Nigel SharpSWINDON COUNCIL has admitted it neglected its youth service after a damning Ofsted report.

The report calls the service "inadequate" and says it has been "neglected for many years".

It says few youth workers know how to support young people's learning effectively and that there are "significant weaknesses in day to day management" of the service.

An inspector wrote: "The youth service has been a low priority for Swindon Borough Council and the council has provided inadequate strategic leadership.

"The service is fragmented and lacks clear vision."

In a statement, Swindon Council admits it has neglected the service but blames this on the fact that it was trying to improve education.

Lead member for education Garry Perkins, said: "We accept the findings of the report and welcome the fact that despite the poor overall score they still found many examples of good practice."

But youth workers themselves say they are not surprised by the bad report and blame the result on bad management and lack of creativity on the part of the council.

Nigel Sharp, pictured, set up the Swindon Youth Partnership, to provide support and guidance for youth groups and workers. He is also a youth worker for the Dorcan Church Youth Group.

Mr Sharp said: "The fact is that in the past the wrong people have been in charge of the youth service on the council.

"They did not move with the times and were operating youth clubs in the way that they used to be run.

"They thought it was enough for young people to just go along and play a game of snooker or chess.

"They were not creative enough.

"For instance three years ago I went to the youth service to ask about setting up a performing arts group. They said it would never work. So I went ahead and did it without them and we're still going strong with 100 members.

"Nowadays youth work is about sitting with young people and talking to them about their problems.

"It is such a wonderful opportunity to tackle issues such as sex, drugs and relationships.

"But the council's youth service really wasn't in touch with those kinds of issues."

But he says the current people in charge of the service are doing a good job.

"The people in charge now are absolutely excellent and I can see on a daily basis the difference they are making. Unfortunately though, they have five or six years of mismanagement to overcome."

Daniel Rose is a youth worker at Swindon College and also belongs to the Swindon Youth Partnership.

He said: "Everyone seemed to know this report was going to be awful and that there were serious problems except the youth service itself.

"The issue has always been the management and the general lack of vision and direction.

"They don't really seem to believe in youth participation and they are very insular and not good at partnership working."

Coun Perkins said that he believed the service was on the mend.

"I'm confident that we will soon have a youth service that we can be proud of."

We have proved that we can turn things around our education service has become one of the fastest improving local education authorities in the country."

Diana Milne