Young people
Waikato's young people are our future leaders.
We want our young people to make positive choices about their future and to have the right information to make good life decisions. Young people are most successful when they have a purpose. Education, training and work can offer that purpose. If our young people get into trouble with the law, we want to help get them on the right track. For the small number of young people who are committing serious crimes, we're taking action in an effort to stop them from becoming career criminals.
Youth employment
It's not unusual for a young person to be out of work when they start out in the labour force. But we need to make sure they're not discouraged by this, and they stay motivated and keep their work habits. We also know there are young people out there who just need a bit of help to get into work and plan a career.
Youth Opportunities package
Times are hard for communities and their young people. The number of young people who don't have a job is four times higher now than it was this time last year. The Government announced the Youth Opportunities package, working with employers and communities to find opportunities for 16 to 24-year-olds, to work, train or stay in education.
In 2009/2010 as part of the Youth Opportunities package we will:
- fund entry-level jobs for six months,to build experience and confidence
- make 3,000 places for young people to work on community projects
- create extra job training placements through industry partnerships
- expand the Limited Service Volunteer Scheme by an extra 1,250 places.
Partnering with local iwi to create youth specific industry partnerships
We will work with the Tainui Tribal Development Unit to identify current and future opportunities for a partnership that will enable youth to get training and employment within local iwi economic development initiatives.
In 2009/2010 we'll help Waikato's young people get jobs by:
- providing a dedicated youth service in Hamilton City
- connecting them to training opportunities to get the skills they need for work.
Getting young people to reach their potential
Some of Waikato's young people need the opportunity to participate in development activities and to help make the decisions that will affect their lives. We will help these young people find the right place to do this.
We have two Youth Transition Services (YTS) in the Waikato Region to help young people create their own opportunities for great futures. The Hamilton YTS team looks after the young people of Hamilton City and the Waikato District's YTS team looks after the Northern Waikato District areas like Ngaruawahia, Huntly, Te Kauwhata, Meremere and Raglan.
We are looking to extend YTS further in our region so even more of our young people can get the help they need to get a job, training, education or some other meaningful activity.
Young people can find out more about youth services in the Waikato Region through the Sussed website:www.sussed.co.nz
Student support
Over the next year we will extend the MyStudyLink online account service so students can assess their eligibility for most forms of support and apply for it online in one seamless process.
We build our relationships with students' association and education provider representatives in the Waikato by meeting with them twice a year, to plan for and debrief on the peak-season (beginning and mid-year) activities and to talk about new initiatives and operational and policy changes.
Getting young people on the right path
We provide intensive programmes for those young people who are already in the youth justice system, or who are very close to entering it.
Fresh Start
In August 2009 the Prime Minister announced an expanded Fresh Start for Young Offenders programme, building on the youth justice announcements made earlier in the year. The aim of the programme is to stop young people from reoffending by helping young people involved in low-level offending to get back on track, by holding serious and persistent young offenders to account, and by addressing the root causes of offending.
Some of the initiatives, announced as part of Fresh Start for Young Offenders, include:
- structured community youth programmes for low-level young offenders
- participation in either community or residential court-ordered drug and alcohol programmes, parenting and mentoring programmes
- Youth Court-supervised camps and greater Youth Court powers
- Supervision with Activity Orders with extra places in a range of programmes that incorporate elements of military-style training
- military-style activity camps for serious young offenders.
Reducing gang participation
An increasing number of Hamilton's young people are looking for somewhere to belong and finding it in youth gangs. We cannot let our young people graduate from a youth gang to an adult gang. That would be a life wasted. We are planning a multiagency approach to co-ordinate government agencies and service providers so we can support our young people to make better life decisions.
In 2009/2010 we'll work to reduce youth offending rates by:
- putting multiagency plans in place to support our young people to make better life decisions
- developing a multiagency approach to eliminating truancy.
Reducing youth offending - Rock On
The Hamilton Youth Offending Team (YOT) has implemented Rock On - a multiagency approach to truancy. When a young person chooses to not attend school, they can become detached from their community and they are more likely to participate in criminal activities. Rock On focuses on individual plans for truants and their families, to help them to reconnect with school or alternative training or education.
Our growing migrant and refugee populations
For some young migrants and refugees, the journey between adolescence and adulthood can be particularly challenging as they navigate the merging of cultures, languages and identity.
We're supporting Hamilton's young refugee and migrant community by developing a Youth Strategy and action plan that will address issues of health, education, skill training and employment.
