NORTHCLIFFE YOUTH VOICE
By Graeme Olsen
Northcliffe Youth Voice is making
a huge difference to the way Northcliffe youth perceive
themselves, and their place in their local community.
| Northcliffe is often referred
to as the end of the earth, because it's
not on the way to anywhere really. It's
a classic small rural town, surrounded by
a 25km radius of Forrest and farms, with
ocean to the south west. It has a town population
of around 240, out of a local area population
of about 850.
Being such an isolated town, it has it's
share of problems. Recent restructuring
of the timber industry, and deregulation
of the dairy industry, has contributed
to an unemployment rate of 15% (double
the national average). Two thirds of the
population live below the poverty line.
In
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| the last 5 years they've lost
their bank, butcher, supermarket, baker,
and restaurant, and the main street now
sports an array of empty shop fronts. |
These conditions are obviously a challenge
for the townsfolk of Northcliffe. But where do the
youth fit into this picture?
Northcliffe Youth Voice is a community
group that is run by and for the youth of Northcliffe.
It has over 50 members between the ages of 12 and
18, which means that 85% of the youth of Northcliffe
are involved - an amazing figure. Obviously something
is being done right.
The group is totally "youth driven",
meaning that all of it's activities are initiated
and developed by Northcliffe's youth.
To give you an idea of the kinds of
things they get up to, some of the recent projects
have included a Fast Car Speedway project (including
fundraising to rebuild an old bomb of a car into
a mean racing machine), a Skate/Multi-purpose recreation
park, "Bums on Seats" (a Community Arts
BBQ Fire Pit Seating Project), and a Northcliffe
Youth Voice web site.
Regular expeditions are organised,
which include outdoor adventure camps, surfing,
canoeing trips, orienteering, abseiling, caving,
Bibulmun Track walks, plus a variety of workshops
and other projects.
The benefits and spin-offs from this
project are enormous.
Firstly, life is being pumped back
into the streets of Northcliffe. The town reportedly
comes alive on Friday nights, almost entirely as
a result of the youth.
Minor economic spin-off's follow.
The one and only cafe in Northcliffe now opens especially
on Friday nights to cater for the trade of the youth.
Another positive result is the huge
decrease in anti-social behaviour. The Shire of
Manjimup has reported that since the start of the
group, there has been virtually no vandalism in
town.
But perhaps most exciting of all,
the group members and "graduates" have
a new passion for becoming involved in their community.
They are often seen at community meetings such as
Shire Strategic Planning, Recreation Planning, etc.
This might be because their involvement in the Northcliffe
Youth Voice helped them appreciate the value of
having input, and allowed them to experience success
in making a difference.
The Northcliffe Youth Voice runs out
of the Northcliffe Family Centre, the hub of the
town. Each week, around 160 locals (around 20% of
the population) use the centre, which provides a
place of sharing, learning and growing for all members
of the community.
Amongst the "hustle and bustle"
of the centre is Maja Plante, the centre's Community
Development Coordinator and founder of Northcliffe
Youth Voice. Maja is passionate about small town
community development in rural Australia. Watch
this space for future articles on what she's been
up to. She can be contacted on (08) 9776 7221 or
email northcliffefamily@wn.com.au.
And if you're still not completely
bowled over by the positive results of this exciting
venture, I'll leave the last word to one of the
conclusions reached by a state-wide report by the
WA Office of Youth Affairs:
"...in Northcliffe, in contrast
to most WA rural towns, young people believed they
were perceived positively by their community, felt
positive about their community, and showed a strong
sense of belonging. This was directly attributed
to being part of a recognized youth specific organisation,
Northcliffe Youth Voice, where advocacy and positive
profiling of youth was part of the organisation's
culture".
September 2003
