More Hands Make Light Work

THE BEST PART OF BEING COUNCIL’S YOUTH OFFICER IS BEING OUT AND ABOUT CONNECTING WITH COMMUNITY

Allira Newton has been working at Clarence Valley Council for almost five years and is passionate about supporting youth in the Valley and creating opportunities that meet their needs.

The youth programs support young people in the community through youth drop-ins, school holiday activities, youth week celebrations, community events and playgroups. “My role as Clarence Valley Council Youth Officer has a strong focus on building strong community connections and is often the conduit that connects services, young people, and community groups in our region,” Allira said. “I am full-time at CVC and the role is fully funded by the Department of Communities and Justice – through the Targeted Earlier Intervention program.” “The motto ‘more hands make light work’ underpins my work as youth officer, as community work couldn’t happen without many hands working together to create strong connected communities.” Council’s programs aim to be collaborative and inclusive. Council coordinates the Clarence Youth Network (CYN), who meet each month. The CYN’s aim is to bring agencies and community together to collectively share information, promote services and resources, collaborate on projects, encourage youth and community participation, and work on a coordinated approach to raise awareness of and address local youth issues and opportunities. “I am passionate about supporting local young people, community groups and services to run programs and activities that complement their own unique community needs,” Allira said. “The best part of being Council’s Youth Officer is being out and about connecting with community. It is great meeting knew people and supporting events and programs that contribute to young people feeling connected, valued, and heard in the community. There is nothing better than a competitive game of handball or jenga, connecting with young people by participating in the activities they enjoy is so much fun and a rewarding part of the Youth Officer role.” Each year the CVC youth program facilitates four school holiday programs with support of various services and contractors. This program aims to reach as many of our smaller communities as possible. Follow our socials to stay connected to what is happening during school holidays. Council facilitates Youth Week celebrations in April each year. 2022 was a massive celebration for our young people and we had over 800 youth, community and families attend our events over the ten days. “In the next few months, we will be getting out in community and having conversations with local young people about the types of events they would like to see happening in April 2023,” Allira said. “We are always on the lookout for opportunities to do more for local youth, so applying for grant funding and brainstorming new possibilities is a big part of my role as well. In the next 12 months we hope to develop a youth advisory group for CVC so that young people have a strong voice in the council space.”