Kogarah Youth Survey

About this Item
Speakers - Ficarra Ms Marie
Business - Private Members Statements

KOGARAH YOUTH SURVEY

Ms FICARRA (Georges River) [5.49 p.m.]: I congratulate Kogarah council on its excellent survey entitled "Young People In Kogarah" and the presentation of those youth survey results. Between April and July Kogarah council surveyed 1,835 young people aged between 12 years and 24 years who either resided in, attended school or TAFE in or visited the Kogarah local government area. The survey aimed to gain an understanding of the needs and concerns of young people in Kogarah. It sought also young people’s ideas and preferences on a range of issues, including recreational facilities, community facilities and other local issues.

The survey group was particularly easy to access because the Kogarah council business district is an educational precinct. Young people were consulted through local high schools, St George TAFE, local libraries and youth services within the St George region. The consultations consisted of individual interviews with youth service providers, a series of youth focus groups conducted in high schools, youth services and TAFE, and the distribution of the survey to 1,835 young people within the Kogarah local government area.

The survey established that 73 per cent of 12-year-olds to 24-year-olds were from non-English speaking backgrounds. This is an incredibly high percentage, but Kogarah is an extremely culturally diverse community. Approximately 25 per cent of Kogarah’s population were born in non-English speaking countries, and 34 per cent speak a language other than English at home with the main languages being Greek, Chinese, Arabic, Italian and Macedonian, respectively.

Kogarah is fortunate to have a number of secondary and tertiary educational institutions located within close walking distance of the central business district. There are six high schools and three TAFE campuses as well as the Kogarah intensive English centre. More than 3,000 students are enrolled in high schools within the Kogarah central business district alone and St George TAFE is the second largest in Sydney. More than 5,000 people younger than 24 years of age are enrolled at St George TAFE. That means that each week more than 8,000 students attend educational institutions in Kogarah.

The survey revealed that young people were most concerned about issues such as education, boredom, having nowhere to go, school problems, insufficient sporting facilities, employment, pollution and the environment, and crime levels in the area. Some of the sensible comments were, "We need places to hang", "We need a youth centre where people can go and feel safe", "We need a huge skateboard bowl", "We need a recreational park containing skate ramps, basketball courts, graffiti walls, et cetera", "Education is very important for a good job and a good future."

I commend the three St George councils, Kogarah, Hurstville and Rockdale, particularly in the lead-up to the next State election, for lobbying their electorates for opinions on much-needed multipurpose youth facilities for sporting, recreational needs, cultural and creative arts needs within the area. Most of the young people that congregate around Hurstville are from the St George area because it has a good bus-rail interchange and shopping facilities. Obviously that would be the appropriate place for a multipurpose youth facility. I commend Brian Bell, general manager of Kogarah council for undertaking this initiative. I quote from his foreword in the survey publication:

Our 1998 Youth consultations draw on the results of significant community consultation over the last year. The findings of the consultations will help us, as a community, understand the needs and concerns of young people.

In keeping with our mission to respond to changing community needs and expectations, we will continue to ask young people about their needs. We will also continue to plan and develop appropriate youth services and facilities, so we can make Kogarah a better place.

Let’s maximise the benefit of these initiatives by actively involving young people in local planning and decision making to build positive relationships between our youth and other sectors of the community.

The attitudes of Brian Bell; Howard Wallace, General Manager of Hurstville City Council; and Stephen Blackadder, General Manager of Rockdale City Council will bring great results to the St George area, particularly in the lead-up to the 1999 State election, particularly as the region now has within it three marginal seats.

Private members’ statements noted.

Page 8932

Last modified 05/12/2007 16:29:38 : Update this page