Department of Education ​U-turn on cuts to programmes for young people welcomed

Permanent secretary at the department, Mark Browne, said he will not be proceeding with proposed cuts to Youth Services, and a range of Early Years programmes including the Pathway Fund, Sure Start, BrightStart and Toybox. Nor will the full scale of cuts happen to Extended Schools.

Dr Browne said he believed any such decisions should be taken by a minister and not a civil servant.

Upper Bann DUP MP Carla Lockhart said: “When these proposals were first announced, I was immediately contacted by a range of parents and service providers who were rightly against at the suggestion that these programmes were is some way dispensable. Nothing could be further from reality. The funding for these programmes is absolutely vital to ensure the best possible start for our children, with many of those benefiting amongst the most vulnerable in our communities.

I am glad that the extensive lobbying of the Department has paid off and that this U-turn has been completed. It is a good example of people power – politicians, delivery partners and parents all making the strongest possible case together, and achieving a positive outcome for the benefit of children.

The party’s education spokesperson Diane Dodds added: “The budget handed down by the Secretary of State is deficient and the choices within education are a stark demonstration of that. These cuts were proposed in an attempt to avoid overspending an inadequate budget, but the programmes are not only meeting real need within Northern Ireland, but amongst the most disadvantaged in our community.”

Alliance’s Connie Egan MLA said: “It would have not only had a detrimental impact on children and young people directly but also would have seen subsequent costs to Health, Justice and other Departments in future, massively outweighing proposed savings by the Department of Education.”

SDLP’s Daniel McCrossan said it was deeply regrettable that community and voluntary groups were left in limbo while the decision was taken.