Transforming services from above and below…

Many APYCO members are currently dealing with challenging issues of leading change in their organisations. The fundamental role of leadership and management in stewarding the shift to Integrated Youth Support Services as a key theme in Fiona Blacke’s presentation to the conference after lunch - and was picked up in two afternoon workshops run by Kevin Ford of FPM Training.

Kevin explained:

There is pressure on leaders with an agenda coming from above when they need to initiate and drive change from below.

We need to be able to secure the space for people to think and reflect on what change means for them, and to gain a sense of ownership over the changes.

It can be tricky for leaders of services to do that when there is a top-down agenda to deal with - but in the workshop we explored different approaches people are taking to manage the tensions.

Quick questions:

How are you managing the balance in your service?

What approaches have you adopted to help staff teams gain a sense of ownership over the changes?

What is an integrated service anyway?

The APYCO 2008 conference is all about making integration work - but again integration seems to be one of those terms that is tricky to define.

With integration happening in 149 different ways across the country, what is the essence of integration and an integrated youth support service.

Here is what Fiona Blacke, NYA Chief Executive had to say in a short video interview:

Ross Little, Senior Information Officer at the NYA, argues that we need to make sure we’re collecting the right information to be able to track and learn from the diverse transitions to integrated youth support across the UK.

If the government are not measuring something, then that something can easily get lost. There may be a role for the NYA in collecting the information that helps services identify the different roles youth work is playing in integrated services.

Quick questions

• What is your definition of integrated youth support services?
• What should The NYA and others be measuring to make sure we keep track of the youth work role in the future of Integrated Youth Support Services?

Where is Youth Work in Positive Activities?

This morning’s plenary session spend some time talking about Positive Activites, and Fiona Blacke in her Keynote has just spoken about the tensions that still exist in the definition of Positive Activities.

Earlier on I spoke to Nicole Joseph about her perception that we’re not talking enough about the specific contribution of Youth Work to positive activities provision.

What we need to establish and detail is what is unique about the youth service offer. Without that clarity and definition we’re asked to deliver unskilled work in under-resourced centers and bases.

This afternoon some groups will be taking part in a Socratic Dialogue exploring ‘What is distinctive about Youth Work?’.

How would you answer the question?

Is the street a place to go?

In this morning’s presentations, Dee O’Connell spoke about street based outreach that forms part of the Youth Crime Action Plan.

Dee talked about how this was similar to Detached Youth Work - but some of the table-based discussions sought to explore the difference.

The street based work in the youth crime action plan seems to be about getting young people off the street - but detached youth work can recognise that the street is not always to move young people on from, but can be a space where we can work with young people.

So, when we are talking about Places to Go and Things to Do for young people, can the street be amongst places to go?

90 different job titles

David Whewell, Chair of APYCO, commented in his opening speech that, unlike the picture a couple of years ago, there were probably now 90 different job titles amongst the delegates in the room. He wasn’t far off.

I took a quick straw poll of the different job titles around the tables in the main conference room - and here are some of the job titles I found:

(Tag cloud created with Wordle

Quick questions

• Have you got a different job title?
• What does this diversity of job titles and job roles mean for the future of APYCO and of services for young people
• What would your idea job title be?

A new name for APYCO…

We need a new name.

Whilst the current name no longer adequately describes the range of different youth service arrangements across the country, last night’s executive committee meeting decided to withdraw the proposal to rename the association Association of Integrated Youth Support Services as it became clear that this name too fails to reflect all that the association is about. Today’s AGM has accepted the proposal to postpone the name change.

So - with an extra-ordinary general meeting to vote on a new name scheduled for six months from now - and few names yet on the shortlist - we need your ideas for a future name for the Association.

Add your suggestion as a comment or comment on the ideas that others have shared. Try to explain why you think the name you are putting forward really captures what APYCO is, or needs to be, about.

A shortlist of names will be brought to members in January 2009.

Still talking about youth work five years from now…

I’ll be blogging throughout today from the APYCO conference. Just before the AGM I caught up with Susie Roberts, APYCO Chief Executive, to ask about the core values of the association. You can see what she said in the video below…

Earlier on, in the new members briefing, Susie commented that “We still need to be able to talk about youth work five years from now.”

What do you think: How do we manage the challenge of embracing integration whilst also maintaining the ability to talk about the particular contribution of Youth Work?

And the responses are in…

So this is Friday - the final day for blogging your responses to the proposed constitutional changes

Many thanks to everyone who has shared their views, concerns and suggestions. You can read the comments on these posts.

It is important to stress that one of the key reasons for the changes is to  ensure that we are able to deal at a more strategic level and with a larger body of influence alongside other national parties to promote youth work and the best interests  of those who have responsibility for its delivery as part of IYSS.
The proposed alterations to the membership categories are more inclusive than previously and if accepted would allow officers working both strategic and operationally across the full range of services for young people to become members. This  directly  reflects the way in which ADCS is  structured and is a proven very successful model.
The Executive Committee hope to have received your formal written amendments to the proposals so that they can be submitted at the AGM. Should this not be the case they will aim to reflect the views of respondants so that people can recognise that their views have been taken into account and feel more comfortable with the substantive motions.

This might be the end of the change to add your blog comment responses to the proposed constitutional changes - but it isn’t the end of this APYCO Interactive blog. Next Monday we will be live-blogging and sharing news and updates from the APYCO annual conference - and there will be more opportunities to share your comments, reflections and insights. If you are coming to the conference then I look forward to seeing you there.

2008 Conference: Creating Shared Space, Making Integration Happen

The 2008 APYCO conference, preceded by the AGM where three proposals for constitutional change will be discussed, is taking place on the 13th and 14th October 2008 at Horwood House, Bucks on the theme of ‘Creating Shared Space: Making Integration Happen’

For details of the conference download the conference programme (word document) or register using the members booking form (word document).