Youth Club's

NEED OF YOUTH CLUBS AT GROUND LEVEL

Introduction:

'India is a country with 60% of it's population as youth. The future of this country lies in the hands of this youth. I saw a vision that by the year 2020, this youth of our country would be the leading face of the world. India will rise and become a superpower and by 2020, the world will realize the real potential of India. To fufill this dream, it is upto the youth to work hard and make the country proud.'

                                                                                                           -Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

Its Better  to Do Something Constructive and  Creative  in the free Time rather wasting

time….!!!

Youth are the Future of a Country. For making a country a better place to live, YOUTH

POWER is the basic Need.

                              In next few years India would be counted in developed countries of the world only if Youths of our country gives their's  best in various fields by power of ideas, abilities & dedication. Youth can contribute to INDIA'S success & progress only if they are equipped with proper skills and knowledge.  Governments are rolling out initiatives for all round progress of the youth; still much is to be done at ground level. Youth club provides dedication, hard work, innovativeness & quest of knowledge to bring INDIA in list of developed countries. 

 what is a youth club:

             Youth clubs give young people a low cost place to go outside of school, offering them a sense of belonging. The activities and support from club leaders and volunteers allow young people to learn new skills and build confidence and resilience for the future, as well as have fun.Young people choose to go there, with youth clubs open to all young people.

 what do youth clubs offer?

             There is everything from boxing to dance, as well as clubs focusing on the environment,  creative arts and leadership and work skills.

              Relationships are also at the heart of youth clubs  both with friends and the adults who work there. For some young people, their relationship with their youth worker or club volunteer may be the only meaningful relationship they have with an adult   and it can be life changing.Youth clubs offer something for everyone. The thing is one has to make sure that all the young minds were connected because youth clubs make a huge difference to young people’s  lives.

Life isn't easy for young people today

*Youth unemployment is reaching record levels, with young black people

  disproportionately affected.

*There’s more pressure than ever to be successful at school, college and university.

*Many young people are overweight and unfit.

*Mental health problems like depression, eating disorders and self-harming affect many

   young people.

*New technology like social media opens up new ways to communicate, but can lead to

  cyber bullying.

*Four out of five young people end up hanging out on the streets because there’s nowhere

  else to go, and 70% of young people believe people their age get involved in anti-social

  behaviour because they’re bored (YouGov Princes Trust Youth Index, 2008).

Youth clubs are part of the solution

          At the most basic level, youth clubs give young people something positive and fun to do, stopping them getting into trouble. But they achieve so much more than this. Clubs can change young people’s lives. They give teenagers vital skills like teamwork and leadership. They give young people a sense of belonging and a place in their community. Getting good at a particular skill builds their confidence. Sports clubs improve young people’s health and fitness. The leaders running clubs are often trained to give advice on everything from drugs to relationships.

             Youth clubs help make young people happy, healthy, well adjusted and able to make positive contribution to society and their communities.

The results speak for themselves:

80% said their youth club helped them to know right from wrong.

93% said their youth club was a safe place to go in their community.

73% said their youth club had provided support with schooling and education.

71% said their youth club helped their career development.

70% said their youth club had increased their participation in sports.

Getting girls more involved in youth clubs

                      From body issues to bullying, school work to relationships, young girls face so many pressures. Taking part in sports and activities helps them get fit, learn new skills, gives them somewhere safe to go and builds their self esteem. But despite these benefits, fewer girls than boys play sports and go to youth clubs.

 WHAT MAKES FOR A SUCCESSFULYOUTH CENTRE?

                      The five key ingredients for a sustainable youth centre: youth ownership, mentorship, community connectedness effective coordination, and a sustainable energy source. These concepts shift the focus away from the often allconsuming  stresses of money and facilities to critical factors such as community support, people resources, and youth adults relationships. The research indicates that success in these five areas makes it much more likely that a centre will find ways to meet its financial and facility needs. These ingredients are interconnected and serve to build upon each other to produce a successful centre.

 

Youth Ownership:

                Youth ownership involves the young people having a sense of responsibility for centre and a sense that they have input into what happens there. A brightly coloured and hand painted sign in one club says it all Respect . This is a great example of how youth can express themselves and convey the message that they govern their space. Self-policing amongst the users is another good indication of youth ownership. Although in many cases, adults play important roles in establishing rules and regulations for a centre, when youth ownership is present, the young people have input and have agreed.

Mentorship:

             

                    Mentors are individuals who provide inspiration and support to others. The co-ordinator of one community teen centre has built a strong relationship with the youth over two years. Some of the girls say that they think of her as their mom. She is someone that helps them smile when they’re down, but she also hangs out and play sports with everyone.

                    Mentorship can offer young people support, role models to emulate, inspiration for their passions or encouragement to define and seek their life goals. Everyone has mentors intheir lives and in turn can be inspirational role models for others. for a youth. Yet many of the co-ordinators expressed how much they have learned from the youth, whether it is the latest sayings and fashion trends or how to operate a computer and surf the net. In addition, there are innumerable ways that youth can mentor youth.

                           Mentorship allows each person the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of others. It builds relationships between youth and adults and between youth that are essential to creating a strong youth centre.

Community Connectedness:

                      Successful youth centres depend on support from community members to operate, both in terms of resources and volunteers. In turn the young people frequently give back to these communities to create a two-way connectedness. For example, in one town a dedicated group of teenagers shovels the steps of the local war memorial after eachsnowstorm. There is lots of laughter and the odd snowball fight as the youth contribute their time and receive recognition for it. Involving youth in direct service to the community has proven to be a highly effective means of empowerment and a means to spark broader citizen involvement important in community renewal (Warner and Langlois, 2002).

Breaking down the barrier between adults and youth takes a commitment from both populations to provide opportunities, services and resources for each other. Open, respectful communication channels must be established. Youth Centres have succeeded at this through:

•                    holding community meetings
•                   developing youth-adult partnerships on their governing boards
•                   allowing members of the public to view the youth centre in operation
•                   renting facilities for day care, community meetings, special events, etc.
•                   youth providing community service
•                    using the networks of adult coordinators or volunteers

At the root of community connectedness is the idea that individuals, businesses and organizations must care and take ownership for their youth and their concerns. Whether this occurs in a proactive manner or as a reaction to community events and problems, an effective youth-community partnership is vital to the well being of all, particularly the youth centre.

 Sustainable Energy Source:

The sustainable energy source was most often a person driving the project, motivating and drawing in others to help. Learning to build off of this energy and dedication without draining it, is a key to successful centres that maintain themselves over years. A former steelworker turned youth worker, is an exceptional example of the dedication and passion of many people associated with youth centres. His endless energy is undoubtedly one of the main reasons the youth club continues to survive in an otherwise struggling community. The club provides young people with a safe space to be themselves, and a dedicated individual to support them in their endeavours. Much like fuel for heating or transportation, to be sustainable, a youth centre’s energy source must be discovered, tapped, monitored and eventually transferred to a new source. The energy source must be constantly monitored to ensure that it does not burn out prematurely. Each person has unique ways of coping with stress and large workloads, which both the person and those around them must recognize and support. It is also import to avoid exclusively depending on one individual, both to prevent burnout and provide opportunities for others to grow and learn as they take on challenging responsibilities. What happens if the person providing the core energy departs? This does not have to be a disaster, and can be a great way to strengthen others connections to the project. Several centres in Nova Scotia have gone through a number of successful transitions of their primary coordinators. A key is having the other key ingredients in place, including a governing committee or Board of Directors, youth ownership and community connectedness.

We also witnessed in out research energy sources that are alluring but not sustainable. These are most often grant money or the offer of a facility. Building a centre on grant money or the promise of a facility alone, without sufficient attention to the other four factors is a weak foundation from which to build. The other four components play a crucial role in leveraging the source of energy. The fuel will run out if they are not in place.

Result

 This research has identified, the key ingredients that make youth centres successful through youth researchers spending time in a wide range of youth centres across the province and through interviewing those with the greatest investment in them. Although each ingredient is described sequentially, the success comes in the interconnections between them. If funding is cut, it is youth ownership, community connectedness and effective coordination that are the keys to survival. Youth develop ownership if the coordination process gives them opportunities to grow and learn and if they find meaningful opportunities to mentor or be mentored through special relationships developed at the centre. Community connectedness grows and volunteers get involved when adult see that youth care about the centre. If energy is focused on all five interconnected concepts, a special youth gathering place can result.