Why the National Youth Strategy needs all of us

By Amanda Naylor OBE, Chief Executive, Volunteering Matters

The Government launched its new National Youth Strategy, ‘Youth Matters’ on 10 December 2025 . We fully welcome it. With its focus on people who care, places to be and feel connected and being seen and heard, the strategy sets a bold and necessary direction for how we support young people. As an organisation that has been involved in shaping the strategy, we are passionately committed to turning its ambition into action.

But we cannot deliver it through youth work alone. If we want a future where all young people feel they belong, are supported, and have the power to lead change, then civil society must play a central role.

This strategy is for all of us. Volunteers, mentors, local leaders, community organisers, networks and charities. Civil society is not just a helpful extra. It is the foundation that can make this strategy real in every community.

Through our work across the UK, we see how civil society offers not only services, but pathways. Pathways to opportunity. Pathways to connection. Pathways to leadership. Volunteering, mentoring, peer support and social action don’t sit on the edge of youth policy. They are what bring it to life.

We’re proud to deliver the #iWill Movement and as long-time champions of youth-led change – since 1962 – we know that civil society already holds many of the tools this strategy needs. Our experience shows that youth participation, volunteering and social action are not add-ons. They are the foundations that help young people feel they belong, build trusting relationships, gain skills, improve wellbeing, and strengthen their communities.

Here are just a few ways that Volunteering Matters are already turning these ambitions into action:

• Grandmentors pairs care-experienced young people with older volunteers who offer practical, emotional and consistent support. This helps to build confidence, networks and independence.
• Match and Mentor enables disabled young people to take part in volunteering, with personalised support and peer mentoring that breaks down barriers and boosts inclusion.

• #iwill Towns and Cities of Youth Social Action are growing across the UK, creating local networks where young people co-design services, shape priorities and lead change.
• In communities across England, Scotland and Wales, our youth volunteering pathways open doors for young people to connect, contribute and thrive.

This is more than programme delivery. It is system change. When youth voice and social action are embedded meaningfully, and when every young person can access and lead them, they become powerful drivers of equity, connection and opportunity.

Looking ahead to 2025 to 2030, our new strategy places young people at the heart of thriving communities. We see volunteering as a shared exchange. Everyone has something to offer, and everyone has something to gain. People step into social action in different ways and at different times. That diversity is a strength, not a challenge.

And we see the impact every day:

• Lexi, bridging generations and tackling loneliness through community-led projects.
• Sean and Victoria, just 10 and 11, who welcomed migrant and refugee classmates through creative, courageous leadership

• A group of Year 7 students in Newcastle who sparked honest conversations about mental health by creating and distributing wellbeing packs across local schools.
• Janelle, a fearless #iwill Ambassador, who speaks out against injustice and shows us what true leadership looks like.

These are not one-off stories. They are part of a national movement, grounded in community, led by young people and powered by civil society.

The National Youth Strategy sets out the destination. Civil society builds the path.

Now is the time to act. Funders, policymakers, local authorities, businesses and community partners, your role is essential. This strategy will only succeed if civil society is recognised, trusted and resourced as a core delivery partner. Let’s back what works. Let’s listen to what young people are asking for.

A youth strategy without civil society is just a plan on paper.

Together, we can bring it to life. Locally led. Community connected. Youth powered.

Let’s get moving.