Keir Starmer announces £88m for youth services including arts extra-curriculars

The package, entitled Building Creative Futures, includes £22.5 million to be invested across three years in extra-curricular activities in up to 400 schools, including music lessons and art clubs. 

Labour has also allocated £30.5 million fund to a programme dedicated to improving youth club infrastructure in areas with the highest levels of child poverty, as well as £8 million for a pilot Local Youth Transformation programme aimed at supporting local authorities to provide out-of-school activities for young people. 

The funding intervention, which amounts to £88 million in total, follows what the government described as a decade-long decline in investment of more than 70% in youth services in England. 

Announcing the funding on August 5, Starmer said: "Growing up today is hard for young people. As they navigate their way through the online world, too often they find themselves isolated at home and disconnected from their communities.

"As a government, we have a duty to act on this worrying trend. Today’s investment is about offering a better alternative: transformative, real-world opportunities that will have an impact in communities across the country, so young people can discover something new, find their spark and develop the confidence and life skills that no algorithm can teach."

Culture secretary Lisa Nandy said: "We know that strong local youth services are the bedrock of thriving communities that give our young people safe spaces to learn, grow and reach their potential.

"Today’s announcement is just the beginning. As we develop our National Youth Strategy ahead of its launch this autumn, we are already delivering on our Plan for Change by putting young people at the heart of our mission-led government ensuring they have the support and opportunities they deserve so that no one is left behind."