Council adopted the Wingecarribee Youth Strategy & Action Plan on the 14 December 2016 following an extensive period of community engagement including surveys and forums.
The Wingecarribee Youth Strategy & Action Plan 2016-2026 ensures that Council maintains support of the youth population and encourages and promotes new ways of improving services and opportunities for young people.
Youth Strategy and Action Plan 2016 - 2026
The Youth Forum is held biennially to gain current feedback from young people which will ensure that information in the Wingecarribee Youth Strategy and Action Plan is reflective of youth needs in the community.
Wingecarribee Youth Forum Report(PDF, 1MB)
2018 Youth Forum Report Update(PDF, 1MB)
Wingecarribee Youth Survey Report(PDF, 1MB)
Council offers to a wide range of activities, support and opportunities for young people aged between 12 and 24 years old. These opportunities are open to any young person that lives, works, attends school or further education or participates in sporting activities in our Local Government Area (LGA). It’s simple, just call or email the Youth Liaison Officer.
Apart from the projects that are already running we welcome ideas and input from the community.
Mental Health Month is part of a national mental health campaign held during October each year. The campaign aims to increase awareness and promote mental health and wellbeing for all people. Mental Health Month is coordinated by WayAhead – Mental Health Association NSW.
The theme for Mental Health Month 2021 is Tune In.
Tuning In means being present, being aware of what’s happening in and around you. Taking a moment to see what is happening for others in your community. It is about connecting people and places in our beautiful shire.
Please take the opportunity to Tune In to our local events and activities for Mental Health Month:
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Negotiating Lockdown Blues
To celebrate Mental Health Month, Wingecarribee Shire Council held a Q & A and panel discussion with members from the Southern Highlands Suicide Prevention Program.
Nicole Blaik (Wingecarribee Health Association for Men), Carmel Averillo (One Door Mental Health) and Ryan Roumieh (Lifeline) were on hand to discuss:
- dealing with isolation during stay-at-home orders,
- family dynamics and relationships, and
- accessing local services to assist with mental wellbeing, including care plans.
The five ways to wellbeing are a set of evidence-based actions to improve well-being.
They were developed by the centre for well-being at NEF (the New Economics Foundation) as part of the UK Government’s Foresight project on wellbeing.
The evidence suggests that building the action areas into our everyday lives has benefit for wellbeing. These thriving individuals are then able to further contribute to the community.
Five Simple Action Areas:
Connect…
With the people around you. With family, friends, colleagues and neighbours. At home, work, school or in your local community. Think of these as the cornerstones of your life and invest time in developing them. Building these connections will support and enrich you every day.
Be Active…
Go for a walk or run. Step outside. Cycle. Play a game. Garden. Dance. Exercising makes you feel good. Most importantly, discover a physical activity you enjoy and that suits your level of mobility and fitness.
Take Notice…
Be curious. Catch sight of the beautiful. Remark on the unusual. Notice the changing seasons. Savour the moment, whether you are walking to work, eating lunch or talking to friends. Be aware of the world around you and what you are feeling. Reflecting on your experiences will help you appreciate what matters to you.
Keep Learning…
Try something new. Rediscover an old interest. Sign up for that course. Take on a different responsibility at work. Fix a bike. Learn to play an instrument or how to cook your favourite food. Set a challenge you will enjoy achieving. Learning new things will make you more confident as well as being fun.
Give…
Do something nice for a friend, or a stranger. Thank someone. Smile. Volunteer your time. Join a community group. Look out, as well as in. Seeing yourself, and your happiness, linked to the wider community can be incredibly rewarding and creates connections with the people around you.
Past Evidence Reports
Five Ways to Wellbeing Evidence Report 2008(PDF, 250KB)
Five Ways to Wellbeing Follow Up Report 2011(PDF, 842KB)
Please click on the below link to view the Highland's Child Youth & Family Service Directory:
Highlands Child and Youth Family Services Directory 2020(PDF, 633KB)
Create & Celebrate was a project funded by Department of Communities and Justice in 2019. The original goal of the project was to bring together a group of young people to develop and host a series of youth events, activities and workshops. Shortly after the group was established the pandemic of COVID-19 also took hold of the globe. The group of young people were not to be stopped, they continued to meet outcomes and developed their program to an online format hosting events a range of events on www.facebook.com/SouthernHighlandsYouth.
With a break in restrictions the group developed and participated in a range of workshops that focused on skill development in the music industry, as well as skills to assist with employment. They were also able to host the Fools Festival in April that saw over 700 young people from different high schools in the local area, connected to celebrate their skills in a live performance at Moss Vale Showground.
Create & Celebrate continue to meet on a regular basis to plan events and create more opportunities for young people in the Highlands. For further information, please contact Council's Youth Liaison Officer.
Wingecarribee Shire Council has received Youth Opportunities funding from Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) to run a full year program of creative arts in multiple art mediums events led by young people for young people in 2022/2023.
The funding aims to build the skills of our local youth artists as well as develop the capacity and leadership skills for young people aged 12 – 24 years involved in planning and organising the programs. The program also promotes mental health awareness highlighting the 5 ways to wellbeing.
Fun Da Mental’s youth panel is consisting of 6 members and is open to 15 in total. There has been 3 meetings and many more to come and are held at Creative Space in Bowral.
The group is moving quickly with a group created diorama. This will be displayed in the Bowral cinema corridor through the December /January holidays with the theme being 5 ways to wellbeing.
Moving into the future in Late in the January Fun Da Mental will be hosting taster programs in 4 art mediums. Photography, videography, Aboriginal art and pottery.
The group will then attend a leadership/ team building retreat at a local outdoor education group in February.
While this is all happening the youth panel will be hard at work to provide local youth artists an opportunity in an exhibition like event in youth week 2023.
Fun Da Mental Poster(PDF, 322KB)