National Council for Voluntary Youth Services

The National Council for Voluntary Youth Services (NCVYS) is a membership network of around 170 voluntary and community

Community

The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...

organisations, as well as local and regional networks, who work with young people and operate in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. NCVYS acts as an independent voice of the voluntary

Voluntary sector

The voluntary sector or community sector is the sphere of social activity undertaken by organizations that are for non-profit and non-governmental. This sector is also called the third sector, in reference to the public sector and the private sector...

and community youth sector, working to inform and influence public policy

Public policy

Public policy as government action is generally the principled guide to action taken by the administrative or executive branches of the state with regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs. In general, the foundation is the pertinent national and...

, supporting members to improve the quality of their work, and also raising the profile of the voluntary and community sector's work with young people.

History

NCVYS was founded on the 24 March 1936 by representatives of 11 of England

England

's largest youth organisations (known then as 'juvenile organisations'). They met under the auspices of the 'National Council of Social Services', now known as the National Council for Voluntary Organisations

National Council for Voluntary Organisations

The National Council for Voluntary Organisations is the umbrella body for the voluntary and community sector in England. NCVO works to support the voluntary and community sector and to create an environment in which an independent civil society can flourish...

(NCVO), of which NCVYS has remained a member. The representatives agreed to form a 'Standing Conference of Juvenile Organisations' (SCJO) to promote mutual cooperation and coordination between their organisations. The first meeting of the new committee was held on 26 May 1936.

The 11 organisations which contributed to the foundation of SCJO/NCVYS were The National Association of Boys' Clubs; Boys' Brigade

Boys' Brigade

For the 80s New Wave band from Canada, see Boys Brigade .The Boys' Brigade is an interdenominational Christian youth organisation, conceived by William Alexander Smith to combine drill and fun activities with Christian values...

; YMCA

YMCA

The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...

; YWCA

YWCA

The YWCA USA is the United States branch of a women's membership movement that strives to create opportunities for women's growth, leadership and power in order to attain a common vision—to eliminate racism and empower women. The YWCA is a non-profit organization, the first of which was founded in...

; The Girls' Guildry

Girls' Brigade

The Girls' Brigade is an international and interdenominational Christian youth organization. It was founded in 1893 in Dublin, Ireland. The modern organization was formed as the result of the amalgamation of three like-minded and similarly structured organizations in 1964...

; Church Lads' and Church Girls' Brigade

Church Lads' and Church Girls' Brigade

The Church Lads' and Church Girls' Brigade is a Church of England youth organisation with branches in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, Barbados, Bermuda, Kenya, South Africa, Newfoundland and St Helena...

(At the time known as the Church Lads' Brigade; The Girls' Friendly Society; Boy Scouts Association

The Scout Association

The Scout Association is the World Organization of the Scout Movement recognised Scouting association in the United Kingdom. Scouting began in 1907 through the efforts of Robert Baden-Powell. The Scout Association was formed under its previous name, The Boy Scout Association, in 1910 by the grant...

; Girl Guides Association; The National Council of Girls' Clubs; and the Girls Life Brigade

Girls' Brigade

. Of these, six remain as members (see below).

Captain Stanley Smith of the Boys' Brigade

Boys' Brigade

was elected as the first Chairman.

From 1939, membership was open to so-called 'National Juvenile Organisations' which had a membership of at least 10,000, which were non-political

Apolitical

The state or quality of being apolitical can be the apathy and/or the antipathy towards all political affiliations. Being apolitical can also refer to situations in which people take an unbiased position in regard to political matters.-References:...

in nature, and which worked towards assisting youths' mental, moral or physical training for citizenship

Citizenship

Citizenship is the state of being a citizen of a particular social, political, national, or human resource community. Citizenship status, under social contract theory, carries with it both rights and responsibilities...

. These requirements remained until 1972, when it was decided that a membership of 10,000 was no longer necessary. The constitution

Constitution

A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...

was also changed at this time so that members were now classified as 'Community and Voluntary Youth Services', which included local government

Local government

Local government refers collectively to administrative authorities over areas that are smaller than a state.The term is used to contrast with offices at nation-state level, which are referred to as the central government, national government, or federal government...

initiatives, or 'National Voluntary Youth Organisations', which included charities and foundations.

The SCJO was renamed several times, but remained consistent in its aims and values. In 1939 it became the 'Standing Conference for National Juvenile Organisations' (SCNJO); then in 1943 it became the 'Standing Conference of National Voluntary Organisations' (SCNVJO). It acquired its current name, NCVYS, in 1972.

By 1947, the total number of young people involved with its member organisations was nearly 2 million. By 2009 this had risen to the region of five million.

Mission

NCVYS works with its membership of voluntary and community organisations to build thriving communities and sustainable networks that help all young people achieve their potential.

Vision

NCVYS's stated vision is of a society where young people are valued for their contribution and supported by their communities. NCVYS aims to achieve this vision by working through its membership network, bringing adults and young people together as partners in communities to ensure that young people have every chance to develop their potential.

Values

NCVYS has committed itself to three values which guide the organisation in the way that it works.

Initiative – NCVYS believes that an enterprising spirit and can-do attitude is at the heart of empowered communities and is therefore essential to affecting change. The organisation strives to live this value by encouraging and supporting individuals and organisations to take initiative wherever they can.
Responsibility – NCVYS believes that communities are interdependent and that all actions have consequences for the wellbeing of young people and their communities. The organisation strives to live this value by encouraging and supporting individuals and organisations to be responsible in the way they act.
Equality – NCVYS believes that all individuals have equal worth and equal rights
Social equality
Social equality is a social state of affairs in which all people within a specific society or isolated group have the same status in a certain respect. At the very least, social equality includes equal rights under the law, such as security, voting rights, freedom of speech and assembly, and the...

. The organisation strives to live this value by encouraging and supporting individuals and organisations to promote equality
Social equality
Social equality is a social state of affairs in which all people within a specific society or isolated group have the same status in a certain respect. At the very least, social equality includes equal rights under the law, such as security, voting rights, freedom of speech and assembly, and the...

and challenge inequality
Social inequality
Social inequality refers to a situation in which individual groups in a society do not have equal social status. Areas of potential social inequality include voting rights, freedom of speech and assembly, the extent of property rights and access to education, health care, quality housing and other...

everywhere.

Aims

The organisation's work follows three strategic aims:

To act as champion for voluntary and community youth organisations, ensuring that their experiences are at the core of public policymaking.
To provide leadership and support to voluntary and community organisations in the development of best practice and standards.
To build an enterprise culture and coordinate a sector approach to business development.

Membership

NCVYS has over 170 member organisations, which all work for the personal and social development of young people. Their precise nature varies from regional or local networks, to national organisations, and they focus on a variety of areas. These include engaging young people in decision making processes; providing safe environments where young people can develop as individuals; promoting opportunities and services to a diverse range of young people; and developing and delivering government policies and practice that responds to the needs of young people.

The NCVYS network allows members to share and develop best practice in the sector, as well as receive practical advice and information on policy updates. It also allows NCVYS to act as the voice of the voluntary and community youth sector, giving members the opportunity to influence government policy and giving them a platform to raise the profile of the work that they do.

ENVOY

ENVOY (Enthusiastic National Voice Of Youth) is a youth participation

Youth participation

Youth participation is the active engagement of young people throughout their communities. It is often used as a short-hand for youth participation in any many forms, including decision-making, sports, schools and any activity where young people are not historically engaged.-Coinage:Youth...

scheme run by NCVYS to ensure that it puts into practice the values which have been adopted by the organisation. It provides the opportunity for young people aged 11–25 to get involved in volunteering projects, participate

Youth empowerment

Youth empowerment is an attitudinal, structural, and cultural process whereby young people gain the ability, authority, and agency to make decisions and implement change in their own lives and the lives of other people, including youth and adults....

in decision making processes at NCVYS, and take part in residential trips to build their confidence.

Young Partners Award

The Young Partners Award was set up in 2001 to reward those organisations which actively seek to involve young people in their work.
Anyone can nominate an organisation for an award to be presented at an annual ceremony; however the final decision is made by young people, who have developed the criteria for winning an award themselves.

All-Party Parliamentary Group on Youth Affairs

The APPG on Youth Affairs was established in 1998 to raise the profile of issues that affect and concern young people; encourage dialogue between parliamentarians, young people and youth services; and encourage a co-ordinated and coherent approach to youth policy making. The group currently has around 70 members, drawn from both Houses of Parliament.

NCVYS, YMCA England and the British Youth Council run the Secretariat for the APPG. Natascha Engel MP chairs the APPG which is also supported by an advisory group of experts drawn from organisations that work with young people.

Policy Information and Consultations

One of NCVYS's key aims is to inform and influence policy

Public policy

that impacts on young people and the voluntary sector at a local, regional and national level. It does this by providing policy information and analysis for its members on issues that affect young people and the organisations that work with them. NCVYS also works with its members to formulate policy positions on behalf of the voluntary and community youth sector, either proactively or in response to government consultations. To assist this work it is involved with a number of coalitions and initiatives, including End Child Poverty

End Child Poverty coalition

End Child Poverty coalition was set up in 2001 by a group of UK children's charities, social justice groups, faith-groups, trade unions and others concerned about what they considered the unacceptably high levels of child poverty in the UK....

, Shine Week and Change4Life.
Current policy work areas include safeguarding and child protection; education, employment and training; youth justice; volunteering and positive activities; and local strategic arrangements.

Speaking Out

Speaking Out is a joint project between NCVYS and Children England that sets out to build a voice for the children and young people's voluntary and community sector across Government, as part of a strategic partnership funded by the Office of the Third Sector within the Cabinet Office

Cabinet Office

The Cabinet Office is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for supporting the Prime Minister and Cabinet of the United Kingdom....

.

The project aims to develop closer links between a range of Government departments and the voluntary and community sector in delivering cross departmental plans, focusing on the direct implementation of initiatives which affect children and young people.

The key policy priorities for 2009 to 2011 are youth employment, education and training; community cohesion, empowerment and citizenship; health; youth justice; housing and homelessness; and financial capabilities.

Events and Conferences

NCVYS has been involved in many external sector

External sector

The external sector refers to a basket of economic measures regarding any individual country. These measures include:*Balance of payments*Current account*Capital account or financial account*Foreign direct investment*Portfolio investment*Other investment...

events as well as hosting its own events, conferences, seminars and AGM

Annual general meeting

An annual general meeting is a meeting that official bodies, and associations involving the public , are often required by law to hold...

.
In July 2009, ENVOY members participated in Shine Week, an annual celebration of young people's talent and achievement set up by the Department for Children, Schools and Families

Department for Children, Schools and Families

The Department for Children, Schools and Families was a department of the UK government, between 2007 and 2010, responsible for issues affecting people in England up to the age of 19, including child protection and education...

in 2008. Activities in 2009 included a series of debates on the state of youth in the UK

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

today, held in the House of Lords

House of Lords

The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....

Publications

NCVYS publishes a series of newsletters, magazines and information packs including the following:

Exchange – a quarterly national magazine
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...

which highlights issues, news, policy analysis and events of interest to the voluntary and community youth sector
Voluntary sector
The voluntary sector or community sector is the sphere of social activity undertaken by organizations that are for non-profit and non-governmental. This sector is also called the third sector, in reference to the public sector and the private sector...

. It also compiles articles
Article (publishing)
An article is a written work published in a print or electronic medium. It may be for the purpose of propagating the news, research results, academic analysis or debate.-News articles:...

and case studies that give practical advice for those individuals and organisations which work in the voluntary and community youth sector. Its readership is around 3,000 individuals nationally.The front cover of each issue of Exchange is created by a young designer, who interprets the theme of the magazine through their artwork. In the past, young designers have included Saliqur Rohman, from East London, who created the front cover of the Spring 2009 issue to depict the theme of 'young people and faith'. The Summer 2009 issue on disability was designed by Gareth Daley, a young freelance designer originally from Manchester, who used the 'disable the label' tagline and imagery. Employing young designers enables NCVYS to involve young people in its work, thereby helping to put the organisation's vision and values into practice, as well as giving them the exposure and promotion which they need to succeed.

Careers Guide – aimed at young people, this pamphlet provides a brief introduction to career
Career
Career is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as a person's "course or progress through life ". It is usually considered to pertain to remunerative work ....

s in the voluntary and community youth sector.

Factor in Faith – a guide to help youth organisations consider their approach towards young people's faith
Faith
Faith is confidence or trust in a person or thing, or a belief that is not based on proof. In religion, faith is a belief in a transcendent reality, a religious teacher, a set of teachings or a Supreme Being. Generally speaking, it is offered as a means by which the truth of the proposition,...

and culture
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...

.

Keeping It Safe toolkit – a guide to safeguarding standards for voluntary youth organisations. It gives practical advice on organisational policies and procedures, safe recruitment and selection, reporting concerns, suspicions and allegations, managing paid and volunteer staff, how to provide education, training and support and how to provide safe activities. Keeping It Safe is part of the wider national Sound Systems accreditation scheme
Accreditation
Accreditation is a process in which certification of competency, authority, or credibility is presented.Organizations that issue credentials or certify third parties against official standards are themselves formally accredited by accreditation bodies ; hence they are sometimes known as "accredited...

which encourages, promotes and recognises good practice in safeguarding and child protection.

Members

Members of NCVYS include:

Army Cadet Force Association
Army Cadet Force
The Army Cadet Force is a British youth organisation that offers progressive training in a multitude of the subjects from military training to adventurous training and first aid, at the same time as promoting achievement, discipline, and good citizenship, to boys and girls aged 12 to 18 and 9...
Asthma UK
Baptist Union of Great Britain
Baptist Union of Great Britain
The Baptist Union of Great Britain, despite its name, is the association of Baptist churches in England and Wales. -History:...
The Boys' Brigade
The Boys' Brigade in the United Kingdom
The Boys' Brigade is the largest Christian uniformed youth organisation in the United Kingdom. Its British headquarters are located at Felden Lodge, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire. Companies in other countries may have their own national headquarters...
British Red Cross
British Red Cross
The British Red Cross Society is the United Kingdom branch of the worldwide impartial humanitarian organisation the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. The society was formed in 1870, and is a registered charity with over 31,000 volunteers and 2,600 staff. At the heart of their work...
British Youth Council
British Youth Council
The British Youth Council is a UK charity working to empower young people to have a say and be heard. Run by young people for young people, BYC exists to represent the views of young people to government and decision-makers at a local, national, European and international level; and to promote the...
Children's Rights Alliance for England
Children's Rights Alliance for England
Children's Rights Alliance For England is a London-based pressure group.CRAE was set up in 1991 after the UK ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in order to monitor the UK Government's commitment to upholding the document. They aim to protect the human rights of children in the...
Church Army
Church Army
Church Army is an evangelistic Church of England organisation operating in many parts of the Anglican Communion.-History:Church Army was founded in England in 1882 by the Revd Wilson Carlile , who banded together in an orderly army of soldiers, officers, and a few working men and women, whom he and...
Church Lads' and Girl's Brigade
Church Lads' and Church Girls' Brigade
The Church Lads' and Church Girls' Brigade is a Church of England youth organisation with branches in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, Barbados, Bermuda, Kenya, South Africa, Newfoundland and St Helena...
Churches Together in England
Churches Together in England
Churches Together in England is an ecumenical organisation and the national instrument for the Christian church in England. It helps the different Churches to work together instead of separately so that they can be more effective and credible...
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award , is a programme of activities that can be undertaken by anyone aged 14 to 24, regardless of personal ability....
Fairbridge
Fairbridge (charity)
Fairbridge is a UK based charity that supports young people aged 13–25, that has existed since 1987. Each year it supports around 3,700 disengaged young people who are either not in education, employment or training – or at risk of becoming so – at one of its fifteen centres around the country...
Girlguiding UK
Girlguiding UK
Girlguiding UK is the national Guiding organisation of the United Kingdom. Guiding began in the UK in 1910 after Robert Baden-Powell asked his sister Agnes to start a group especially for girls that would be run along similar lines to Scouting for Boys. The Guide Association was a founder member of...
The Girls' Brigade
Girls' Brigade
The Girls' Brigade is an international and interdenominational Christian youth organization. It was founded in 1893 in Dublin, Ireland. The modern organization was formed as the result of the amalgamation of three like-minded and similarly structured organizations in 1964...
Girls Venture Corps Air Cadets
Girls Venture Corps Air Cadets
The Girls Venture Corps Air Cadets is a voluntary uniformed youth organisation for girls aged between 11 and 20, It is also a registered charity, and by virtue of its work towards the personal and social development of young people, it is a member of The National Council for Voluntary Youth Services...
Hope UK
Hope UK
Hope UK is a national Christian charity located at 25 Copperfield Street, London, England which educates children and young people about drug and alcohol abuse.-Band of Hope:...
Jewish Lads' and Girls' Brigade
Jewish Lads' and Girls' Brigade
The Jewish Lads' and Girls' Brigade is a national Jewish youth organisation.The JLGB is the UK's oldest Jewish youth movement. It was founded in 1895 as the Jewish Lads' Brigade by Colonel Albert E. W. Goldsmid, a senior army officer, to provide an interest for children of the many poor immigrant...
Kids
Kids (charity)
Kids is a UK-based charity which provides a wide range of services for disabled children, young people and their families. The Kids ethos is to work in partnership with parents and carers to enable disabled chidren and young people to develop their skills and abilities and to fulfill their...
The Leaveners
The Leaveners
The Leaveners are a performing arts organisation consisting of members of the Religious Society of Friends .They started at Britain Yearly Meeting in 1978 and have been growing ever since. They run a number of projects, most specifically for young people, some resulting in a performance but most...
Maccabi GB
Maccabi World Union
The Maccabi World Union is an international Jewish sports organisation spanning 5 continents and more than 50 countries, with some 400,000 members...
Marine Society and Sea Cadets
Mencap Leisure Services
Mencap
The Royal Mencap Society is a charity based in the UK that works with people with a learning disability.-Profile:Mencap is the UK's leading learning disability charity working with people with a learning disability and their families and carers...
Movement for Reform Judaism
Movement for Reform Judaism
Movement for Reform Judaism is the main organizational body of the Jewish Reform community in Great Britain....
National Council for Drama Training
National Council for Drama Training
The National Council for Drama Training is a partnership of employers in the theatre, broadcast and media industry, employee representatives and training providers....
The National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
National Youth Theatre of Great Britain
National Youth Theatre
The National Youth Theatre is a registered charity in London, Great Britain, committed to creative, personal and social development of young people through the medium of creative arts....
Oasis Trust
Oasis Trust
Oasis Trust is a UK-based Christian registered charity. It was founded by Rev Steve Chalke in August 1985, who had been assistant minister at Tonbridge Baptist Church, Kent, for four years...
The Princess Royal Trust for Carers
The Princess Royal Trust for Carers
The Princess Royal Trust for Carers was created on the initiative of HRH The Princess Royal in 1991. At that time people caring at home for family members or friends with disabilities and chronic illnesses were scarcely recognised as requiring support....
The Prince's Trust
The Prince's Trust
The Prince's Trust is a charity in the United Kingdom founded in 1976 by Charles, Prince of Wales to help young people. They run a range of training programmes, provide mentoring support and offer financial grants to build the confidence and motivation of disadvantaged young people...
Raleigh International
Raleigh International
Raleigh International is a UK-based youth and sustainable development charity that aims to help people of all backgrounds and nationalities to discover their full potential through their work to improve communities and protect the environment....
Rathbone
Rathbone (charity)
Rathbone is a charitable organization in the United Kingdom. It educates and trains children, young people and adults in its own training centres and residential projects.Rathbone was created out of The Rathbone Society, founded by Elfrida Rathbone...
The Royal British Legion
The Royal British Legion
The Royal British Legion , sometimes referred to as simply The Legion, is the United Kingdom's leading charity providing financial, social and emotional support to those who have served or who are currently serving in the British Armed Forces, and their dependants.-History:The British Legion was...
The Royal Wildlife Trusts
RSPB
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Bird Notes and News was first published in April 1903.The title changed to 'Bird Notes' in 1947. In the 1950s, there were four copies per year . Each volume covered two years, spread over three calendar years...
RSPCA
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is a charity in England and Wales that promotes animal welfare. In 2009 the RSPCA investigated 141,280 cruelty complaints and collected and rescued 135,293 animals...
The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant Christian church known for its thrift stores and charity work. It is an international movement that currently works in over a hundred countries....
The Scout Association
The Scout Association
The Scout Association is the World Organization of the Scout Movement recognised Scouting association in the United Kingdom. Scouting began in 1907 through the efforts of Robert Baden-Powell. The Scout Association was formed under its previous name, The Boy Scout Association, in 1910 by the grant...
St John Ambulance
Student Action For Refugees (STAR)
Student Action For Refugees (STAR)
Student Action for Refugees, or STAR, is a national network of students and young people concerned with the welfare of refugees and asylum seekers within the United Kingdom...
Tall Ships Youth Trust
Tall Ships Youth Trust
Tall Ships Youth Trust is a sail training organisation in the United Kingdom that currently owns and operates a two mast brig, the Stavros S Niarchos, and four 22m/72 ft Challenger class racing yachts....
UK Youth Parliament
UK Youth Parliament
The UK Youth Parliament is a youth organisation in the United Kingdom, consisting of democratically elected members aged between 11 and 18....
UNICEF UK
UNICEF UK
UNICEF UK, also known as the United Kingdom Committee for UNICEF, is one of 36 UNICEF National Committees based in industrialised countries. The National Committees raise funds for the organisation's worldwide emergency and development work. In 2007, UNICEF UK raised £41.3 million for UNICEF’s work...
The Woodcraft Folk
The Woodcraft Folk
The Woodcraft Folk is a UK-based educational movement for children and young people, and registered charity no. 1073665. The constitutional object of this youth organisation is "to educate and empower young people to be able to participate actively in society, improving their lives and others'...
YMCA England
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
Young Christian Workers
Young Christian Workers
The Young Christian Workers is an international organization founded by Rev. Joseph Cardijn in Belgium as the Young Trade Unionists; the organization adopted its present name in 1924. Its French acronym, JOC, gave rise to the then widely-used terms Jocism and Jocist...
Young Lives
Youth Hostels Association
Youth for Christ
Youth for Christ
Youth for Christ is the name of a number of previously unaffiliated evangelical Protestant religious campaigns which led to the creation of Youth for Christ International in 1946....
YWCA England and Wales
World YWCA
The World YWCA is the umbrella organization of the global network of the YWCA, a movement of women working for social and economic change around the world. It advocates for young women’s leadership, peace, justice, human rights and sustainable development, both on a grassroots and global scale...