The prime minister has announced £22.5m funding to boost extra-curricular clubs at hundreds of schools, to tackle a “worrying trend” that has seen children spend more time “isolated at home” on the internet.
The cash boost is part of an £88m package of funding announced on Tuesday, to help schools, youth clubs, and organisations like Scouts and Guides expand youth services and activities for young people.
It comes as the government warns young people “are spending more and more of their time detached from the real world, either stuck in their bedrooms or behind a screen”, bringing “huge challenges for them and their loved ones”.
The government says up to 400 schools will benefit from the £22.5m investment, with the funding spread over three years.
It aims to help schools create a “tailored enrichment offer”, giving pupils access to after-school activities such as sport, art, music, debating or volunteering.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport said how the funding will be allocated, or how schools will be selected has not yet been decided. More information is expected in due course.
‘A worrying trend’
Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer described growing up today as “hard for young people”, who must “navigate their way through the online world”.
“Too often they find themselves isolated at home and disconnected from their communities,” he said. “As a government, we have a duty to act on this worrying trend.”
Starmer said the funding package will help offer “transformative, real-world opportunities” so young people “can discover something new, find their spark and develop the confidence and life skills that no algorithm can teach”.
A YouGov poll carried out for the Children’s Commissioner in March found one-quarter of children aged eight to 15 in England spend two to three hours a day on a device with internet access, like a computer, smartphone or console.
Another 20 per cent spend over three to four hours a day on such a device, while 23 per cent do so for more than four hours.
An Education Committee report last year found children’s screen time increased by 52 per cent between 2020 and 2022, with almost one-quarter of children and young people using smartphones “in a way that is consistent with a behavioural addiction”.
Meanwhile a report by Sport England in December found that less than half (47.8 per cent) of children meet guidance set by the chief medical officer, that recommends an average of 60 minutes or more of physical activity per day.
Youth clubs investment
The government’s £88m investment in youth services also includes £30.5m for the launch of its Better Youth Spaces programme, to boost youth clubs in areas of high child poverty, funding facilities such as climbing walls and gym equipment.
Among other projects, £7.5m will go to the Uniformed Youth Fund, to create “thousands of new places” at organisations like the Scouts, Guides, and Volunteer Police Cadets.
“From new climbing walls and outdoor adventures to music lessons and volunteering, this package means that youth clubs and schools will now be able to offer more opportunities for young people to get active and connect with others, while building their confidence and broadening their horizons,” said the government.
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