The Culture of Youth Communities
Posted 11th August 2008 10:20am
A lack of parent and adult role models is driving young people to turn to gangs and other peers for support, according to a report published by youth charity The Prince’s Trust.
The Culture of Youth Communities reveals that a third (34%) of young people do not have a parent who they consider to be a role model.
Fifty-eight per cent of young people claim that finding a sense of identity is a key reason for joining a gang, and almost a quarter (22%) say young people are looking for role models in gangs. More than half (55%) already cite friends and peers as role models.
Martina Milburn, Chief Executive of The Prince’s Trust comments: “All the threads that hold a community together – a common identity, role models, a sense of safety – were given by young people as motivations to join gangs.
“Our research suggests that young people are creating their own ‘youth communities’ and gangs in search of the influences that could once have been found in traditional communities.”
The survey of 1,754 14 to 25-year-olds also highlights how young people are twice as likely to turn to a peer (60%) with a problem as they are to turn to a parent (31%). The issue most likely to hold young people back is low self-confidence (32%) according to the research. This was followed by more tangible things such as lack of job opportunities (28%) and lack of training (14%).
Long-term supporter of The Prince’s Trust, The Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) has funded a £1m Trust-led project to help disadvantaged young people develop their confidence and skills by running community projects. The RBS Community Cash Awards encourage young people to interact with a range of people in their local area and employees from the bank volunteer on the projects, offering support and guidance.
Stephen Moir, Head of Community Investment at RBS comments: "The research shows that low self confidence can be a key factor in holding young people back. The impact of this can be significant with young people lacking the ambition or confidence to enter further education or apply for the job they really want.”
Milburn adds: “The RBS Community Cash Awards have brought about some life-changing projects, from drugs education classes to anti-knife crime workshops. Young people are incredibly passionate about their communities.”
The report also puts into context recent alarm over knife crime and youth crime generally. Only nine per cent of young people have spent time as part of a gang, three per cent “regularly” take drugs, and just two per cent carry a knife.
This month, The Prince’s Trust launched its Change the record campaign to help change perceptions of young people having discovered that 60% of media coverage about young people was negative. See princes-trust.org.uk/changetherecord
