Teenagers who do community work could earn cash credits under new government plans to tackle anti-social behaviour. The cash could be spent on sports activities or shopping but critics say it's just bribing people.

A "youth opportunity card", providing discounts on services for young people, is to be tried out on a pilot basis in some areas of England.

The cards could be used like debit cards to pay for sports, clubs, cinema and other activities.

The idea is that everyone would get £12 worth of credit, which could be topped up by parents, but top-ups could also be used to reward young people for volunteering or for making a contribution to society in other ways.  The cards would be suspended or withdrawn from young people committing anti-social behaviour or crime.

A discount card for 16 to 19-year-olds in England is already available through the government's Connexions service, but a study for the Department for Education and Skills found that take-up had been very limited.  However, ministers have been impressed by a Wiltshire police scheme that gives teenagers a swipe card offering £10 in discounts at leisure centres or cinemas and for activities such as day trips, canoeing and sessions with a beautician.

The new scheme forms part of the youth green paper, Youth Matters, the government's blueprint for reconnecting with disaffected teenagers and reducing antisocial behaviour.  Other anticipated proposals include a national organisation for youth volunteering and a framework for leisure provision.

The children's minister, Beverley Hughes, has denied the scheme would amount to a bribe, saying it was important to reward good behaviour.

However, Prof Al Aynsley-Green, the children's commissioner for England, said: "I am concerned that we recognise that the small minority who engage in anti-social behaviour are frequently those who come from the most disadvantaged backgrounds.

"Withdrawing incentives such as opportunity cards from them must be the very last resort and should be used sparingly."

Critics of the smart card scheme are expected to accuse the Government of wasting money and paying off youngsters who should be learning from their parents how to behave properly.

David Davis, the shadow home secretary, said: "Unless ministers deal with discipline in schools, under-age drinking and drug-taking by youngsters, secondary schemes will have only a minor effect and not root out the fundamental problem of anti-social behaviour."

Do you think that there should be financial incentives for volunteering?  Do you think this sounds a bit too much like a bribe?  Is it even ethical to “reward” people for community work?  Or is it just a good way of being fair and encouraging people to volunteer?  Join the debate now on the Messageboard!

To read more about this, check out:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/4687203.stm

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/07/18/ncard18.xml&sSheet=/news/2005/07/18/ixhome.html

http://society.guardian.co.uk/children/story/0,,1530924,00.html

< back to Latest News