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Garda Youth Diversion Projects run by Catholic Youth Care.
CYC has ten Garda Youth Diversion Projects (GYDP). The Garda Youth Diversion Projects (GYDP’s) are community based projects working with young people in relation to offending and substance use issues. The projects are based in local communities and work with young people aged 12- 18 years. Their aim is to help children move away from behaving in a way that might get them or their friends into trouble with the law. They can help children develop their sense of community and their social skills through different activities. During the past year some of the work has included: The LAB Project worker was invited to present at the Barnardos' Tomorrow's Child Conference, where he described the implementation of their interagency work at local level and their Night Time Tours programme . This project has also been short listed for the Children Acts Advisory Board’s Awards for Services to Children and Young People. A number of the GYDP’s used media in their work with young people and the young people wrote, stared and produced short films on a variety of topics from alcohol and dangerous driving to bullying; The GRAFT Project successfully ran Camp Diversion, an adventure sports two day camping event and open to all GYDP’s nationally; The LAB and SWIFT Project were chosen to take part in the European Olympic Committee’s After Schools Programme. This programme initiated by Garda Community Relations Section in Harcourt Square, was run by local Gardaí supported by the project workers and culminated with a sports day held in Cabra Community Centre in October; In 2008 we set up two new projects, JETS in Swords and EFFORT in Finglas East. Substance Use Related Work CYC have four dedicated projects related to substance education/prevention with additional work being carried out as part of larger project work. The dedicated teams are in Bray, Finglas, Dun Laoghaire and Swords/Baldoyle Youth Service. The Finglas Team (Awareness F/C) underwent a review process in 2008, after ten years of operation and will shortly be launching their new work plan. Bray holds a youth conference and community conference during the Drug Awareness Month in November as part of their work in supporting the Bray Drug Education Forum. A new member of staff began working in November in Dun Laoghaire who will be responsible for rolling out the Prevention Through Play Programme in this region and the start of 2008 saw the addition of a fulltime staff member working in the post in Swords/Baldoyle. In September the B>Smart Initiative was launched in Ronanstown Youth Service by Minister John Curran T.D. (Minister of State with special responsibility for Drugs), in the presence of CYC’s Director Fr Jim Caffrey (podcast available on www.drugs.ie) The initiative aims to provide a comprehensive response to alcohol issues in Clondalkin and is a multi agency response that involves a number of local community groups and statutory agencies. This Initiative is funded by Pobal (Dormant Accounts Fund) and its development is supported through a multi-agency partnership between: Ronanstown Youth Service (CYC), The GRAFT Project, The Valley Project, South Dublin County Council, Clondalkin Local Drugs Task Force, the Health Service Executive, An Garda Síochána, Community Awareness of Drugs (CAD), St. Peters Apostle School, St. Mary’s Senior School, & St. Bernadette’s Senior School Clondalkin. The initiative will run from September 2008 for two years. The four main parts of the initiative include: A series of events run for the sixth classes of three primary schools St. Peters Apostle School, St. Mary’s Senior School, & St. Bernadette’s Senior School Clondalkin; The establishment of a youth cafe for sixth class from each school in addition to directing the young people into current youth services in the area; Three parents seminars to coincide with Halloween, St Patrick’s Day and the start of the summer holidays; and A concentrated effort on behalf of An Garda Síochána and South Dublin County Council to enforce the legislative powers available to them. NUI Maynooth Certificate in Youth Justice The Certificate In Youth Justice is run in partnership with NUI Maynooth, Department of Applied Social Studies, Copping On National Crime Awareness Initiative and Catholic Youth Care. In September 2008, the first graduating class of nineteen students were presented with certificates by Barry Andrews TD, Minister for Children and Youth Affairs in the presence of the President of NUI Maynooth and the Head of the Department of Applied Social Studies in the Law Council of Ireland. September also saw the second intake of thirty students taking the course in the 2008-09 term. |