The Tamworth Youth Development Strategy has grown out of decades of work focused on providing positive development opportunities for youth as well as to revitalise the Coledale community. Coledale is a former public housing suburb of Tamworth which experiences many of the challenges that are common for concentrated communities of disadvantage.
Change is building in momentum, particularly through a large-scale community development and rejuvenation initiative known as NOW ~ Neighbourhood, Opportunities, Working Together.
The recent completion of the purpose-designed multi-million-dollar youth centre in Coledale represents a major step change for Tamworth’s young people. It is one of only a handful of purpose-designed-and-built youth centres inĀ Australia at this time.
āIt is easier to go down a hill than up, but the view is from the top.ā
~ Arnold Bennett
āTo be truly radical is to make hope possible, rather than despair convincing.ā
~ Raymond Williams
Ā
Coledale Youth Hub & Revitalisation
The NOW initiative will improve opportunities for young people across the Tamworth region through the creation of a new purpose-built multi-million dollar regional youth centre in Centenary Park Coledale. The centre will form a base for a wide range of health, education and recreation services working to support local young people to help them make positive life choices. The need for a one-stop-shop to improve the effectiveness of youth service delivery was identified in a study undertaken in 2012 for Tamworth Regional Council and the Tamworth Youth Opportunities Working Group.
Starfish’s Role
Starfish worked in collaboration with the Youth Opportunities Working Group (YOWG), led by Tamworth Regional Council, to research and develop the Tamworth Youth Strategy (refer link to the full report below).
The purpose of this work was to build upon some four years of work by the YOWG and take the initiative to a new level for youth throughout Tamworth and surrounding regions by:
- adopting an evidence-based platform for positive and inclusive youth development
- using a collaborative governance and business model to improve the integration and coordination of service delivery
More recently, Starfish researched and wrote the Youthie Policy & Procedure Manual (refer link below), which is a valuable open source resource for the youth sector at large.
Get Involved & Find Out More
The Now Initiative
Tamworth Youth Strategy Report (Tamworth Youth Hub & Service Integration) (2Mb)
Coledale NOW Collaborative Governance Model (1Mb)
The YouthieĀ websiteĀ and Facebook Page
Youthie Policy & Procedure Manual (1.3Mb)
