The VEC Youth Officer can help with registration, assist you in highlighting training and resourcing needs, identify and source training, provide networking opportunities and give you a voice at county and national level

Registering with the VEC gives you a voice onto the forum of the Local Voluntary Youth Council; access to the VEC Small Grants Scheme; support; information sharing and access to training

Only clubs / groups registered with the VEC will be eligible to apply for funding under the VEC Small Grants Scheme, so if you are not registered you can’t apply. You will lose out on accessing support from the VEC, networking opportunities and a voice on the Local Voluntary Youth Council

Under the Youth Work Act 2001, all youth groups who want to access funding, services and support from the VEC, are required to register with the VEC. Registering youth groups is designed to further develop good practice and enable the young people of our community get the best possible service

A youth work plan will be developed for the county, and your area will be included in that plan. The plan will identify existing gaps in service provision and areas that need to be developed. This will assist you in working to getting young peoples’ needs met in your area and highlight existing good practice in the VEC area

A Regional Youth Officer / Youth Service Officer are particular personnel who work with specific youth organisations (e.g. Foroige, Youth Work Ireland, Scouts etc), and have a role in the setting up and development of their youth clubs, for their specific organisation, in the county. The Youth Officer, with the VEC, has statutory responsibility in supporting the development of all youth work in the county, and devising a youth work development plan for the county

No, but your application will be considered with due regard to the stated criteria for good youth work practice within the resources available to the VEC, as all VEC youth work grants are dependent on government funding

No, we work with all service providers to ensure that the needs of the young people in the county are being met

Through this process, the young people will get a better youth service, more support, their voice will be heard and listened to and they will be active participants in the process. There will be more support, more co-ordination, more sharing of good practice – which we hope will lead to a more efficient service

The Local Voluntary Youth Council (LVYC) will advise the VEC on the preparation of any matter specified in a Youth Work Development Plan prepared by the VEC. It shall be a forum for the voluntary youth work organisations working in the VEC area to discuss the provision of youth work programme and services in that area. All youth groups registered with the VEC can take part in the election for places on the Local Voluntary Youth Council

No, any group that works with young people, through a youth work process, and meets the criteria set out by the Department of Education and Science, are eligible to register with the VEC

All youth work programmes / services need to be in line with the definition of youth work (as outlined in the Youth Work Act, 2001), and principles and practices of youth work – please see separate leaflet for further details on youth work criteria

If you are affiliated to a National Youth Work Organisation, it is their responsibility to ensure volunteers are Garda Vetted and have undergone Child Protection training. If your club is not affiliated, we will support you in getting the necessary training

If the leaders are not Garda Vetted, the VEC Youth Officer will refer the club to the National Child Protection Office. If your club is not affiliated to a National Youth Work Organisation,, we will support you in getting Garda vetting

The benefit to a small, independent, local youth club is the same as to that of a local unit from a large national organisation. It would benefit a small club to register, so that the VEC know you exist. Once we know you exist, it will support our case for requesting additional resources for youth work in the county. By registering with the VEC, a group will be part of a network, and will link with other groups in the county. The VEC can also help identify training needs and provide support. Being registered with the VEC will also give your club a voice at local, regional and national level – via the Local Voluntary Youth Council (LVYC)

We are employees of the VEC, here to support the development of youth work in the VEC area. VECs are statutory bodies with responsibility for the provision of educational services in their areas. Youth work is informal education. VECs have the administrative structures to employ and support the Youth Officer, allocate funding in an open and transparent manner (subject to scrutiny by a local Audit Sub-committee and an annual audit by the office of the Comptroller and Auditor General)

Under the Youth Work Act 2001, the VEC has statutory responsibility for the provision of youth services and programmes. Each youth group needs to register with the VEC in order to be eligible to apply for VEC youth club grants and have their voice heard in relation to the Youth Development Plan

All the information given will be held by your local VEC

No, there is a National Youth Assessor and that person is independent of the VEC’s. Our role is to develop and support youth work in the local VEC area. We do have a role in ensuring the standard of youth work practice is of good quality and meets the young people’s needs

We ask you to register with the VEC for networking and links, to provide an input into the county Youth Development Plan and have a voice through the Local Voluntary Youth Council

There are new procedures in place regarding accessing the VEC Small Grants Scheme – you will need to be registered with the VEC, and you will also need to meet the criteria outlined. The Youth Officers will be there to help you out

If you contact your local Youth Officer in the VEC, they will send you the registration form. Also, you can contact them if you need assistance. The Youth Officer offers support and advice in relation to registration. In some areas, local and individual meetings may held with groups, to help them with the registration process

It is not guaranteed at the moment, but hopefully in the near future. Remember, all VEC youth work funds are dependent on Government funding. However, steps such as registering of all youth groups is like a mini-audit, and will help us make a case for the need for additional funding and resources for youth work

Youth Work is defined by the Youth Work Act 2001 as:

‘A planned programme of education designed for the purpose of aiding and enhancing the personal and social development of young persons through their voluntary participation, and which is complementary to their formal, academic or vocational education and training’. Please see separate leaflet on the details of youth work ethos, philosophy and methods of work

It depends on what funding you are talking about. Currently, VEC Small Grants for voluntary youth clubs are administered by the VEC. Some VEC’s also administer other funding such as Special Projects for Youth (SPY), Local Drugs Task Force (LDTF), Dormant Accounts etc

For the Small Grant Scheme, you apply through the VEC. New applications for SPY / Information Centre / Mainstream Services will also go through the VEC

At present, the Department of Education and Science does not encourage one worker projects, and the Youth Officer would support an application for a second worker, where applicable. There is an agreement in principle, nationally, that one-worker projects will be upgraded to two-worker over time

If it is a Health Cafe, it will be under the remit of the HSE and you apply directly to the HSE. If the cafe has a multi-purpose role (not just health promotion), then the application may be supported by the VEC Youth officer (if youth work criteria are met). We may have a role in accessing funding not normally associated with the VEC. Collaboration with other organisations and services is important to the VEC in order to provide the best possible youth service to the young people of the area

Under state law, a child is defined as a person under 18 years. In addition to this, the Youth Work Act, 2001 defines a young person as ‘under 25’s, with particular regard for those aged between 10 and 21 years’. A youth group, under the criteria for the designation of local voluntary youth work organisations, must:

• Provide a youth work programme / service which accords with the definition of youth work
• Involve young people under 25 years
• The programme / service must be provided within VEC area
• Must have a constitution or other appropriate governance statement
• Have at least 8 registered / participating young people
• Have guidelines for good youth work practice
• Be committed to the involvement of young persons in all aspects of the organisation
• Be voluntary in nature
• Have clear financial records and systems
• Show commitment to an appropriate programme for the ongoing training and development of personnel
• Demonstrates that it provides its programme / service on an ongoing basis
• Provide adequate insurance cover

The Youth Work Committee is a sub-committee of the VEC, and is chaired by a member of the VEC. They advise the VEC and Youth Officer with regards to carrying out their work in relation to youth work. The Local Voluntary Youth Council (LVYC) provides a forum for discussion and direction for youth groups in the county; is widely representative and can bring a broad perspective to the overall direction of the Youth Work Plan. The LVYC elects members onto the Youth Work Committee and, as a result, are part of the core decision making process regarding youth work in the county

Ideally, each club or group, wishing to register with the VEC, completes their own forms, with assistance from the VEC Youth Officer, if necessary