Become a youth worker

“I'm a hairdresser by trade. That's what I was for 28 years. Self-employed, I owned my own business. I woke up one day and I was like: ‘I can’t cut another head of hair. I'm over it!’

So, when I started here, I was like, ‘oh, it's probably not going to suit at my age’. But actually, I think it works being a bit older, because the kids relate to you more. I’ve got that parent connection, and lots of them call me Mum.

Building rapport is key here. I had a head start because I can connect with people pretty quickly.

I think the more experiences you've got in life the better. Whatever you think Bimberi is, it isn't. It's a great place to work.

I turn up every single day to hope I can make a difference.

These are our vulnerable children that get left behind and are lost in the system. That's what it comes down to. So, I don't come in here to change the world. I don't come in here to stop them reoffending, because that's not the reality for all these kids. It's a long, long journey for them to, hopefully, change their ways, but it's not going to change overnight.

But if you can come in, and you can make those small changes in them, and just see them start to put a bit of weight on and take a bit of self-pride - brush their teeth every single day, clean their rooms… life skills. That's what I try to get them – life skills.”

“I’m an Aboriginal man from Dubbo, Wiradjuri land. Ever since I left school, I've been working in these sort of facilities.

I relate to some of these young people. Where they only have that one strong family figure, or they may not have any. I want to give guidance and share my journey to help them out.

A lot of Indigenous kids don't know much about their mob and who they are, or where they come from. They may have not had anything do with their brothers and sisters because they're either taken away or they've just lost connection to culture.

It's good to be the big brother figure or uncle. Obviously, you have a professional boundary too. But when you give that space to a kid to be able to open up, and go, ‘yeah, this is my problem, and this is what I need’ you can then help them find their direction.

To anyone thinking of coming in as a Youth Worker, I’d say: treat the kids here how you want to be treated. These kids – they've been let down time and time again. They've got all their walls up. The barriers. They're in a fight or flight situation. If you come in with a soft, respectful manner to these young people and build rapport, it'll go a long way. But you've got to give respect to get it back.”

“I'm a proud Yuin  woman from the South Coast. I grew up like most of these kids, so my passion behind the work that I do is because I can relate to them.

To work here, it wouldn't matter what background you come from. Some staff don’t make it, 'cause it’s hard. But I’d say just give it a try, because if you find a genuine love or passion for working with these kids, it can really give you a lot of purpose.

Dealing with conflict can also strengthen you, because most relationships involve conflict; whether it's with parents, or friends or at work. So, as a Youth Worker here, you teach kids how to handle conflict in the community without it resulting in putting your hands on someone.

When you do come to work and it’s been a few years, it’s like you've picked up a second family, not just with the kids, but with the colleagues you work with 12 hours a day. You know that your team has your back.”