*By Karen Coombs
*Karen Coombs is the Youth Development Officer at King Island Council. Karen works closely with the King Island Youth Action Group (KIYAG) to organise activities for young people and provide support and advice. Below are ten points she believes are key in initiating a youth group.
- Engage young people as a representative sample across the age groups and determine the processes they want and are willing to engage in.
- Link activities and processes to food and ensure being involved results in having fun while achieving outcomes.
- Be realistic about what can be achieved within the available resources.
- Recognise and accept the developmental nature of your commitment to young people and youth participation – and don’t be too disappointed if there is no silver bullet to a quick fix or major changes overnight.
- Learn from the experience of others and avoid reinventing wheels. Then develop a model responsive to the needs of your community.
- Consider the development of two separate participation groups and/or processes – one for the 12 to 16 age group and another for 17 to 25 year olds.
- Develop strong local partnerships to work collaboratively and achieve better outcomes for young people.
