'SORELY-NEEDED' youth work in Witney could be in place as early as August thanks to a new group set up to tackle the problem.

Representatives of 16 influential organisations from across Oxfordshire met at Witney Corn Exchange on Friday for the first 'urgent forum' to return sustainable youth services to the town.

The group will ask young people to shape the type of provision they want and is aiming to roll out a new trial initiative in August, during the school summer holidays.

Town and county councillor, Laura Price, first called for the forum back in December and explained Witney's youth would be at the heart of any new scheme.

Read again: Spate of anti-social behaviour in Witney prompts calls for action

She said: “We really want to be action-focused.

“Our first objective was working up a plan of how to involve young people in the process.

“There was really strong agreement that they should feed into the decision of what they need.

“We can’t come out with a solution for young people without involving them.”

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Groups from a range of backgrounds were represented at the meeting, including the town, district and county councils.

Thames Valley Police and Abingdon and Witney College also took part, although Witney's secondary schools, Wood Green and The Henry Box School, were unable to attend.

Several charities and social enterprises were involved too, such as the Windrush Bike Project, Oxfordshire Youth and Aspire Oxford.

The meeting discussed the changing landscape of youth work in the town, which lost influential charity Base 33 in 2017 and has been hit by county council cuts to services.

Read again: 'Several solutions' to Witney's problem with anti-social behaviour

Meanwhile, the West Oxfordshire Early Intervention Hub, based on Witan Way, opened only eight years ago, but has since transitioned into the Children and Family Centre.

Ms Price said: “Witney is particularly poorly-served when it comes to youth provision for the size of town it is.

“Carterton and Chipping Norton have been able to retain some services, but at the same time we don’t want to reinvent the wheel.

“If the best opportunity is to do something for the whole of West Oxfordshire then we’re interested in that.”

According to Ms Price, participants agreed that detached youth work was the best way to reach out to Witney's young people.

This model of youth work targets vulnerable young people at times and locations suitable to them, for example cafes, parks and pubs.

The meeting was chaired by Rod Walker, deputy lieutentant of Oxfordshire and a former head teacher at Henry Box, as well as Abingdon's Larkmead School.

Mr Walker raised concerns over the impact of county lines drug dealing and growing mental health issues on vulnerable young people.

Read again: 14-year-old arrested at teen party

He said: “It would be fair to say that Witney is in a relatively disadvantaged position when it comes to youth provision.

"Antisocial behaviour has probably always been an issue in any market town.

“The more significant issue is county lines - it’s now reaching areas we previously thought were free of these problems.

“If, at the same time, vulnerable young people are going to have fewer opportunities then that’s clearly going to be an issue.”

He added: “There are so many children right down to primary school age who are feeling under enormous pressure.”

“This meeting was definitely sorely-needed. There’s a growing need and a decrease in provision."

The group will now work on a plan to engage young people before the next meeting, which is provisionally set for April, after which it is aiming to put concrete proposals to Witney Town Council.

The forum was originally prompted by a spate of cases of anti-social behaviour in recent months.

Last month, a 66-year-old jogger sustained minor injuries after he was assaulted by a group of teenage boys on Mill Street.

Read again: Gang of teenagers attack jogger in Witney town centre

Back in October, three teenagers, including a 14-year-old boy, were arrested after a party at Burwell Hall attended by more than 200 people turned violent.

One case of vandalism saw two perspex panels at Newland bus shelter damaged in two separate attacks, destroying an art instillation created by students at Abingdon and Witney College.

Oxfordshire County Council previously said that more is being spent on services for young people than eight years ago, with the county's children’s social care budget set to double from £46m in 2011 to £95m in 2023.

This has created posts in help and edge of care services, a specialist exploitation team, new care homes and supported housing and lodgings for young people.

The county council still has a standalone Youth Justice Team and Education, Employment and Training Service.