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