and DHS Local Area Policy and Planning

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1 Youth-focused Coordination Groups and DHS Local Area Policy and Planning Proposal for feedback Youth Affairs Council of Victoria May 2014

2 The Youth Affairs Council of Victoria The Youth Affairs Council of Victoria (YACVic) is a vibrant, member based organisation that represents and advocates for young people and the organisations that work with them. YACVic has worked for and with young Victorians and the services that support them for over 50 years. Our vision is for a Victorian community in which all young people are valued as active participants, have their rights recognised and are treated fairly and with respect. Youth Affairs Council of Victoria Inc Level 2, 172 Flinders St, Melbourne VIC 3000 Ph: (03) Fax: (03) Website: Jessie Mitchell, Manager, Policy & Projects, policy@yacvic.org.au May 2014 The Youth Affairs Council of Victoria is supported by the Victorian Government.

3 Summary of Proposal The Youth Affairs Council of Victoria (YACVic) is the state peak body for young people and the youth sector. YACVic is a vibrant, member-based organisation that has worked for and with young Victorians and the services that support them for over 50 years. Our vision is for a Victorian community in which all young people are valued as active participants, have their rights recognised and are treated fairly and with respect. YACVic welcomes the opportunity to consult with government and the sector about how services supporting young people can participate to greatest effect in new Victorian models of local area policy and planning. This work was prompted by recent changes in how government works with the community sector. YACVic and the Victorian Government Office for Youth identified this opportunity to consider the challenges and opportunities that exist for services supporting young people and the areas of government that work with them. What follows is a proposal by YACVic for how such relationships might be strengthened. We invite feedback, which we will use to inform a final proposal which we will present to government and the sector during June Share your thoughts at In this piece, we outline the importance of adolescence and young adulthood as key stages in an individual s development, where particular vulnerabilities can occur and age-appropriate solutions are needed. It is crucial to draw on the expertise of services and professionals who work specifically with young people, ensuring that the category of youth does not disappear in approaches designed to support vulnerable children, youth and families. Strong partnerships between sectors are especially important in the current policy context, in light of the Service Sector Reform Project and the rise in interest in collective impact approaches to social change. To inform this work, we spoke with 11 networks of youth service providers from different parts of Victoria, asking what models of communication and collaboration with government were effective, what support they needed to function successfully, who should be engaged, and what issues they might focus on. Key messages received from the sector included: The need for strong, shared agreements between government and sector stakeholders at a local area level, concerning key problems to be addressed, desired outcomes and KPIs, evaluation processes, and resources to be committed.

4 The value of an area-based approach, if it provides greater flexibility, resourcing and authorising power to communities. The importance of engaging with existing brokerage bodies, networks, and local planning. The need for clear, effective, respectful communication between services and government. The value of accurate, accessible data and research partners. The need to ensure that any consultative or collaborative mechanisms to bring government and youth services together are adequately resourced to achieve their aims. The value of diverse, committed and targeted membership for any such mechanism, at an appropriate level of seniority to authorise decision-making. The need for ongoing work on locally-identified priorities for vulnerable young people. While these will vary, our initial scope suggests common topics will include: o improved service provision, including stronger use of generalist youth workers, addressing serious service shortages in rural communities, and shifting towards more sustainable, evidence-based approaches o improved outcomes for young people in education, skills and training o strengthening young people s health and wellbeing; and o supporting cohorts who struggle to access appropriate support, such as newly arrived refugee young people and children in the middle years (aged 8-12). The value of a state-wide mechanism to bring together youth sector representatives to share information and solutions, identify policy concerns, plan strategic responses to new laws, policies and plans, and build relationships with ministers and senior departmental staff. The past year has seen considerable discussion around the planning and reform of the service sector in general. However, in this proposal we want to focus more specifically on how coordination or working groups of youth service providers could feed into to the model of local networks proposed in Victoria s Vulnerable Children: Our Shared Responsibility, Strategy (pp.23-24), as well as to other relevant government structures. Our Shared Responsibility outlines plans to support local networks of representatives from state and local government, service providers and communities to develop solutions to vulnerability. These networks are envisaged as building on existing place-based approaches to strengthen information-sharing and coordinated planning and service provision. We are keen to consider how youth sector networks could connect effectively with such a model, and with other areas of government.

5 YACVic proposal: a working group model that could feed into local networks and other relevant government structures Purpose statement Recognising that: Adolescence and young adulthood are key stages in a person s development, where particular vulnerabilities can emerge Services and professionals who work specifically with young people have expertise and insights which are different to those of services which focus on children, families or older adults No one actor can succeed alone in addressing the complex needs of vulnerable young people, and Powerful partnerships depend upon a strong common agenda, continuous and effective communication, and backbone support Strong partnerships must be supported between government, service providers and communities. The aim is to develop solutions to identified issues for vulnerable young people at a local level, to improve outcomes within their communities, while sharing key findings more widely to inform Victorian policy and practice. Proposed scope Geography: aligned with the 17 DHS areas Cohort: young people aged who are experiencing, or vulnerable to, poor outcomes with regard to education, employment, housing, health, or involvement in the criminal justice system. Governance: coordination groups formed between government, service providers and other community stakeholders. These would be supported by a coordinator employed within each DHS area, with a remit to feed information and strategic advice into the broader area-based governance structure. This broader structure is overseen and accountable to the Children s Services Coordination Board and monitored by the Vulnerable Children Reform Unit. Proposed placement Local networks: Governance models comprising interdepartmental representatives from state government, with local government and community partners. [A youth-focused group (proposed below) could feed up into these.] DHS Area Offices Our proposed mechanism could take the form of a local coordination group, or a network to inform several working groups, which then feed information and advice to the area-based governance structure. Details may depend on identified local priority issues. Key participants include: DHS Local Area teams (community participation manager / local connections manager level) Local Learning and Employment Networks Youth Partnerships structures Local government (probably at a coordinator / manager level, although see discussion)

6 Proposed objectives Identify key planning or policy issues that limit the attainment of improved outcomes for vulnerable young people Support the development of coordinated local level responses to youth vulnerability, including through strengthened communication between government and services Ensure that support for vulnerable young people is informed by knowledge of local conditions and solutions, strong local data, community engagement, and existing successful approaches Distribute examples of best practice in supporting vulnerable young people, within local areas and across the state Ensure area-based governance structures and their working groups are supported to keep vulnerable young people as a priority cohort, in their planning concerning children, youth and families Proposed function of youth-focused coordination groups Identification of key and emerging local issues for vulnerable young people Supporting development of common agenda, principles and strategies for change Supporting improved service coordination and partnership building between services and government Developing principles, priorities and strategies for community engagement Informing planning and priority setting within area-based governance structures and their working groups Identifying effective models of partnerships to improve outcomes for vulnerable young people, and supporting their work to continue Functions that would not be performed by these youthfocused coordination groups Networking and program updates at a practitioner level Individual case management discussions Allocation of funding to services Resolving specific operational disputes Holistic area planning about issues not concerning young people Pooled funding for services

7 Resources proposed to support this work (Proposal put forward by YACVic) A part-time coordinator position (0.6 EFT) funded within each DHS area for at least 3 years, resourced by government and based within a community sector organisation or local government with a record of relationship-building, brokerage, planning and capacity-building in the youth space. This role should support the priorities of the Vulnerable Children Reform Unit, with a focus on improving outcomes for vulnerable young people. The worker s role would be shaped by local priorities, but could include: - facilitating the development of youth-focused coordination groups, and supporting them to develop shared agendas, priorities and strategies for change - ensuring strong communication between government, community sector networks and other stakeholders - building partnerships with relevant, non-traditional stakeholders - fostering relationships between the youth sector and research partners - providing secretariat support for youth-focused coordination groups - making quality data available, with support to use it appropriately, and - taking part in state-wide sharing of effective strategies and key areas for change. A state-wide gathering of these coordinators and working group representatives, held three times a year, to identify state-wide policy issues, share successful strategies, and present to relevant ministers and senior departmental staff. There should be secretariat support to set a common agenda, facilitate sessions, liaise between government and coordinators to ensure strong communication, and arrange expert presentations. Critical enablers for successful implementation of our proposed approach: Dedicated resources to support communication and collaboration, especially during the establishment of the groups Retaining local flexibility autonomy of local areas to identify their priority issues and design solutions in accordance with local dynamics Access to relevant, high-quality data, and support to use it appropriately Awareness of leading practice understanding of effective interventions to improve outcomes for vulnerable young people, and capacity to share these findings Participation by appropriate decision-makers Commitment to clear, two-way communication between government and other sectors supporting young people