NATIONAL YOUTH WORK WEEK

That this House notes that many thousands of young people enjoyed access to the Internet for the first time thanks to National Youth Work Week which ran from 1st to 8th November 1998; congratulates the National Youth Agency for selecting information and communications technology (ICT) as the theme for the week which has prompted innovative activities around the country including creating virtual time capsules, 24-hour Internet marathons and projects getting young people to build computers for community centres; acknowledges the special contribution that the Youth Service can make to creating access to ICT for disaffected young people who may not be able to take advantage of the technology at home or school; and calls on the Department for Education and Employment to recognise the vital contribution the youth work sector can make in developing the National Grid for Learning.