PROJECTS run by young volunteers in North Yorkshire are facing a bleak future following a massive funding cut.

Changes to the funding formula for Millennium Volunteers (MV) will drastically reduce the North Yorkshire budget, from £420,000 currently to £135,000 by 2006-7, a drop of more than two-thirds.

Launched in 1999, MV is a national programme designed to engage 16 to 24-year-olds in their communities through volunteering.

MV operates locally through four different programmes;

York MV, a partnership between the city's education providers, offering a mixture of tailored volunteering placements and team projects

CSV, which operates projects in Ryedale and Selby districts

Hambleton Millennium Volunteers, based at Northallerton College

Millennium Volunteers in Harrogate, who run arts and leisure projects for visually impaired young adults with learning and physical disabilities, at Henshaws Society for the Blind.

Organisers argue that the funding reduction fails to acknowledge the challenges associated with delivering MV across England's largest county, as well as the city of York.

They warn that the area will be left with little more than a token MV provision by 2006-7.

York MV co-ordinator Robert Partridge said today the project is "deeply saddened" about the impact the cuts will have.

But he was adamant everything would be done to ensure MV continues.

Mr Partridge said: "MV is doing much to overcome the impression that young people are a scourge on society.

"MV provides them with positive outlets for their skills and talents and helps to ensure that they feel part of their local community."

About 2,500 young people in York and North Yorkshire have benefited from the government-funded scheme in the last four years, giving more than 210,000 hours of their time.

Sixty per cent of participants have never volunteered before and evidence suggests that many will continue to volunteer in the future.

Updated: 09:40 Saturday, December 20, 2003