Youth Service

At International level, Youth Service embraces a variety of schemes which give young people the chance to travel and meet young people of their own age throughout the world.

At our Club level, the aim of Youth Service is to help develop and challenge the young people in our community and to prepare them for the world of work.

The Youth  Service Committee

The Youth Service Committee comprises a Convenor, Deputy Convenor and routinely 2 Committee members.

At a high level they are responsible for developing and running a programme of activities and events to help develop and challenge local young people and provide them with a platform for them to showcase their talents. 

In addition a Youth Service Committee member runs a programme of activities via the local High School to help young people transition from school to further or higher education or the work place.

Responsibilities

The following are the main responsibilities of the Youth Service Committee.

• Devise a programme of activities and events for each Presidency year (a separate programme of events is prepared for Queensferry High School pupils).
• Prepare a Youth Service budget for the Club Treasurer based on these initiatives
• Ensure the dates of the events are booked far enough in advance and meet with the requirements of key stakeholders, schools, churches etc.
• Prepare project plans for each key event to ensure all the elements are considered and delivered in a timely manner
• Look for new opportunities for young people by way of Rotary GB&I Youth Service  events or by developing new local initiatives.
• Seek information on "best practice" Youth Service initiatives from other Clubs
• Maintain strong networking with partners: schools, churches and the local business community.  
• Establish selection processes at the High School for RYLA and Challenge Enterprise events
• Select suitable candidates for RYLA and Challenge Enterprise events within the required timelines.
• Consider any Youth Service related requests for sponsorship and pass these to the Club Secretary with our recommendations for Council to consider.
• For competitions, be clear on dates/venues for the various rounds
• Arrange local press coverage following Youth Service events
• Ensure event guidelines are developed and kept updated for each key event.
• Seek feedback from partners/participants following events to enable the Committee to make improvements
• Provide Club Council and Members  with regular reports
• Hold regular Committee meetings to ensure all key events are on track for delivery and deal with any other routine business.

Our Approach

Once the agreed events for the year have been established each committee member is allocated one or more events that they will take the lead on for organising, with support from other committee members as required. Members should be provided with a folder with the necessary guidelines, forms, contacts etc for each event.

Examples of Youth Service Events

The following are profiles of the type of events that the Youth Service Committee routinely organise or put forward candidates

a) The annual outward bound RYLA Camps (Rotary Youth Leadership Awards) at Ardeonaig on Loch Tay, and these have always been  successful events. We routinely sponsor 2 young people

b) Challenge Enterprise - a very worthwhile project whereby young people are given the chance to listen to, and meet, `high flyers' from  industry - encouraging an entrepreneurial spirit. We routinely sponsor 2 young people

c) Georgia Scholarship -  The Rotary Clubs in Georgia sponsor a  young person in 4th or 5th year at school to study for the academic year in Georgia

d) Young Musician of the Year - a competition involving both instrumentalists and vocalists.

e) School Liaison - meeting with the heads of local schools to see how Rotary can help young people reach their full potential

f) Interact club A junior version of Rotary within the High School

g) Poetry, art and  other competitions, as well as  the annual primary interschool Quiz

h) Other schemes sponsored by District e.g. Young Chef

i) A Development Programme for Queensferry High School Students -The club , in partnership with Queensferry Ambition (QA) a local business federation, runs a comprehensive programme of workshops for more senior students to help them transition from school to Further Education and the workplace. These events include: motivational talks, CV workshops and mock interview workshops. The committee also organises an annual Careers Fair to showcase a wide range of jobs/careers for the students.                                                                                            

March 2015