The Journey So Far | 17:10:2025
The NYA’s ‘Youth Council UK’ (YCUK) team is about to circulate proposals for membership, elections and governance arrangements in preparation for a January 2026 relaunch of the national youth (voice) council for the UK. The Government is also about to publish its co-production youth consultation report ‘Todays Youth Tomorrows Nation’ and its response by way of a 10-year Youth Strategy. In the first of two articles, James Cathcart, founder of Young Voices Heard and former CEO of the British Youth Council 2008-2016, reflects on “The Journey So Far”. The second article – “What will the future hold?” explores next steps, referencing and reviewing the NYA consultation report ‘What the Future Holds’ (WTFH) and its recommendations.
Introduction:
The British Youth Council (BYC) closed in March 2024. Later that year, after the dust of the General Election had settled, the National Youth Agency (NYA) began a consultation about its future. This included a nationwide survey and resulted in a report What The Future Holds (WTFH) published in early 2025. The report included eighteen recommendations which were grouped around nine core themes which are reviewed in this article.
Subsequently, NYA appointed a consultant, former MP and ex-BYC trustee Lloyd Russell-Moyle, to respond to and take forward these recommendations. The NYA also invited some of its young associates, other young leaders, and a number of older ‘experts’ to join an advisory group . They have been working on a range of tasks including the approval of a new logo/name, new membership categories and governance arrangements. The NYA began exploring funding options and developed its Youth Voice Team to support the process. Over the summer, organisations were invited to register an expression of interest in the next steps. In Sept, NYA shared a timetable announcing that membership would be open in October, with opportunities to nominate and elect representatives to a Management Committee/Board, prior to a relaunch in the new year.
However, the closure of BYC, represented an opportunity to not just revive and relaunch our national youth council, but to step back and review and re-centre its role in public life. Could it be more effective and sustainable as a semi-autonomous body? Would the new Government be giving a higher priority to youthvoice at a national and local government level, working in partnership and coordinated across other UK departments, on devolved issues with the nations, and overseas on foreign affairs? What about the growth of other youth voice vehicles, alliances and influences beyond the ‘youth work’ sector, notably in active citizenship, politics and issue based campaigning. How would their pathways to power fit align and how would individual young people, who were not members any youth organisations, and not wanting to be, have a voice? And how would we mitigate the risk of this ‘rescue and rebuild’ process being too adult-led, albeit on ‘behalf of’ rather than by ‘young leaders’?
I will explore some these themes later, and in greater depth in Part 2 of the article, but I first wanted to revisit my first reaction to what happened when BYC closed, now that some time and distance has passed.
March 2024: The collapse and closure of BYC
I still remember the shock and sadness that I and many others felt when hearing of the sudden closure of the British Youth Council (BYC) at the end of March 204. I’d had the privilege to serve it between 2008 and 2016 and was keenly aware of the impact on the remaining staff and volunteers, as well as those taking part in its programmes and campaigns. People who contacted me were understandably hurt, angry, and frustrated about ‘what might have been’, as it emerged that “a series of influential internal and external decisions led to an untenable situation leading to its immediate closure” (What The Future Holds report – NYA 2024). Tributes were paid by hundreds on social media to decades of work that empowered thousands of young people, each generation inspiring the next to find their voice in public life, both at home and abroad.
But BYC’s closure was so sudden and absolute that it left a gap at the centre of its network of members and partners, a gap that meant there was no longer a focal point to rally members, stakeholders and supporters in the immediate aftermath of its closure. There hadn’t been time for a planned handover of assets to another organisation. These went to the liquidators and would remain so for months . There was much to untangle in the aftermath.
Writing in a blog at the time, my reaction to events was to predict that ‘BYCs members will now be considering how best to reconvene an interim national youth council and will ensure young people take the lead in determining its future, whilst maintaining the independence and passion of its youth voice leadership to take forward current campaigns such as on ‘mental health and well-being’, ‘cost of living’ and ‘votes at 16’ In the same article I also called on the then Conservative Government to respond by facilitating ‘a youth-led review that ensures a new national youth council and the representation of youth voice, is sustainably secure going forward, yet independent, such as the role of the semi-autonomous body like the Office of the Children’s Commissioner for England, a role BYC lobbied for’. I was too optimistic on the former and the general election derailed a Govt (Tory) commitment to review BYCs future, calling for supporters to submit proposals.
There were attempts to get stakeholders together, notably by Lloyd Russell-Moyle, then an MP, members NUS, UK Youth, NYA, DCMS and others. A meeting was planned in Westminster with the then Minister responsible for funding ‘youth voice programmes’ at DCMS, ready to attend on behalf of the Government. But the General Election announcement intervened and the meeting was cancelled. BYC had hit a perfect storm and the rescue lifeboat was recalled.
Successful efforts were made to ensure that two former BYC initiatives would continue to have a home, with the National Youth Agency stepping up to: host the UK Young Ambassadors programme (BYC reps to Europe and the Commonwealth); and their successful bidding to win the Govt (DCMS) interrupted contract to manage the UK Youth Parliament until Mar 22 (subsequently extended to Mar 26 but under review).
One beacon of hope, which underlines the resilience, confidence and ability of young leaders to step up as equals, was the efforts of the UK Youth Parliament’s young volunteer Steering Group. They simply launched their own lifeboat, continued to meet after BYC had closed, until they could get aboard a new ship. They lobbied the then Minister to ensure #youthvoice was still heard in the meetings about the future of the UKYP programme, which were taking place between other youth organisations and the Government. They wanted reassurance on behalf of their young MYPs on their future and to have an input on who would be their new host. They secured a meeting with the Minister to inform and influence his next steps, and helped DCMS to communicate directly to the network of young MYPs across the UK. This process was boosted when another young MYP (Hayden Cutler) raised a petitioning letter to the Minister, which gained widespread support for the continuation of UKYP. The ‘power of youth’ in action.
During the election official were obliged to remain distanced from decision-making until a new Government was installed (purdah) and the ‘lobby’ fell silent on the issue. I called for the next Government ‘to set up a Commission for Youth Engagement in Democracy, to take account of changes in last decade (Votes at 16, Youth Assembly and Parliaments in Northern Ireland And Wales, regional and city devolution, and the growing youthvoice movement across many other ‘youth in democracy’ organisations’ This was part of Young Voices Heard ongoing calls for reform including votes at 16 with education, a statutory to consult young people on legislation that affected them, and the establishment of a Ministry, rather than the low priority afforded to them with a share of a a DCMS duties with sport, charities, culture etc… [Blog Mar 24]
I was very aware that with a change of Government to Labour, it was likely that Votes at 16 legislation would shine a public spotlight on the views of young people under 18, and that they would not only need a national platform, but deserved a national listening Government, so I renewed my call for a Youth Minister at Cabinet level, (originally a BYC campaign) and an ongoing two dialogue between young leaders and government for mutual benefit. Government would be able to both consult on policy and legislation and be aware of their young electorate’s priorities first-hand – a partnership. They would also be investing in a generation of young leaders who would add value to public life at a local and national level, as well as through their international ambassadors.
Since then, during 2024, and event after the launch of the NYA WTFH report, there have been few opportunities for stakeholders in the youthvoice and influence sector to get together to debate the future of youth-voice’s role at a national level – especially as DCMS had launched its own co-produced consultation on a 10 year Youth Strategy, and as we awaited the NYA’s plans to convene stakeholders in the autumn to discuss ways forward.. So where does that leave us going forward? [note – this article was written in Oct 25/ Ed].
Perhaps we need to remind ourselves just what the role of a national youth council and why would people join it?
A national youth (voice) council, and why would I join it?
The entry on the Charity Commission’s website stated that: “The British Youth Council, the national youth council of the UK, aims to empower young people, aged 25 and under, to have a say and be heard in the UK and overseas. This is through a programme of education, research, training, volunteering, representation, and advocacy opportunities. The charity is membership-based & exclusively youth-led”. [You can read a copy of BYC’s Mem and Arts (Constitution), BYC Rulebook, Manifesto, Code of Conduct, and final Annual Report here]
The introductory chapter of ‘What the Future Holds’, reminds us that the “UK has more often than not been looked upon as the beacon for excellence within the field of democratic youth voice and influence”, and that our youth council “serves as the main infrastructure organisation for youth voice and influence in the UK… creating “opportunities for young people to have a say in decisions that directly impact them, ensuring their voices are heard in the decision-making process. It creates innovative, inclusive, culturally representative, and relevant spaces for young people, regardless of their abilities, backgrounds, cultures, communities, or experiences”. The report reaffirms and reassures us that “the primary aim of a national youth council is to represent young people on the international and national stage. It exists to support young people as individuals and those connected to local youth voice vehicles and national youth organisations”.
I remember that the mission of BYC was to not only amplify youthvoice on the issues that ‘directly affected’ them, but on any issues ‘they care about’ – such as those that impact young people and indeed nations around the world, or in solidarity with other groups in society or across the four nations.
Whether YCUK will attract new members to design and access a new membership offer will depend on a range of things, such as whether the sum of its parts and pooling of resources makes them more cost-effective, and whether a chorus of youthvoice is louder and more inclusive than would otherwise be the case. Such coalitions coordinate to empower more effectively and efficiently, particularly if core costs of convening are covered. I’d sign up (as a young leader) if membership comes with being a shareholder with a say in setting priorities, and I (my organisation) could afford it – perhaps incentivised with an easy access entry-level fee for the first year of rebuilding? It’s worth noting that there are a range of other service providers and networks that have emerged to meet the needs of ‘youth voice and influence’ across the UK – some of which are free to be a part of.
So we restore a national youth voice council – but who’s listening?
Much of the effort has understandably been directed towards the rebuilding of a national youth voice structure or secretariat to host a new Council. But what’s a national voice forum without access to its target audiences – a national listening mechanism that sees the value and mutual benefit of a partnership, and has a mirroring coordinating network (eg Govt departments).
These listening fora do exist within parts of the ecosystem. For example, NYA and the UK Young Ambassadors were able to continue despite BYC’s closure, precisely because there were mechanisms for them to be heard – seats at the table of the European Youth Forum and the Commonwealth Youth Council. These are the first and perhaps easiest piece of the jigsaw to be reconnected to a revived Youth Council. There are other examples of established listening within former members – for example, at the local Government level, where ‘local youth voice/councils’ continue to work with local authorities and councillors, in response to the Education Act 507b guidance that young people should be involved in shaping local services. There are other examples where advisory groups, campaigners, and social actioneers, both supported by children’s and youth organisations as well as initiated by Government departments, facilitate and mobilise #youthvoice for good.
So the revival of a national youth council now needs to be part of a process that will also establish a national listen at UK Government level. The new Govt (DCMS) only needed a matter of months to establish a co-produced a youth-led process to hold its consultation to inform and influence its 10-Year strategy. Just imagine if this co-production process were not a one-off, but an ongoing two-way dialogue, embedded in a new Ministry for Youth, with an exclusive Minister for Youth at Cabinet level. This is the target audience, focus for action and feedback to young people that is needed to complete the circle of meaningful dialogue.
With this in mind, I recall that the WTFH report called on the Government to provide core funding for YCUK. I don’t know if they’ve replied. The Government will hopefully respond to this as it addresses its role and relationship to a revived Youth Council in the Youth Strategy. After all, they will need to officially recognise the new body.
However, I’ve noted that Lisa Nandy, Sec of State at DCMS, when announcing youth sector funding for 25/26 said that some of this budget was to “give young people a voice on the issues that matter most to them through the UK Youth Parliament”. As we know, UKYP is also managed by NYA, formerly an independent charity offering an alternative route for youthvoice to power, specifically parliament, until integrated into a single Youth Voice programme within BYC since 2011, as a DCMS tendered contract. It is now an exclusive a UKYP tender, and is currently under review. Will the Government want to fund two, albeit different, initiatives going forward?
Conclusion
NYA’s aim is ‘to restore the institution as the Youth Council UK to become an independent, young people-led charity’
In this article, I hope I’ve touched on some of the potential opportunities that a wider debate could lead to. We are about learn about the Government’s response to the youthvoice agenda. Our society is about to equip and empower a new generation of younger voters. This will attract more attention from politicians, educationalists and the media, and the public. It’s going to be a great opportunity for a new generation of young leaders to be heard and meaningfully shape all our lives going forward.
But with this comes a challenge to the audience that young people want to reach and be heard by. Youth voice is more than a project or an initiative or even a policy aspiration, but something that deserves recognition and response.
The restoration to a fully independent youth-led, inclusive and representative national Youth Council will need to be a progressive journey, step by step, and owned by young leadership if it’s to be credible and enduring. I’m excited to see where the next steps will take us.
In BYC to YCUK Part 2 – “What will the future hold?” explores next steps, referencing and reviewing the NYA consultation report ‘What the Future Holds’ (WTFH) and its recommendations.