Outreach youth work and the health and social services reform : Outreach youth workers’ perspective

Abstract

After the 2018 economic crisis, Finland established several policies and services called Youth Support Systems, creating the Outreach Youth Work. This service, structured and legislated by the Ministry of Education and Culture as part of youth legislation, has great relevance in the Youth Act (2017).

Outreach youth work aims to reach young people in need, or what Mäkelä et al. (2021) and Mertanen et al. (2020) define as "at-risk". Those responsible for this task are the Outreach youth workers. Without Outreach to youth workers, the risks would lead young people to drift toward social exclusion passively (Mertanen et al. 2022).

This master thesis is based on three stances: legislative analysis, the search for scientific theory, and the collection of empirical data. From May to September, six open interviews with Outreach youth workers have been conducted. These experts, those individuals who carry out their work in the youth field, are the appropriate ones to detail their perspective on their professional work, their relationship with young people, and their cooperation with the corresponding County.

This thesis contains data on what Outreach youth work is, how it is developed in Vantaa and its direct or indirect involvement with Vantaa and Kerava County from the perspective of the Outreach youth workers.