Youth Action Strategy
The Youth Action Strategy aims to increase the number of young people in regional and rural Victoria who feel connected to their local community and feel that they have a say in the future of regional Victoria. This aim is based on research which has identified that young people who feel connected to their regional and rural communities are more likely to remain in them, or return to them.
The Youth Action Strategy will meet this aim by building the capacity of local councils, community based services and youth advisory groups in rural and regional Victoria to get more young people involved in determining the direction of their communities.
There are five key components to the Youth Action Strategy:
- Reaching out to rural young people: $50,000 negotiated research grants to the City of Greater Geelong, Swan Hill Rural City Council and the City of Greater Bendigo. The three local governments will undertake research and propose improvements to the current models of service access to young people living in rural communities outside key regional service centres.
- Rural and Regional Youth Inclusion: $30,000 one-off grants to 25 rural and regional LGAs over the five year period of funding to support local governments to embed engagement and consultation of rural and regional young people.
- ‘How to’ workshops: Training to service providers to build capacity to carry out youth participation and training for young people in advocacy.
- ‘Know-how’ resources: Good practice sharing and resource development.
- Increasing participation by rural and regional young people in Victorian Government decision making: Brokering opportunities for young people to engage with Victorian Government strategy and policy development.
The program is being implemented by the Department of Human Services. For further information please call the Youth Action Strategy Project Officer at the Office for Youth on 99353010.
