from YAPRap September 2005
by The Drum Youth Resource Centre team, Campbelltown NSW
In 2002, following a huge escalation in critical incidents the Drum was closed. The environment in the Drum had become violent and unsafe and very hostile for many young people. We had constant critical incidents, community complaints, police not attending when called and generally a bad image in the community.
As a team we embarked on a restructure process, and today the Drum is a safe, welcoming and well-used resource centre for young people in Macarthur. A service user recently commented, "I like all the services and activities (the Drum) provides for young people. It's great to know that this sort of service exists". Here is our story of how we turned things around for the Drum, and how our Behaviours policy has helped to create our 'culture of calm'.
After we were closed, we took two weeks to work out our priorities as a service, and identify what was working and what was getting in the way of good service provision. We became very clear that as a service we wanted to be able to engage with a range of young people, and offer quality support through information, assessment, referral, crisis management and intensive casework with a focus on sustainable and client-directed change. In this process we developed many policies including the behaviours policy. These policies were centred on finding a way to make the service a safe and welcoming place for youth in the area.
The Drum today is a bright, warm and friendly place for young people. There are many areas for people to sit and chat, with displays of young people's art. We have an open kitchen for our daily breakfast and for preparing other meals, the lounge area for relaxing in drop in time, and our craft room for activities and art. We have a lot of information around on stands and walls in clear categories to make it easier to find what you need. We also worked with young people to create a water feature for our courtyard which is a lovely, relaxing place to sit. Our intention for the environment was to create a culture of calm rather than one of violence and tension.
Creating a culture of calm at the Drum is as much the role of our service users as of our staff. Our behaviour expectations are visible in the space, and all young people have the policy explained when they access the service. Given that we work with constant crisis and intensive needs, the first and most important part of our behaviours policy is recognising the impact of that environment on young people, and striving to not 'blame' young people for their responses, but be proactive by getting in early to build rapport and identify potential issues and offer strategies to young people to manage their behaviour before it escalates.
Young people are also encouraged to take ownership of the centre and we actively seek feedback on their experience of the service. We involve young people where we can in developing programs and new policies, on interview panels for new staff, at community events, in our mentoring program, in upkeep of the centre, for example a gardening group that looks after the courtyard, and by being as transparent as possible about our work.
The Drum places a firm belief in the rights and responsibilities of young people. We believe in:
- The right to be treated with respect
- The right to a comfortable and safe environment
- The right to self expression that does not intrude on the rights of others
- The right to confidentiality
- The responsibility to respect and accept others, in spite of differences in age, sex, sexuality, ethnicity, religion, culture and lifestyle
- The responsibility to maintain acceptable behaviour
- The responsibility to respect the legal position of the Drum in relation to crime and violence
- The responsibility to work on communication skills and relationships with other young people and to deal with conflict in a way that respects and considers others.
In turn, the Drum workers are expected:
- To behave in a manner that is appropriate and respectful
- To be considerate and sensitive of young people's needs
- To be fair
- To not be sexist, racist, homophobic or discriminatory in any way
- To be consistent
- To acknowledge that young people may be experiencing difficulties
- To be creative whilst exploring options to assist young people in achieving their goals.
These rights and responsibilities were formulated from our core values and our strength-based philosophies. Strength-based practice helps in creating a positive atmosphere based on young people's strengths and expertise, and a belief in their capacity to learn.
Behaviours Policy
Our Behaviours Policy states that no violence is accepted within the Drum. Our definition of violence includes physical, verbal and emotional abuse, threats, discrimination, harassment, bullying, and deliberate property damage.
In applying the policy we follow a three step process of:
- prevention - talking with young people about their behaviour, asking people to stop what they're doing, using diversionary activities
- issuing a ban if the behaviour continues to the point that it is unacceptable
- calling the police if the young person is refusing to leave the service and is continuing to be violent.
When we issue a ban it is relative to the severity of the violence. Often we will only ask people to leave for the rest of the day. When a serious breach of the policy has occurred such as threats of assault towards others, the young person would be asked to leave The Drum for a week. On occasions we have issued longer bans, for example when a serious assault has occurred, or when the same behaviour is repeated a number of times. We will not however ban someone for any more then three months, and never issue lifetime bans. Fortunately, we haven't had to go to this level very often at all!
The way the Drum is set out allows workers to monitor the area without making the young person feel uncomfortable or as though they are being closely observed. Staff are able to actively defuse violent or aggressive behaviours before they escalate. Our policy is beneficial in that it allows for us to talk with young people about their behaviours and gives young people the opportunity to discuss their issues with us. This helps young people to feel comfortable knowing that even though they may have acted against the policy, they have the chance to rectify their behaviour.
We also incorporate outreach in our work, which may be used when a young person is on a ban or when behaviour is triggered by being in the Drum space. This allows flexibility in responding to behaviours. We will try to find ways to work with young people outside the centre rather than to completely stop providing a service, but in restricting access to the physical space we are still able to demonstrate that violence is unacceptable.
When a young person is issued a short term ban, 2 staff members discuss the situation with the young person and provide them with appropriate contacts for other services they can access. In the case of a long term ban (1-3 months) the young person is issued a trespass notice and a letter which explains the reason for banning, and their return date. When a young person returns they are required to discuss their behaviour and responsibilities within the centre with the Coordinator. The discussions both before and on returning from a ban are usually quite lengthy and productive conversations. When issuing a ban, young people are asked for their opinion on the incident, the policy is referred to, clear reasons are given for the ban, the person's current situation is looked at and as far as possible we make arrangements for their support plans to continue through other services or through outreach, and they are encouraged to return after the ban.
Our behaviours policy is used in a positive and pro-active manner. It is not used as a threat over young people's heads. It is carefully applied in a fair and consistent manner. It allows us to take a stand against violence. It encourages access by new young people. It does not create unreasonable rules, but is about excluding behaviours that are not acceptable in any situation.
The policy has proven to be effective in significantly reducing the numbers of incidents at the Drum. In 2002 we had 81 critical incidents. In 2003 we had 14 critical incidents. By 2004 it was down to only 7 critical incidents, and so far we have had just 5 incidents this year. But more significant than these statistics, is that every young person who has ever received a ban has returned to the Drum, and happily re-engaged in work with us. We receive a lot of positive feedback from our service users that they feel safe at the Drum, and they appreciate the transparent and consistent application of the behaviours policy.
The behaviours policy has been one part of creating a 'culture of calm' at the Drum, and developing a useful and respectful service for young people. The welcoming physical environment, the clear structure of programs, a defined goal for the service, and a commitment to respecting young people and working alongside them as partners, are the key elements we have found to working positively with young people.
The Drum team
Donna Spears, Mary Mann, Josh Patterson, Lyndal Kircher, Yvette Middleton, Alexis Taylor, Tamara Tupou
more information
Drum Youth Resource Centre
Uniting Care Burnside
02 4628 3199
