It’s a “dark day” for young people: The British Youth Council has closed

After over 75 years of championing young people’s voices and helping them get involved in democracy, the British Youth Council (BYC) has announced its permanent closure due to “ongoing financial challenges”.

Initially set up by the Foreign Office in 1948, the organisation became independent from the government as a charity in 1963. Over the last seven decades, with its cast of leaders involving the likes of Peter Mandelson and Janet Paraskeva, who is now head of the Civil Service Commission, youth-led charity has empowered young people aged 25 and under to become more involved in their communities and government locally, nationally and internationally.

Its youth-led networks and programmes include the UK Youth Parliament, Young Mayor Network, Local Youth Council Network, League of Young Voters and NHS Youth Forum. The BYC has led successful young voter registration campaigns and lobbied government with a series of reports on issues faced by young people, as well as forging links with similar youth democracy groups across Britain and the world.

Announcing the news, BYC chair Zara Khan said the decision was due to “ongoing financial challenges that have resulted in insolvency”. She said: “Despite our best efforts, we have been unable to provide a sustainable future for the charity. The economic environment has significantly impacted our ability to generate income.”

Khan said that the charity’s financial difficulties were made worse by the recent administration of their sponsorship partners, The Body Shop. Its other m.ajor backer was the Department for Culture, Media & Sport

For Maurizio Cuttin, UK Young Ambassador to the European Youth Forum, the news is just the latest of a series of cutbacks for the UK’s youth sector.

“The British Youth Council’s recent insolvency announcement marks a dark day in the history of the UK youth sector. Driven by the loss of Erasmus+ and by a sustained downsizing of government-backed youth sector financing, UK youth now face an unprecedented reality,” he said

“BYC – one of Europe’s oldest and most prominent national youth councils – faces total collapse. With it, UK youth are at permanent risk of losing access to key national and international youth policy networks.

He added: “Given the stakes, DCMS and the FCDO (the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office) must step in to salvage these last remaining avenues for youth representation at home, and especially in Europe and the Commonwealth.”