Helping young people shape the new National Youth Strategy

Young people are having their say in the creation of a new National Youth Strategy, previously announced by the Culture Secretary. This consultation is open to all young people aged 10-21, or up to 25 for those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). 

The 10-year National Youth Strategy will focus on improving youth services and policy at a local, regional and national level. The Government’s goal is to give young people more control over decisions that impact their lives, break down barriers to opportunities, and rebuild a thriving and sustainable youth sector that works better for everyone. 

A Youth Advisory Group and an Expert Group are supporting the National Youth Strategy work and helping to coordinate the feedback. 

How you can support the Deliver You campaign 

The Deliver You campaign asks young people to share what services, support, and opportunities they need outside of school to improve their lives and futures. Through the campaign portal, young people can submit their thoughts on what matters to them – including issues in their community, what services should be available, or how funding should be spent in their local area. 

This campaign is a collaboration between DCMS (Department for Culture, Media and Sport), the #iWill Movement, My Life My Say and Savanta. It includes the online survey feedback, and physical events like peer-led focus groups including “Democracy Cafes”, regional Hackathons and workshops. All young people are encouraged to get involved. 

The deadline for their online individual feedback is 16 April 2025. 

We know there will be young people who prefer to be guided through the survey and share their views in a group setting. Given the trusted role that youth workers have with young people in their communities, we are encouraging youth practitioners to facilitate group sessions so young people can discuss and complete the survey together. To support these sessions, the ‘National Youth Strategy Engagement and Comms Toolkit’  is available to help and includes background info and refined questions. 

The deadline for this focus group feedback is 16 May 2025. 

Express Orders – a simple way for young people to share their views 

DCMS has also introduced a simple, open-ended question called Express Orders which asks: 

“What one thing should the government do to improve things for young people?” 

This is a quick way for young people to share their thoughts in group settings like schools or youth clubs. It’s also an easy way for more young people to get involved, and there’s no need for personal details or parental consent for anyone under 16. 

Youth workers are key to the consultation process 

Youth workers in the voluntary sector play a key role in this consultation. London Youth recently held a members’ focus group as part of the pre-consultation to gather views from young people and youth workers in London, and this engagement will continue as the consultation progresses. The National Youth Agency Steering Board on which London Youth sits also provides updates on the National Youth Strategy milestones.  

What happens next? 

All the feedback gathered through the Deliver You campaign will feed into a government report called Today’s Youth, Tomorrow’s Nation. This report will inform the development of the National Youth Strategy, which is expected to launch in the summer. 

We will continue to ensure that London’s voluntary youth sector perspective is reflected throughout the process. We will also continue to advocate for full accountability to young people at every stage of the 10-year National Youth Strategy.