I know many young people who would disagree with you – and so would I. None of the benefits you point out could not also be achieved without the requirement of compulsion. I think the very Key point that Olly makes is the lack of ‘youth leaders’ – working with young people has become a profession – something that only those with suitable qualifications can do, or because of the complexities of funding and health and safety requirements are prepared to do. Why then should young people be expected to volunteer when the only people prepared to support them need to be paid to do so?!

Of course they don’t and there are still brilliant volunteers running really good voluntary youth projects, as indeed there are many young people already doing genuine volunteering without having to be forced or bribed to do so – its these things that need to better supported, not more investment into schemes that have very little real value and that inevitably become more concerned with meeting targets and ticking boxes.

Do we want a society where people freely give their time because it was part of their culture from a young age to do so, or where the only way anyone will give something back is if they are forced or paid to do so?

The life of many teenagers at this age hangs in the balance. They are finishing school but don’t know what to do next. They have so many options, they have no idea which is the best for them. Many teens go to university, get a degree and find themselves this way, but many also become apathetic and then angsty towards a system that devalues them by not helping them. Often the “help” these young adults need is learning that waking up in the morning and looking forward to a day of valuable work that makes a difference, is important. This motivates them to contribute towards something other than their own (and often the community if violence/vandalism is involved) downfall.

I suspect from the tone of your post, this might not have happened to you, but it happens to a lot of young people – I was one of them. After being pushed into conservation volunteering, I realised the importance of my contribution which motivated me to do more. Now a degree later and volunteering in a developing nation, I feel a great sense of contribution. But if I was never pushed into it to start with… I might now be pushing trolleys into parked cars and spray painting bridge supports.

This won’t work for some, but it will give a number of teens the much needed guidance and sense of community that is now so obviously lacking in general suburbia. Instilling this into them when they are young is an excellent idea, forcing them to do so is unfortunately the only way it will occur because community work is not “cool” or seen as a way to further yourself.