Scottish Liberal Democrat Manifesto Backs Stronger Support for Young People and Youth Work

The Scottish Liberal Democrats have published their 2026 manifesto, Change with Fairness at its Heart, and it contains a number of commitments relevant to young people, youth work and the issues affecting communities across Scotland. 

For the youth work sector, there are several proposals that connect directly with the priorities set out in A Right, A Space, A Future – Scotland’s Youth Work Sector manifesto for the 2026 election. 

Youth Work Bill and entitlement to youth work 

The standout commitment is a proposal to bring forward a Youth Work Bill. 

The manifesto says this would focus on: 

• Boosting young people’s educational, social and emotional development.
• Ensuring everyone has access to services that help them feel included and build life skills, resilience and confidence.
• Directing young people towards services at key points in their lives.
• Introducing an entitlement to youth work for 11–25-year-olds.
• Introducing national and local strategies .

This reflects long-standing calls from the sector for youth work to be recognised as an essential service, available to all young people and backed by clear planning. 

Youth work and education 

The manifesto also recognises the role youth work can play in helping young people engage with learning. 

It includes commitments to: 

• Use youth work to reach young people disengaged from education and skills training.
• Use youth work as one of the means to reach more young people who are not engaged successfully in formal education.
• Foster more opportunities for young people who are at risk of falling behind or who need mentorship and fresh inspiration to learn new skills.  

There is also a commitment to improve support for young people with additional support needs by recruiting more expert staff, including specialist behaviour support, ASN teachers, speech and language therapists, and educational psychologists. 

Mental health and wellbeing 

Young people’s health and wellbeing also features strongly. 

The manifesto includes plans for: 

• New dedicated mental health beds for children and young people north of Dundee.
• Improved support for children and young people with long Covid, ME and chronic fatigue.
• Restrictions on the marketing of vapes to reduce their appeal to young people.
• Specialist support for bereaved children and young people through a new duty to inform.

These are all areas where youth work services already provide trusted relationships, early support and safe spaces in communities. 

Participation and young people’s voice 

The manifesto also commits to giving young people a bigger role in shaping policies affecting them through the Youth Parliament. 

That matters. Young people should not just be consulted after decisions are made. They should be involved in shaping them from the start. 

Opportunity and future pathways 

There are also proposals aimed at opening up opportunities for young people, including: 

• Returning to Erasmus Plus as an associated country.  
• A reciprocal youth mobility agreement for under 35s.
• A new NextGen scheme to attract young people into farming through paid experience, training and skills.  

Prevention and safer communities 

The manifesto also includes commitments around prevention, including: 

• Helping young people at risk of offending through early intervention and mentorship.
• Tackling misogyny and violence against women and girls.  

This reflects the wider case for investing early and supporting young people before problems become crises. 

The next step 

The Scottish Liberal Democrat manifesto adds to the growing cross-party support for young people and youth work ahead of the 2026 election. 

In the next Parliament, that matters. Where no single party may hold all the power, ideas that attract support across parties can shape budgets, legislation and national priorities. 

This creates a real opportunity to build momentum behind stronger investment in youth work, clearer national commitments, and better support for young people in every community across Scotland.