Taranaki Youth Initiative

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Taranaki
Connections
a youth employment initiative

• By 2005, no young person under 25 years will be
  out of work or training in Taranaki

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A Local Goal

• By 2005, no young person under 25 years will be
  out of work or training in Taranaki

Mayors Taskforce for Jobs Core-group Member
Peter Tennent Mayor of New Plymouth
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A Local Connection
Goal

• A holistic framework for supporting the
  transition of our young people to employment or
  training
• A way of staying connected to our young people
  until they have developed a positive pathway to
  their future

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Strategic Influences
vivian Hutchinson Community Adviser to the Mayors
Taskforce for Jobs Editor of The Jobs Letter

• National influences and links
• Mayors Taskforce for Jobs
• Youth Affairs Youth Development Strategy
• Research in best practice
• Connections (UK)
• Australian PM 2001 Taskforce on Youth Pathways
• Community Partnerships for Youth (Australia)

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Strategic Question

• If local authorities had statutory authority for
  ensuring positive outcomes all young people under
  25 how would they organise it?
• Sweden local authorities obliged to take
  responsibility for young people up to age 18.
• They draw up a personal plan which is
  reviewed every 10 weeks.
• Emphasis on no-one falling through the
  cracks
• Denmark carrot and stick if refuse to work
  with local authority, their income support is
  effected

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2001 Youth Taskforce
Australian Youth Pathways Taskforce 2001
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(No Transcript)
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All Young People Need
Australian Youth Pathways Taskforce 2001

• THE OPPORTUNITY TO
• Complete 12 years of schooling or its vocational
  equivalent, including strong literacy and
  numeracy foundations
• Undertake vocational education and training and
  structured workplace learning
• Obtain life skills and employment which enable
  them to be active and valued members of the
  community
• Engage with professional career and transition
  support
• Benefit from effective peer and family support
• Learn and participate in environments that are
  inclusive of and responsive to their cultural and
  linguistic diversity.

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All Young People Need
Australian Youth Pathways Taskforce 2001

• THIS WILL REQUIRE
• Cultural and paradigm shifts in many of our
  community institutions and systems
• Central and local governments to work together
• Integrated supported networks which create
  opportunities and respond to the diversity of
  challenges faced by young people
• Focused and collaborative partnerships at the
  local level involving schools, industry,
  business, government and non-government agencies,
  communities, young people and their families
• The development of learning pathways plans for
  each young person, transition follow-up
  mechanisms and transition indicators
• The development of a comprehensive career and
  transition support system and the development of
  employability and life skills learning
  programmes
• Appropriate income support, health care and
  housing foundations.

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UK Connexions
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UK Connexions
Dave Turner Australian consultant visited NZ in
2002 and spoke to Taskforce Mayors links with UK
Changemakers

• ABC Framework a range of interventions that a
  Connexions Personal Adviser can take to support
  young people in transition

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Taranaki Connections

• Not a project or a programme
• but a purpose, a goal , and a shared
  commitment
• which deliver results by many inter-dependent
  strategies

Elaine Gill Local Employment Co-ordination
(LEC) Taranaki Employment Support Foundation
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A Local Commitment
Taranaki Connections

• To ALL Young People
• Based on Australian Youth Transitions Taskforce
• A human rights charter for young people and
  what this will require from all stakeholders

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Working Together for Results
Taranaki Connections

• Community Case Management
• The full toolbox of support
• A commitment to staying connected to our young
  people

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Community Case Management
Framework

• Working Together for Results

1. Governance Support 2. Professional Support 3. Community Support 4. Peer Support
Taking Leadership on Cultural Goals 11 Intensive Personal Support Individual, family, whanau, community and business support Youth Group Activity facilitated by Adults
FINDING THE NECESSARY RESOURCES TO DELIVER SUPPORT AND SERVICES SAFETY NET FOR THOSE MOST AT RISK AND/OR AT A POINT OF CRISIS / CRITICAL DECISION MAKING SUPPORT STRUCTURES FOR YOUNG PEOPLE IN OUR COMMUNITY NETWORKS, CONTACTS AND PATHWAYS PROVIDED YOUNG PEOPLE HELPING THEMSELVES AND EACH OTHER. ADULTS FACILITATING SELF-HELP CAPACITY OF YOUNG PEOPLE
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1. Governance Support
Community Case Management

• Taking leadership and setting targets on cultural
  goals
• Catalysing community involvement on the issue
• Encouraging a sign-up to a local commitment to
  young people
• Challenging existing agencies to raise their
  game
• Finding the necessary resources to deliver
  support and services

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2. Professional Support
Community Case Management

• Intensive Personal Support
• Assessment Counselling advice and guidance Case
  management Referral
• Individual placement in pathways
• Safety net for those most at risk and/or at a
  point of crisis/critical decision making

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3. Community Support
Community Case Management

• Individual, family, whanau, community and
  business support
• Support structures networks, contacts and
  pathways
• Mentoring Role models Community-based learning
  Work-related education training Developing
  employability skills Work experience Employment

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4. Peer Support
Community Case Management

• Young people helping themselves and each other
• Adults facilitating learning and building
  self-help capacity of young people
• Team projects and research Led by young people
• Developing enterprising skills and skills to
  manage change Community based learning and
  enterprise education

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How it works
Community Case Management

• Available to ALL young people as they leave
  school
• 5-year commitment to each young person
• Meeting with young person every 10 weeks
• Community Case Manager as advocate, mentor and
  role model
• Case Management Co-ordinator
• Combination of long-term commitment with
  pro-active advocacy to ensure a unique pathway is
  created for each young person

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Working together
Community Case Management

• All parties committed to exploring best
  practice in co-operation, co-ordination and
  collaboration
• Getting out of the usual silos and focusing on
  results for each individual young person
• Sharing resources
• Building on the experience of the Taranaki LEC
  network (Local Employment Co-ordination Group)

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How it starts
Community Case Management

• Pilot the strategy in one area to begin
• Begin with this years school-leavers
• Slowly expand to encompass more and more numbers
  of existing unemployed in pilot area
• Slowly expand to include other areas of obvious
  need
• Evaluation and feedback as the scheme progresses

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Scoreboard How many young people?
Statistics That Matter

• Winz figures of young people 18-24yrs on benefit
  September 2002
• New Plymouth District 960
• Waitara
• Stratford District 164
• Hawera District 301
• Patea
• Total 1425 young people

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The Waitara Pilot
Taranaki Connections

• Why Waitara?
• Disproportionately large percentage of the
  regions youth unemployed
• A company town that lost its company
• A supportive Head Teacher committed to the
  project
• A manageable level of school leavers for a pilot

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Why now?
Taranaki Connections

• Venture Taranaki school leavers research found
  young people needed
• more support and information
• more opportunities to experience options
• help to plan their pathway from school
• a long-term commitment in a structured manner
• Leadership and support from the Mayors Taskforce
  and Governments Youth Development Strategy
• Policy emphasis on whole of government
  solutions becoming whole of community
  solutions.

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Commitment and sign-up needed
Taranaki Connections

• from Government Agencies to
• support the project and work together
• from Community Case Management team to deliver
  best possible service
• from community and business groups to support the
  scheme and its purpose
• from young people