Labour MP and former Home Secretary David Blunkett has proposed a national nine-month volunteering programme for at least 20,000 young people in a bid to “change values and attitudes fundamentally” and prevent future riots.
The National Volunteer Programme (NVP) would be in addition to the National Citizen Service (NCS) eight-week summer volunteer scheme being introduced by the coalition government for all 16-year-olds. It would allow NCS participants to use the skills learnt in their summer placements to choose which areas of the full-time programme they would like to work in, the opposition MP said.
The NVP is “critical to the wellbeing of young people and the nation as a whole”, Blunkett said, proposing the scheme would focus on social, educational and environmental placements.
Participants would receive a "proper stipend" and accommodation and food if required to be away from home, he added.
Costing an estimated £140m if there were 20,000 participants, Blunkett said the scheme could help cut the "gargantuan overall cost of crime". The latest statistics released by the National Audit Office state that on average, each young offender costs £8,000, per year, to the criminal justice system. In 2009 - 2010 young people committed 201,800 offences in England and Wales at an estimated cost to the British economy of between £8.5bn and £11bn.
"Culture of no hope"
Blunkett makes his proposal in response to the recent riots in England.
"We can see that low employment rates exacerbate a culture of no hope, where the power and image that comes from being part of a gang is a much more accessible and attractive offer than a job,” said Blunkett. “A culture of dependency and victimhood prevails and opportunities to escape are limited.
“There is an enormous amount that can be done to provide a positive outlet and major gains for our society as a whole,” he said.
Blunkett suggested the programme could see young people used as part of the solution to some of British society’s growing problems, including an ageing population.
“Britain is facing significant challenges over the coming decades. With an ageing population, the Dilnot enquiry showed that the cost of old age care is going to be a vast strain on our budget.
“We should see a National Volunteer Programme as not just an answer for those who participate, but also as part of the solution for these growing problems,” he said. “Participants could volunteer in care homes, or assist with support in the homes of those needing help to enable older people to stay in their home for longer.”
Blunkett has long been a supporter of youth volunteering. In 2004, whilst Home Secretary, he was in talks with Gordon Brown (as Chancellor) to introduce nationally a British version of the AmeriCorps volunteering programme, though this never came to fruition. Last year he signed his name to Volunteering England’s manifesto, The Power of Volunteering, pledging to recognise the value of volunteering in building a stronger society, free volunteers from red tape and support organisations enabling volunteers.
