Taupō Youthhub programme giving young people options

Sloane Mee, 12, is all action as he helps spread mulch around the Taupō Community Garden during a Youthtown after-school session. Photo / Dan Hutchinson

Non-profit Youthtown Taupō needs more funding to continue its innovative Youthhub programme that is designed to give children some meaningful after-school activities and a purpose.

Youthtown is a New Zealand institution that has operated since 1932, but the Taupō-based Youthhub programme was born in 2021.

Youthhub programme John Dolan said they wanted to tackle the issues that regional kids face head-on such as isolation, lack of access to activities and general anxiety that can hinder their school attendance.

“We know a connection to the community creates better behaviour overall for all kids.”

This comes as the country grappled with a nationwide attendance crisis - with leaders calling for urgent action to get young people engaged in education again.

“Reaching out to schools, we found there was a need for 11- and 12-year-olds that the schools were having issues with,” Dolan said.

“From 2023 to 2024, our numbers boosted. From what I recall we had between 12 to 16 on a given day in 2023. In 2024, we’re looking at anywhere between 60 to 90 participants coming through every week.

“It’s a place they can feel safe and a place they can express themselves. That’s one thing we wanted to make sure of, that it was a place that felt like home - a home away from home,” Dolan said.

“We want these kids to come to a place where they can build positive relationships with their peers and our team of mentors.

“We listen to their ideas of what they want to do, and we put it together in a way that we can still achieve the objectives of what we want to do, with something they really enjoy. "

The programme picks up kids directly from local schools as the bell rings and gets them involved in sports, local community gardening, exploring their creativity and more.

However, the programme needed additional local funding to keep momentum and expand its offering.

Dolan said funding would allow them to expand their van service to engage more young people as this ensured they get the kids to consistently attend the programme.

He encouraged communities, wherever they are in New Zealand, to back their local Youthtown.

Areas include Auckland, Waikato, Taupō, Upper Hutt, Christchurch, West Coast, Oamaru and Queenstown.

“I’m speaking on behalf of all the hubs we have across New Zealand. In terms of trying to get funding, community backing would be awesome. Whether that’s to help with the transport payment or the fuel for vans, or a court that we can teach young people a game and leadership out of,” Dolan said.

“[In Taupō] we’re running at a place where we’re lucky to have a building that’s looked after but finding potential funders to help make the Youthhub programme sustainable for the long run would be ideal.

“As these kids grow into young people that get jobs, we want them to know they’ve left something that’s been great for the community - then someone else will follow in their footsteps to continue the mahi they started and continue growing it.”

Jesse Wood is a multimedia journalist based in Te Awamutu. He joined NZME in 2020.