VOLUNTARY SERVICE (Hansard, 10 July 1968)

§ Mr. John Cordle (Bournemouth, East and Christchurch)
I beg to move, That leave be given to bring in a Bill to provide opportunities in the United Kingdom for voluntary service by young persons. There has been a good deal of talk recently about the need to encourage a sense of participation by individuals in the running of the community's affairs. It is not only the events in France which have stirred up discussion about this topic. In this country the obvious over-centralisation of power and decision-making has been pinpointed as the major factor in alienating the individual from society. I believe that it is vitally important to enable people to make some contribution to the development of their community.
I am not sure that reform of the machinery of government is necessarily the way to do this. Frankly, I am certain that what we have to do is to restore the individual's social r61e, and, in particular, I believe that more than ever today we have to create conditions in which the young can participate in society. That is the main reason that I have sought leave of the House to introduce my Bill. I am sure that we would all agree that the young could and, indeed, frequently do, make a significant contribution to the social services in the widest sense.
Dwelling for a moment on the question of students, we hear a lot these days about "student power". Unfortunately, it only ever seems to refer to their ability to flex their political muscles and put the fear of God into university vice-chancellors and university senates. I would prefer to think of "student power" in terms of what contribution students can make to community service.
I recognise, of course, the initiative that the Government took last November in the sphere of voluntary work. We should all be grateful for the hard work of the hon. Member for Birmingham, Smallheath (Mr. Denis Howell) in launching the Young Volunteer Force Foundation, despite the many difficulties which I understand he experienced.
However, I do not think that this scheme is nearly adequate for our needs. I share many of the reservations which have been expressed about it; in particular, the view 528 expressed in the Annual Report for 1966–67 of Community Service Volunteers, that the Department of Education's recommendations seem to concentrate on stimulating young people to volunteer, rather than opening up new fields of service. There is, of course, no shortage of people and groups actively interested in community service for young people, nor is there any shortage of young people who are prepared to volunteer for service. But there is—and here no Government have made the sort of contribution which is necessary—a shortage of opportunities for service.
One of the main purposes of my Bill is to correct this situation. What we clearly need is a new direction of our efforts in this sphere if we are to create nation-wide what some have called "the social counterpart of Outward Bound". At present, we are being held back by a lack of vision. There is a general reluctance to accept what voluntary service can offer. We had a good example of this last year, when, following the "Torrey Canyon" emergency, no public authority could be found to accept the voluntary help offered by the International Voluntary Service Organisation. This is precisely the sort of attitude that impedes the development of voluntary service by the young. The scope of voluntary service is wider than many are prepared to concede.
In an article in the Guardian last year, Mr. Alec Dickson put the point very well when he wrote: We have now to move beyond the concept of the Welfare State, dependent upon a small cadre of professional workers, towards the ideal of a participant society involved in the care of others. This summarises exactly my own feelings on this subject.
The purpose of my Bill is quite simply to recognise the fact that there is a great potential for individual action in the social services. I have, naturally, considered whether or not community service should be compulsory for the young. The proponents of this argument put forward a strong case. They suggest a sort of substitute for military national service which would oblige young people to spend, say, a year after leaving school working in some capacity in community service. I have rejected this argument, 529 which is attractive in many ways, because I believe that the great virtue of service by young people is precisely that it is voluntary; that they are willingly making their own contribution to the community.
The first part of my Bill is concerned with the question of co-ordinating the activities of voluntary service organisations. It will set up a body, analogous in some way to the Arts Council, which would act as a channel and distributing agency for Government grants and also as a link between all the organisations at present at work. This Voluntary Service Council would also provide advice on matters such as fund-raising and would actively campaign on behalf of voluntary service to open up the social service to volunteers.
The second part of my Bill deals with the question of opening up more opportunities for service. I believe that Government Departments and local authorities should be obliged to provide openings for voluntary service in all forms of community work. In the Health Service it would be sensible surely to revise our hospital regulations so that school leavers below the age of 17 could help in wards where there is acute understaffing. Many hospitals already have reason to be thankful for the co-operation of slightly older volunteers.
Again, young people could be encouraged by the Ministry of Housing and Local Government to take part in urban renewal schemes. This already happens in the United States. There is no reason why young volunteers should not be used to help in the face-lift housing operations which so many of our declining and twilight areas badly need. Even the work of clearing and perhaps planting derelict sites would enable young volunteers to make a real contribution to the redevelopment and revitalising of their communities.
The Department of Education could stipulate the inclusion of voluntary service in school curricula and set an example by encouraging the use of volunteers in deprived areas to provide some of the facilities which the schoolchilden there lack.
Regional Economic Development Councils should examine ways in which the young could help to improve their environs. The improvement of environment is often, after all, the single most 530 important factor in developing the economies of the regions.
The Department of Employment and Productivity could encourage the recruitment of young unemployed people into voluntary service. The community service organisations already accept unemployed youngsters as volunteers, working, quite rightly, on the principle that no volunteer should ever be turned away. It is particularly destructive to a youngster's self-confidence and belief in society for him to be without a job on leaving school, or soon afterwards. I would like to see the Department's officers give young people the opportunity, while they are out of work and looking for a job, to join in local community service work.

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. I remind the hon. Member that he is seeking leave to introduce a Bill under the Ten Minute Rule. We have nearly reached 10 minutes,

§ Mr. Cordle
I shall finish within a minute, Mr. Speaker.
The Home Office could also encourage voluntary service by, for example, examining ways of involving young people in the probation service and by ensuring that in emergencies there is always adequate machinery for channelling the activities of local voluntary organisations.
Finally, I believe that local authorities should appoint an officer and, where appropriate, a committee with the responsibility of seeking out ways of making use of young local volunteers and of helping to co-ordinate the activities of local organisations.
These are only a few thoughts on the way in which the Government, at both national and local level, might expand the opportunities for voluntary work by young people in our community.