In another first for the City of Belmont’s community safety initiatives, classes are now underway as part of the Safe School Project delivered through the Positive Engagement Program (PEP).
The PEP is a partnership between the City of Belmont and
Belmont City College (BCC), with support from
YMCA WA.
The Project is aimed at providing additional support to students to help them with their learning and keep them in school, diverting them away from anti-social and disruptive behaviour in the community.
According to City of Belmont Chief Executive Officer John Christie, the City of Belmont, BCC and YMCA WA Belmont Youth Services have a long-established and productive working relationship focussed on supporting young people within the Belmont community.
A $280,000 Australian Government’s Safer Communities Fund grant was secured to fund the pilot PEP program for 2021, which will largely be used to pay for staffing the program.
“This unique collaboration is providing much-needed support for local youth giving them support with their learning,” Mr Christie said.
“The program is run at a site supplied by the City of Belmont to create an environment that meets the educational and social/emotional needs of young people and removes potential distractions for those involved,” Belmont City College Program Coordinator Sean Overend said.
“It is further aimed at identifying and meeting the often complex social and emotional needs of affected youth in order to improve wellbeing and life-course trajectory, as well as reducing the risk of suicide and poor mental health,” Mr Overend said.
Staffing consists of BCC teaching staff, support from YMCA WA youth workers, and additional support from BCC Student Services staff.
“There will also be a strong focus on bringing community agencies in to the program to ‘hot-desk’, providing additional support for students and staff,” he said.
The educational program and community agency engagement is based on Department of Education initiatives such as the Full-Service School in Armadale (The Hub).
“It is hoped that if and when these initiatives are continued and expanded that the pilot program will gain ongoing support for a sustainable funding stream,” Mr Christie said.
“Through student engagement, the program will aim to reduce the risks of harm to others by helping the participants to understand the effects these offences/behaviours have on a person and the possible consequences of this behaviour, coupled with improving the participants’ personal wellbeing.”
Pictured: The Safe School Project team – City of Belmont Community Safety Coordinator Graeme Todd, Justin Onek, Youth Worker from YMCA WA, Belmont City College program Coordinator Sean Overend, teachers Tracey Sheikh and Ashleigh Scardina, with City of Belmont Coordinator Community Projects Joel Warner.