Last Word: Face the fear of weekend opening
Michael Bracey
Friday, July 24, 2009
Great youth workers are fearless. Not reckless. That is something altogether different. But fearless. It's described in the dictionary as being audacious, intrepid and hardy. And it's a big part of the way they do their job.
However intimidating or threatening young people might look to others, great youth workers just see personality and potential. They don't cross the road to avoid them. They rock up right next to them, ready for whatever happens as a result.
They also understand that young people don't always behave in the way that we might want them to. And that however difficult it might get, they don't give up on them. They deal effectively with challenging behaviour, often seeing conflict as a powerful catalyst for change.
You don't have to look far to see some outstanding examples of youth workers successfully dealing with difficult behaviour. These very pages are often full of news items and features on youth workers who refuse to walk away from young people, no matter how challenging the behaviour.
But in contrast to the successful, positive approach taken by many youth workers facing really difficult situations, some youth workers seem to find the prospect of young people drinking a few cans of cider too much to even consider working with them on a Friday or Saturday evening.
In an exclusive survey carried out by Children & Young People Now last month, just over a quarter of the youth workers who responded said they were worried about levels of teenage drinking at the weekend and were concerned about dealing with the consequences of young people's drinking. One respondent went on to say that youth workers could end up dealing with "violence and aggression, aggravated by a culture of Friday night drinking".
I understand the point that's being made. But here's the thing. If we don't offer young people any alternative to binge drinking, it's hardly surprising that they might end up getting off their heads and hitting each other.
The appropriate risk assessments do need to be carried out and everyone has the right to work in a safe environment. But the survey also highlighted that nearly 80 per cent of young people want more things to do on the weekend. It's too easy to dismiss this as just another government priority. The truth is that young people want to see youth facilities open at the weekends as much as the policy makers do.
Some of those who took part in the survey called for more training for youth workers to be provided. But I'm not sure this is about additional training. Isn't this about taking a few risks and moving out of the comfort zone? The real challenge for all those who are apprehensive about weekend opening is to face the fear and do it anyway. You never know, they might even enjoy it.
- Michael Bracey leads youth support services for Southend-on-Sea Borough Council. Email michael.bracey@haymarket.com
