Youth Access to the Bridge
Craig Green
Information and Learning Services Manager
John Wheatley College
Bridge Background
Local poverty and deprivation
Anti-social behaviour and territorialism
Shared service environment (swimming, drama, café, recording studios, library, flexible learning unit)
Partnership approach to solving problems
‘A cool place to be’ for young people with PCs acting as magnet for them
Early Bridge Experience
Most young people behave well
Significant minority of young people with behavioural problems
Sometimes including abusive refusal to accept authority
Negative experience for other users
Mixing youth work and library approaches works well to address these issues
Youth Access
5 years in practice, supporting young people 12+
Service supports 1300 young people to access learning centres across east Glasgow in the evenings and at weekends
Informal IT-based learning support based on young people’s interests as they express them at the time (beginning with fun in safe places)
Combination of youth workers (lead role) and tutors and other partner staff in host centres
Dependent on various partners in various venues
Youth Access at the Bridge
4 years ago introduced an immediately successful (Saturday afternoons) trial of drop-in service supported by College youth worker with 20 PCs reserved
Initially introduced in response to behavioural problems faced mostly by library service
Extended to evenings and Saturdays and with tutor support
Relocated from public area to 50 PC flexible learning unit
Use of PC access incentive for ‘probation service’ approach to addressing behavioural problems arising in main library area
The Bridge mix
Young people
Youth Workers (from College with other support from youth work partners)
Library Assistants
Tutors
52 PCs reserved for teenagers most evenings and Saturdays , 32 others available for younger (and older) people
Youth Worker Role
Build trusted relationships
Encourage positive behaviour
Encourage learning
Encourage confidence
Encourage development of social skills
Challenge negative behaviour, maintaining orderly environment
Library Assistant Role
Issue user accounts, CD-ROM based games (and occasionally, books)
Consult young people about library services
Support younger young people in basic use of PCs
Build trusted relationships with young people
Challenge negative behaviour, maintaining orderly environment
Tutor Role
Teach creative IT skills – particularly when young people become interested in developing more advanced skills (playing with more advanced software)
Encourage and confirming learning
Encourage ambition to learn
Build positive relationships with young people
Challenge negative behaviour, maintaining orderly environment
IT-based activities
Curriculum for Excellence
The Youth Access programme supports young people to become confident individuals who:
have learned to behave in an adult manner so that they can learn (based on their own interests) in an adult learning environment;
recognise that they are able to take more responsibility for themselves and for their actions and who are therefore more likely to do so elsewhere; and
are challenged to explore, understand and discuss their own values, and beliefs based on their own self expression (for example through the social networking presences of themselves and friends).
Curriculum for Excellence
The Youth Access programme supports young people to become effective contributors through:
communication with both peers and adults in authority in order to form and develop good relationships often across territorial boundaries;
working with other people to resolve differences, to collaboratively create work and sometimes to publish it; and
use their skills and positive experiences to lead others.
Curriculum for Excellence
The Youth Access programme supports young people to become responsible citizens who are more able to:
discuss and understand issues affecting their communities;
plan and take action on issues affecting their community;
make sure their views and opinions are heard and respected in service development; and
understand and get on with people from different neighbourhoods or with different experiences, abilities, backgrounds and beliefs.
Curriculum for Excellence
The Youth Access programme supports young people to become successful learners who:
are motivated to learn and have belief in their ability to learn;
are more able to identify and understand what they need and want to learn;
are more able share their learning with others (and at times to transfer this learning to the school setting); and
are more able to use their core skills (particularly those relating to IT, communication and working with others).
Recognising Achievement
Significant Achievements recorded in Individual Learning Plans
Dynamic Youth Awards and Youth Achievement Awards
Recognition of positive behaviour in supervised sessions to enable re-inclusion into overall Bridge service
Current Bridge Youth Access Service
Monday, Wednesday, Friday evenings 5 -8pm
Saturdays 11 - 5pm (with temporary extension to 8pm)
New literacies support service (‘Quiet Night’)
No Youth Access service Tuesday evenings
No library service Wednesday Friday or Saturday evenings
Friday evenings, Saturday afternoons and evenings include additional support from local voluntary sector partner
Impact
Youth disorder and violence down over last two years in wider area◦ Particularly Friday evenings where good services
now developed
Less behavioural problems with some young people, services and staff are better able to deal with it
New Thursday evening ‘Quiet time’ literacies support service to be delivered by library staff (cross between ‘homework club’ and Youth Access0
525 young people have had support from the programme so far this year (since August) with average attendances of 37
Recognition of the success of youth work approach has led to interest from library staff and other Bridge partners in training in youth work essentials
Youth Access Bridge Services: Ingredients
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