FAQs

The Town is developing a three-year Youth Plan to better understand the needs and aspirations of young people in our community, and develop actions in which to address these over the next three years.

The development of the Plan involves multiple stages of community consultation in both face-to-face and online forms. We want to hear from, and gain input into the Plan from young people, their parents and care givers and the organisations that support them in the community.

Young people or youth refers to people aged 12 to 25 years that live, work, volunteer, study and/or recreate in the Town of Victoria Park.

The Town is undertaking a major review of its highest level planning document, the Strategic Community Plan (SCP). 

The SCP is our blueprint for the Town and outlines the vision, outcomes and priorities for our community for the next 12 years. 

Feedback provided by young people participating in the Youth Survey will be used to inform the new SCP. For this reason, young people are not required to take part in the SCP consultation, however are still welcome to do so if they choose.

Feedback provided by parents and caregivers participating in the Parents and Caregivers Survey will not be used to inform the SCP. We encourage parents and caregivers to learn more about the SCP and get involved in the consultation by visiting Your Thoughts from 1 February.

There are many ways parents and caregivers have and can contribute to the Youth Plan.

The Parents and Caregivers survey was for parents and caregivers of young people aged 12 to 25 who live, study, work, volunteer or recreate in the Town of Victoria Park.

Participants were asked questions about what they think is important for young people in their care and where they see opportunities for the Town.

The information provided was analysed for themes and utilised with other information from young people and key stakeholders in the Town to develop the Plan.

The Parents and Caregivers workshop was offered for participants to view and provide feedback on the Plan's draft focus areas, that have been developed through the engagement process.

Note, the Parents and Caregivers workshop was cancelled due to low registration numbers.

Parents and caregivers also had an opportunity to comment on the draft Plan during the Public Comment period from 18 June to 2 July, 2021.

Young people have been involved in every step of the development of the Youth Plan.

We want to speak to as many young people as possible so we recruited Youth Peer Researchers to help us. The youth peer researchers, aged 16 to 25, helped us design the survey for young people, before going out and surveying approximately 30 young people aged 12 to 25. The Youth Peer Researchers were provided training and paid for their participation.

The Youth Survey allowed the Town to understand how young people experience their lives in the Town, the challenges they face and their aspirations for the future. The findings of the Youth Survey have been used to create the Youth Plan, and the strategies and actions within it.

A Young Changemakers Workshop was offered to empower young people to become changemakers in the community. Young people undertook a mini-masterclass on becoming youth advocates and leaders, and got a first look of the draft Youth Plan to have their say in how it comes to life. The workshop has now taken place.

The Town has engaged the Youth Affairs Council of WA (YACWA) to help develop the Youth Plan. YACWA is the State's peak body for youth affairs and is widely acknowledged as a leader in the field of youth participation best practice. To this end, YACWA employed Youth Consultants to run the youth consultations.

Young people also had an opportunity to comment on the draft Plan during the Public Comment period from 18 June to 2 July, 2021.

Community organisations have and can contribute to the Youth Plan in a number of ways:

Hosting a workshop for young people at their service. The project team visited services and organisations that work with young people and ran workshops with them.

Attending a one-on-one interview (phone or video-conference) at a time convenient to you. From 1 February to 21 March the project team held one-on-one interviews with key stakeholders.

Community organisations also had an opportunity to comment on the draft Plan during the Public Comment period from 18 June to 2 July, 2021.

As a peer researcher, you will help us design a survey for young people and what questions we should ask. You will then go out and survey approximately 30 young people aged 12 to 25. You may also have an opportunity to co-facilitate youth workshops (if that interests you). We will provide training.

This is a unique opportunity to develop your experience and skills, while helping the Town understand the issues that are important to young people in the community.

As a peer researcher on this project you will need to commit to each phase including training, survey delivery and debriefing. There are three sessions you will need to attend, and the fourth and fifth session is optional:

1. Training (6 hours) – Saturday 13 February, 10am-4pm
2. Training (2 hours) – Saturday 20 February, 10am-12.30pm
3. Post-survey de-brief (2 hours) – Monday 15 March 5.30-7.30pm
4. Draft strategy workshop (optional) (2 hours) – Thursday 13 April 5.30- 7.30pm
5. Presentation at Town Forum (optional) – Saturday 8 May— time to be confirmed

The survey delivery phase will run from 21 February to 15 March and you will need to gather approximately 30 surveys in that time from a diversity of young people. 

Note, the Draft strategy workshop has been changed to the Young Changemaker Workshop on Thursday 15 April 5.30-8pm.

As a peer researcher you will receive $600 for your work if you attend all training sessions and deliver the full number of surveys. You will be paid $200, on delivery of the first 15 surveys, and then $200 for the next 15 surveys and $200 after you attend the de-brief session. 

We will provide you with training on a variety of topics, including effective consultation, managing difficult discussions and confidentiality. You will receive food and drinks at all the training sessions.

• To be eligible you must meet all the following criteria:
• Be between 16 and 25 years old (when you apply)
• Live, work, study, or volunteer in the Town of Victoria park (if you do not meet these criteria but you spend a considerable amount of time in the Town, then your application may be considered)
• Have an interest in issues that face young people and a willingness to share ideas
• Be able to effectively and confidently communicate with young people from a variety of backgrounds
• Be able to commit to all the training sessions and deliver surveys in the three-week period stipulated above
• Be willing to apply for a Working with Children Check if you are aged 18 or over (the application fee will be paid for)
• Have parental consent to participate if you are under the age of 18

The Youth Affairs Council of WA (YACWA) are managing the recruitment of the peer researchers.

To apply to be a peer consultation leader, you must complete the online application form by 5pm Friday 5 February 2021*.

If you have any questions, please contact Lianda Gibson on 9227 5440 or email lianda@yacwa.org.au. 

* Please note, you will be advised by Tuesday 9 February if you have been successful and will need to be available for the first day of training that weekend (Saturday 13 February).

The Town is inviting the community to view and provide feedback on the draft Youth Plan.

You can view the draft Plan in the Document Library and complete an online submission form via Your Thoughts. Alternatively, both a copy of the draft Plan and hardcopy submission forms are available at the Town's Library and Administration Building.

The public comment period is open from Friday 18 June - Friday 2 July 2021.

The Town is seeking suggestions for what we should call the new Youth Plan. We didn't think 'Launchpad' or 'Future Leaders' was that inspiring, so we are turning to the community for help.

You can provide your suggestion using the online submission form on Your Thoughts or you can complete a hardcopy submission form available at the Town's Library or Administration.

Please note, the submission form to provide feedback on the draft Plan is the same as the submission form to provide a suggestion for the name.

A $100 Coles Group and Myer gift card will be awarded to the person who suggests the winning name, which will then be used to name the Plan.

The public comment period and naming competition is open from Friday 18 June - Friday 2 July 2021.

Further competition terms and conditions can be found here.