www.wiltshire.gov.uk
About the Development Service for Young People
The Development Service for Young People offers young people aged 13 to 19 a wide range of social and educational activities and experiences. Whether it's activities based at one of our 23 youth centres throughout the county, working on projects in the community or residential and outdoor activities such as canoeing in Wales or France, our aim is to enrich the lives of young people in Wiltshire - getting them included, involved, interested and inspired.
Below are just some of our many recent projects to give you a flavour of what it's all about:
- Voice and Influence
- Foreign exchange programmes
- Youth Café
- Bass Connection
- db8 magazine
- Wiltshire Youth Arts Partnership
- Duke of Edinburgh's Award
- Marketing Messages
- Sparksite & Spark Radio
- Wiltshire Young People's Opportunity Fund
Voice and Influence
Listening to young people and engaging them in decisions which affect them is central to youth work and impacts everything from the development of programmes to offering sexual health advice and guidance.
The aim of the Development Service for Young People is to offer young people the opportunity to be involved in decision making to the level they chose. In light of this a broad range of opportunities have been developed ranging from satisfaction surveys to county wide elections for the UK Youth Parliament. A variety of settings and youth work methods are used to engage young people including schools work, youth led training, group work, individual work and national programmes e.g. Act by Rights.
The Development Service for Young People strives to ensure that these opportunities are available to all young people and has targeted programmes and groups to help ensure increased access to decision making among marginalised groups such as young people with disabilities or from a Black or Minority Ethnic background.
Foreign exchange programmes
One of the exciting initiatives is our youth exchange programme with Stade in Northern Germany. Originally devised as an exchange between the Stade Regional Youth Council and Wiltshire youth forums, its now expanded to young people from Spain.
We also regularly arrange expeditions to France to take part in white-water canoeing.
Youth Café
The Melksham Youth Café is a
registered charity for young people aged 8-14, which runs on a Tuesday night from 7:00pm - 9:00pm. The Melksham Youth Café is located at the Adventure Centre in King George V Playing Field.
Equipment that is on offer includes:
- Computer Suite with internet access
- Two pool tables
- Table Tennis
- Tuck Shop
- Playstation
There is a relaxed atmopshere with pool competitions on regulary towards the end of the night. The Melksham Youth Cafe is a place for young people to meet up with their friends and have a place to hang out on a Tuesday night.
If you would like to find out more then email melkshamyouthcafe@yahoo.co.uk
Bass Connection
This is a music-based project where a youth development worker draws up personal action and development plans for young musicians. Young people develop their own individual styles of music and performance and often build up to a public performance. It has been the making of some great bands!
db8 magazine
db8 is a magazine for 13 to 19-year-olds in the county. The magazine is a partnership between young people and Wiltshire County Council Development Service for Young People, and the project aims to support and help them develop the skills to research, write, design and produce their own magazine with the help of the professional journalists and graphic designers.
Wiltshire Youth Arts Partnership
WYAP is a partnership between district councils, the county council and the Arts Council, and aims to work with young people aged between 13 and 21 who are not involved in the arts on a regular basis. The projects cover everything from dance to multimedia; music to drama workshops.
Duke of Edinburgh's Award
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award is a way of rewarding young people for the things that they do in their spare time. They choose the activities that they do, with advice and support from their Duke of Edinburgh Award group. They will have the opportunity to learn new skills, help others and experience adventure. And have lots of fun along the way.....
The Duke of Edinburgh's Award is well-known and respected. By enrolling with the Award, they will be able to have their skills and personal strengths recognised and rewarded in a totally non-academic way. It's not an exam - they can't fail! It's all about having a go! And just think what a great sense of achievement they would feel when they've done it. As well as the respect of the adults around them!
Some of the activities they choose could lead on to a lifelong interest or their choice of career - who knows where it will lead and what doors it could open for them? What's more, many people including colleges, universities and employers are impressed to see it on your CV.
To achieve their Duke of Edinburgh's Award, they choose which level of Award they want to do - Bronze, Silver or Gold - and then complete 3 different spare time activities plus an Expedition.
The three activities are:
- Skill (any hobby or interest e.g. fishing, guitar playing, acting, Car maintenance etc)
- Physical (any sport e.g. cycling, football, dance, martial arts, parkour etc)
- Volunteering (anything that they do for the benefit of others e.g. Fund raising, school council, shopping for the elderly etc)
There is no set level of achievement, everything they do is personalised to their own ability and lifestyle, and they are in control of all the decisions.
If you are interested in becoming an Award Leader or supporting a young person through their DofE Award, then there is something for everyone. For further informationn please contact Louise Mills on 07824 596885 or email louisemills@wiltshire.gov.uk
Find out more about the Duke of Edinburgh's Award
Sparksite & Spark Radio
Spark is a new and exciting online radio station and website which has been set up by Wiltshire County Council. It offers information and advice to young people and can be accessed through a special website Sparksite & Spark Radio. Anybody can listen to the station through their computer by going to the website.
Spark Site is to be used for and by young people to find out what is going on in and around their area as well as a base for information and advice.
Young people are being encouraged to become Spark Volunteers in both the radio and website to develop and extend existing creative and personal skills. To get involved contact Jo Kerr, Spark Website on 01380 735783, email jokerr@wiltshire.gov.uk.or Jamie Flukes, Station Manager on 01249 465358, email jamieflukes@wiltshire.gov.uk
Spark needs young people, so get involved and have your say!
Marketing Messages
Young people played a key part in promoting the youth service to other young people in a recent project run throughout the county. In partnership with a marketing agency, they put forward their creative ideas on how best to deliver the positive messages about why others should get involved. The promotional campaign was then run countywide. Again, another example of projects by young people for young people.
Wiltshire Young People's Opportunity Fund
Wiltshire Young People's Opportunity Fund (WYPOF) is a pot of money given to us by the Government to pay for young people’s activities in the local area. This money is there for young people to bid for things they’d like to do but haven’t had the chance to. This may be activities like residentials, youth councils, dance projects, environmental projects, arts/drama, sports, developing projects that benefit other young people.
To find out more about WYPOF please visit www.sparksite.co.uk and click on Go Involved.
Contact Details
By Post
Development Service for Young People
Operational Office
Estcourt Crescent
Devizes
SN10 1LR
By Email
youthdevelopmentservice@wiltshire.gov.uk
By Telephone
01380 735780
By Fax
01380 729634
