It was recently announced by the new government that the National Citizen Service is going to start winding down from March 2025.
The programme was launched by former Prime Minister Cameron in 2011 as part of government plans to create a new National Youth Strategy.
Inspire has been delivering NCS for nearly a decade. Since 2022, we have created 1059 individual experiences that help young people to learn life and employability skills, and complete social actions.
We are dedicated to continuing to deliver an exceptional programme until it ends.
Speaking about the decision to end the programme, Inspire’s Project Co-ordinator Jay Wallace-Langan said young people are going to miss out on getting the life skills they need.
“We cover things like cooking, money management, basic car maintenance, looking at taxes and payslips. They are skills that they don’t necessarily learn in school.”
Jay added the positive effect he’s witnessed from delivering the programme, including young people learning how to write CVs and do interviews that has resulted in them getting jobs, or getting in to college when they didn’t think they would.
“It gives them an opportunity to learn things that they wouldn’t in school which is essential for moving forward in life.
“If there’s nothing brought in to replace it, there will be a knock on effect. There will be a lot of young people unsure of what to do.”
Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy announced the plans in the House of Commons on November 12, saying: “The NCS met the needs of the moment and put active citizenship rightly at the heart of the government’s programme for young people but the world has changed and we need a youth strategy that reflects that.
“This is not a decision we take lightly, I’ve spoken to the chair and chief executive and I’m so grateful to them for their commitment to work together to protect young people and staff, to share learnings and expertise and to ensure that there is an orderly transition from the end of the NCS programme to what comes next.”
A statement from NCS stated: “NCS was founded to help build a more cohesive society through supporting young people at a crucial moment in their lives, through connecting young people across many walks of life, building their skills and confidence, and empowering them to make a difference in their communities.
“It is our heartfelt belief that there has never been a more important time for the kind of work that NCS delivers. Young people are facing an increasingly uncertain future due to the disproportionate impact of Covid on their generation.
“The combination of an enduring cost-of-living crisis and the increasing spread of disinformation is sowing discord and division.
“We hope that the government will continue to support youth initiatives with an explicit focus on building a cohesive society, and we stand ready to share our insights and learning as the Secretary of State develops her new youth strategy.”
