ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT

Date: April 8, 2002
Author/Local: Debbie Anderson/871-6032

RTS No. 2569

CC File No. 4102

Council: April 23, 2002

TO:	Vancouver City Council
FROM:	Director of Social Planning
SUBJECT:	Civic Youth Strategy - New Directions and Pilot Model

RECOMMENDATION

A. THAT Council endorse the new model for the Civic Youth Strategy as outlined in this report.

B. THAT Council approve a pilot phase for implementation of the new model that includes a Youth Outreach Team, assembly of a Community/City Support Network, and creation of Issue-Specific Working Groups.

C. THAT Council direct the Social Planning Department, in consultation with the core partners (Vancouver Park Board, Vancouver Police Department and Vancouver Public Library), to report back within one year on the Civic Youth Strategy Pilot Project with recommendations for future actions and sustainability.

GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS

The General Manager of Community Services RECOMMENDS approval of A, B and C.

COUNCIL POLICY

Vancouver Civic Youth Strategy Policy

The Vancouver Civic Youth Strategy was adopted by Council on March 28, 1995. It is a statement of commitment to work in partnership with youth and the larger community to:

· Ensure that youth have "a place" in the city,
· Ensure a strong youth voice in decision-making,
· Promote youth as a resource to the city,
· Strengthen the support base for youth in the city.

Vancouver Children's Policy

The Vancouver Children's Policy was adopted by Council on March 12, 1992. It is a statement of commitment to the children of Vancouver and includes: Children's Policy, Statement of Entitlements and an Action Plan.

SUMMARY

After completing a review of the Civic Youth Strategy, there is agreement by staff and the community that it remains an impressive policy statement and that the goals and objectives of the Strategy are still worthwhile. However, a new model that is more inclusive, representative, accessible and sustainable is needed to more effectively engage youth in the civic process. This report presents a new model for Council's approval and recommends a pilot implementation phase for the model. The report also describes the review process and community feedback which helped shape the new model. The new structure includes a Youth Outreach Team, an enhanced Community/City Support Network and the creation of Issue-Specific Working groups. An implementation plan and timeline is included and a commitment to report back to Council will be completed within the next year.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this report is to recommend the new model and pilot implementation phase for involving youth in the Civic Youth Strategy. It will also summarize the review of the 2001 Civic Youth Strategy and highlight the areas of work currently being undertaken by the Child and Youth Social Planner.

BACKGROUND

The City's commitment to Social Planning for children and youth in Vancouver was solidified with the approval of the Children's Policy in 1992 and the Civic Youth Strategy in 1995. Over the last year, Social Planning staff, following Council instruction, have been developing a strategic plan to better address children, youth and family issues in the City and as part of that plan, a new model for the Civic Youth Strategy is proposed.

History of the Civic Youth Strategy

The Civic Youth Strategy (hereafter referred to as the Strategy) was first approved by Council on March 28, 1995. The Strategy includes a policy statement which commits to involving youth as active partners:

· in the development, assessment and delivery of civic services which have direct impact on youth, and
· in broad spectrum community consultations and initiatives.

The City also promotes and supports youth-driven youth groups as a key consultation resource to ensure that the voices of youth are heard.

The Strategy has four core objectives:

· Youth have "a place" in the City
a) services are accessible and user friendly
b) there are youth-dedicated spaces
· Youth have a strong voice in decision-making
· Youth are seen as a resource in and to the City
· There is a strong support base for youth in the City

The initial structure for the Civic Youth Strategy established in 1995 included two committees:

· The Core Committee was comprised of youth representatives from several youth groups in the City as well as Core Partner staff representatives from the City, Vancouver School Board, Vancouver Park Board, Vancouver Police Department, Vancouver Health Department and the Vancouver Public Library. The main function of this committee, which met monthly, was to carry out the four objectives of the Strategy.
· The Department Representatives Committee consisted of a staff representative from each City department and some of the youth from the Core Committee. The main task of this group was to work with the Core Committee representatives to develop specific initiatives, identify resources and integrate the Civic Youth Strategy policy, objectives and principles into their work. This committee met 2 or 3 times a year.

The Civic Youth Strategy has had some significant accomplishments over the past 7 years including the development of more "places" and services for youth, development of a permit process for all night dance parties, support for youth-driven groups and organizations to host an all-candidates meeting for the last civic election, the Partners at Work program and initiation of and support for the City's annual Youth Week. These are outlined in detail in Appendix A.

However, there were also many challenges associated with sustaining the existing committee model particularly in regard to maintaining broad youth participation. Much of the work was carried out by 8 to 10 very committed youth and staff but burnout became a factor and there was no mechanism to recruit new young people to the table. The issues that were dealt with reflected the interests of those participating and became quite narrow in focus. The committee started to lack diversity in terms of age, geography, interest and issues. By 1999, the Core Committee realized that the Civic Youth Strategy was still important but that an independent review should be undertaken to revitalize the work.

DISCUSSION

Review of the Civic Youth Strategy

There have been 3 steps in the review process. The first step was an assessment of social planning staff positions related to children, youth and families. In 1999, Social Planning contracted Paula Carr, a community leader with experience in youth community development, to conduct the review prior to posting the Child and Youth Social Planner position. She recommended that a more coordinated, team approach should be taken to address children, youth and family issues in Vancouver. In the course of this work, it became clear that a review of the overall Civic Youth Strategy was also needed. Carr noted that "the review should consider the principles, process for youth voice, strategies to increase City involvement, ways to broaden youth knowledge and make the Strategy more relevant to more youth. Every effort should be made to recognize and build on the capacities and leadership of youth."

The second step took place in the summer of 2001. The Child and Youth Social Planner and the Core Committee took the recommendations outlined in the Carr report and embarked on a review of the Civic Youth Strategy itself. Yates, Thorn and Associates - consultants with expertise in urban planning, program evaluation and youth issues - were hired to do the following:

· meet with various stakeholder groups to review the Civic Youth Strategy's effectiveness
· research and summarize other models of civic youth involvement
· make recommendations for improving youth participation in civic government and adult/staff support to the Strategy.
· make recommendations for future sustainability of the Strategy.

In the course of the Yates/Thorn consultation, the stakeholder groups said that the Civic Youth Strategy policy statement was still impressive and its goals and objectives were still worthwhile. They acknowledged that there have been many accomplishments over the last 7 years. However, stakeholders also identified the need for changes to the Strategy including:

· A new, more inclusive, representative, accessible and sustainable model for engaging youth,
· Clear identification of annual objectives and outcomes,
· Improvements in communication, role definition and relationship building between youth, City staff, Council and core partners. There was general agreement that relationships needed to be strengthened and communication lines need to be better established; and
· Better promotion of the Strategy to address the fact that many youth in Vancouver were unaware of this initiative. Stakeholders suggested using a variety of marketing strategies including face to face youth outreach, using youth as facilitators, and engaging youth at the local neighbourhood level by establishing links with existing youth councils, schools, and youth driven organizations. This will also enable the Strategy to connect to a wider variety ( age, geography, population, issue or interest) of youth from across the city.

A full copy of the Yates/Thorn report is available by contacting Social Planning or from the City website at: www.city.vancouver.bc.ca/cys review.

The third step of the review entailed developing a new model for the Civic Youth Strategy. In October 2001, Nadim Kara, a young person who has relevant community and youth experience was hired to work with the Child and Youth Social Planner to develop this new model to more effectively engage youth in the civic process. This draft model was tested in the community through another round of focus groups involving Core Committee youth alumni, youth driven groups and agencies, City staff (department reps) and youth without previous connections to the Strategy. The model described below is supported in principle by the stakeholder groups.

Proposed New Model

The new model is specifically designed to address the issues as identified above. The goal of this model is to make a difference ensuring that youth's needs are better assessed and incorporated into City endeavours. It has three components and is described below.

A. YOUTH OUTREACH TEAM

The Youth Outreach Team will consist of three youth who will provide leadership and facilitation to the Strategy thereby making it more youth-driven. Their main task will be to do outreach at the neighbourhood level to network, liaise and build relationships with diverse youth in terms of age, geography, issue or interest. While engaging with these youth groups, the Youth Outreach Team will also serve as a conduit to share information on City work with youth as well as to bring youth issues to City Hall. They will also liaise with City staff/Council and coordinate several working groups (see below) on key civic initiatives. The Youth Outreach Team will be supervised by Child and Youth Social Planning staff.

B. COMMUNITY/CITY SUPPORT NETWORK

Long term sustainability and support for the Strategy and increased youth involvement will be addressed by expanding the existing Department Representatives Committee to include more youth driven organizations, Civic Youth Strategy youth alumni and additional City staff who are working directly with young people. This will expand the identification and discussion of youth issues and add more defined "places" for youth to participate in the Strategy.

C. ISSUE-SPECIFIC WORKING GROUPS

Issue-specific work groups will be developed to facilitate the work of the Strategy. Social Planning staff and the Youth Outreach Team will select three or four issues to work on over the next year and set tangible goals and outcomes to guide the work. They will then invite other interested youth from around the City to participate. Through initial discussions with City staff and youth, a number of Issue Group topics have been suggested:
· youth involvement in the upcoming civic election,
· youth participation in aspects of the development of the 2010 Olympic Bid,
· enhanced late night social/recreation/entertainment opportunities, and
· youth involvement in the City Plan Community Visioning process (i.e. Renfrew-Collingwood).

Issue groups will be co-chaired by a member of the Youth Outreach Team, Child and Youth Social Planning staff, and a relevant city staff person who will also sit on the Community/City Support Network. Issue groups will also offer tangible, concrete entry and exit points for diverse youth to become involved in key civic issues. Assessment of results will be undertaken annually.

Social Planning staff believe that the timing is ideal for youth to take on a larger role in promoting the Civic Youth Strategy. Since 1996, there has been significant growth in the number of youth-driven projects and subsequent youth engagement in community development. Given this capacity and experience within the youth community, youth will do outreach into the youth community and work in partnership with existing youth initiatives. City staff will have more opportunities to partner with youth via the Youth Outreach Team and their network to gather input on youth issues and projects related to City services. The proposed pilot implementation phase will demonstrate a more flexible way to engage a broader range of youth.

IMPLEMENTATION PLAN AND TIMELINES

Upon Council approval of the proposed new model of youth engagement for the Civic Youth Strategy, the following implementation plan will be initiated. Due to the significant changes in structure and support, a pilot project is recommended to test the model. The pilot phase will be funded through existing Social Planning/Child and Youth Support budget.

Spring 2002
· Youth Outreach Team will be recruited by Social Planning staff and orientation provided. This will be funded through existing budget.
· Community/City Support Network will be established involving City staff, youth alumni and community partners to provide coordination and support of the pilot project.
· Youth Outreach Team, Community/City Support Network and City staff will identify first issues to be piloted with new structure.
· Issue Groups will form and work will commence.
· Youth Outreach Team will start networking with existing community youth groups.
· Social Planning staff will begin searching for other possible partners for long term sustainability.

Summer 2002
· Continue work in Issue groups.
· Prepare communication strategies and develop promotional materials for the Strategy.
· Work with Youth Community Mapping team to map youth services in Vancouver.
· Continue meeting with community youth groups.
· Community/City Support Network meet as necessary.

Fall 2002
· Launch Civic Youth Strategy promotional campaign including new City youth website.
· Reconnect with youth groups after summer break and meet with new groups (i.e. schools).
· Continue work in Issue Groups.
· Begin documentation and assessment of pilot phase.
· Community/City Support Network to meet as necessary.

Winter 2003
· Fine tune Civic Youth Strategy model.
· Report back to Council on pilot project with recommendations for Civic Youth Strategy.

CONCLUSION

As identified in the reports by Paula Carr, and Yates, Thorn and Associates, there was widespread community support for the Civic Youth Strategy as a policy statement and a set of goals and objectives. However, stakeholders identified some challenges and recommended a review of Vancouver's Civic Youth Strategy. This report sets out a new model for the Strategy. Council is asked to endorse the new model and approve a pilot phase for implementation for youth involvement in the Civic Youth Strategy. The new model willoffer enhancements to the scope of youth involvement and leadership in the delivery of the Strategy, how youth are engaged in addressing relevant civic issues and how City staff and community partners are engaged to support this youth involvement.

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Child and Youth Social Planning - Progress Notes from Dec 2000
VOICE	·	Reconnecting with youth service providers, youth driven organizations and youth themselves to determine what the current issues, needs, and priorities were for children and youth in Vancouver.
	·	City staff hosted several dialogue sessions involving Street youth and the Downtown South Business Improvement Associations to address issues causing street level tension and conflict.
	·	Participant in the Community Services Grant review to advocate for child, youth and family supports.
	·	Partnering with the Self Help Resource Association and the Environmental Youth Alliance on a Youth Community Mapping Project. This youth driven initiative will assist young people with identifying youth friendly places and supports throughout the City. This information will be shared with the City's Information Technology/VanMap staff so it can be made web-accessible.
	·	Youth Mapping process to be used as a vehicle to engage young people in the neighbourhood Community Visioning process.
PLACE	·	Participant in the Youth Subcommittee of the GVRD Regional Steering Committee on Homelessness.
	·	Providing advice and recommendations to Planning staff re: development initiatives that have an impact on young people.
	·	Partners at Work program supports 100-140 grade 11 and 12 Career Preparation student placements in City worksites.
	·	Support to stabilize critical services to street youth through the relocation of Street Youth Services in city-owned building and long term planning for relocation of Dusk to Dawn Street Resource Centre.
SUPPORT BASE	·	Youth Funders Project: developing a system of coordination between funding agencies for the provision of youth services in the city of Vancouver.
	·	Continued participation on the City's After hours/Late night Entertainment Committee which approves permits for all night dance parties.
	·	Participant in the development of the Park Board Youth Services Strategic Planning process to set the direction for the City's largest youth services delivery system for the next 3 to 5 years.
	·	Initiated working group including Provincial and Federal government housing staff and members of the Aboriginal community to help them access capital funding for youth homelessness initiatives.
YOUTH AS	·	Developing a City Youth Website in partnership with youth.
RESOURCE	·	The Park Board has provided leadership in the support and implementation of Youth Week over the last 8 years. A Youth Coordinator, funded by CYS budget, is hired to provide leadership, support and coordination for Youth Week to over 100 youth agencies, schools and youth groups. Over 30 annual events involving thousands of youth participants throughout the city are all planned by youth for youth.
	·	Partnering with the Self Help Resource Association and the Environmental Youth Alliance on a Youth Community Mapping Project. The City's IT/VanMap staff are interested in making this information web-accessible.
	·	Collaborating with the Vancouver Board of Trade Spirit of Vancouver Youth Committee on common youth issues and projects.

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(c) 1998 City of Vancouver