopt a positive lifestyle? How do you benchmark the social black hole that represents the majority of our communities?
8. Recommendations
Admissions to museums and galleries have increased significantly since the government, in 2001, introduced free entry. Under the scheme those museums and galleries participating have their VAT refunded recompensing for the loss of income. The notion of free access for all should be extended to all public leisure centres and swimming pools throughout the country. The increased participation will be offset by combating the two million overweight schoolchildren and 700,000 obese school children that could see the overall cost of obesity reaching almost £5billion by 2010.
The role of our elite athletes is already beginning to change and all must recognise their responsibilities as role models as well as world-class performers. However they must be equipped and more effectively utilised. All sports men and women should ‘go back to school’ and be linked to a local school with one visit per week as part of world-class performance plan. The weekly visits will provide an opportunity for working with aspiring talent, inspiring all young people as well as developing the athlete’s own leadership capabilities.
Corporate Social Responsibility and Philanthropic Contributions are not enough for many to invest in the social fabric of our young people. Businesses especially are driven by short-term benefits and returns needing incentives to participate. The final national recommendation is for the Olympic Social Investment Bond to be supported with tax incentives.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has reported a lack of medical workers having a devastating impact on many countries' ability to fight disease and improve health (The World Health Report 2006)*. The wider application of the Youth Charter’s work would see social coaches and community sports coaches developing these skills as an extension of their inclusion work.
Fig. 6.1 Olympic Cultural Framework
Current social inclusion/regeneration policies and strategies, whilst making considerable progress in addressing disaffected young people and social exclusion, are still failing to provide socially cohesive and economic approaches that will lead to a social investment and return to the young people and communities they are aiming to assist. There is also a language and culture gap between the agencies currently attempting to engage the hard to reach.
We also recommend that the following be established: 7. Conclusions
The effects on our communities of educational non-attainment, obesity, anti social behaviour and vandalism need to be joined up in policy and delivery. Daily news stories reinforce the negative perception of young people and their communities, which prompt knee-jerk reactions tackling symptoms rather than causes. The lack of any real progress despite £billions of investment demonstrates the importance of existing initiatives in changing the perception of the UK as being the worst place in Europe in which to grow up. Sport and the arts have demonstrated over many years the ability to be universally implemented with some local benefits, but as yet without the real social and economic evidence to attract greater investment..
The public perception of disadvantaged communities accompanied by massive public funding has created an industry focused on doing to communities in which problems are re-defined to fit the prepared solutions. Invariably these responses create a ‘social junkie’. The social industry must now commit to the re-investment and re-establishment of young people and their communities as a priority. This is real sustainability.
A Royal Commission for Youth to demonstrate the Governments seriousness on the issues of youth needs at all levels of society.
A Ministry for Youth, Culture, Sport, Arts and Social Affairs to provide a truly effective department that would drive forward Government policy initiatives as well as a seat around the cabinet table.
A youth appointment on all regional public bodies i.e. Regional Development Agencies, Cultural Boards, Sports Boards, local strategic partnerships etc. These appointments would ensure that a youth voice is contributing at the heart of the local/regional decision process.
A Youth Task Force to represent the key agencies and individuals currently at the forefront of youth provision and delivery in this country. The Youth Task Force would report directly to No.10, with Prime Ministerial/inter-ministerial responsibility forming part of the Prime Ministerial monthly briefings.
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*Refer reference pages 45 - 46
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