YOUTH
Excellence in youth engagement at CFA Each week thousands of young people aged 11 to 24 years old volunteer with CFA through the Junior Volunteer Development Program or as members of a local brigade. Young people are an essential part of CFA and make a valuable and important contribution to the organisation. Engaging successfully with our young volunteers is key to ensuring CFA remains strong. We want to develop successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors. The CFA Youth Team, in partnership with the HeartWood Centre for Community Youth Development, has created a set of five modules, available on the Learning Hub (learninghub.cfa.vic.gov.au), to help members explore best practice in youth engagement. “Engaging with young people in CFA is vitally important. As we see our young people come through the CFA ranks, one day they will become senior firefighters and support members in our brigades,” Chief Officer Jason Heffernan said. Why is youth engagement important for CFA? There are several reasons. Young people have roles to play now and they are also the future. Young people can have a positive impact on our brigades, the wider CFA and the emergency services sector. All CFA members can involve and nurture youth in building stronger communities.
Generally, we all agree that it’s important to engage with our younger members, but we know that members often lack the confidence or skills to do this. These online modules will help develop an understanding of young people and explore ways to make engagement easier. The target audience for these modules is CFA volunteers of all ages, especially members who work directly with our young members such as Junior leaders, Fire
Safe Kids presenters and captains and lieutenants of brigades with 16 and 17-yearold members. The modules are also an opportunity for brigades and individuals to book themselves into one of CFA’s Engaging Youth and Young Adults as Volunteers workshops, also developed in partnership with HeartWood Centre for Community Youth Development. STORY JEN CLEMENT
Disability Inclusion Guide Part Three Last year the CFA Youth Team launched a new Disability Inclusion Guide to help Junior brigades be as inclusive as possible regarding disability. This resource gives brigades initial guidance, advice and links to resources to build their knowledge to support the inclusion of people with disabilities in brigades.
Responding to the needs of Junior brigades, Part Three: Physical Disability is now available on the Members Online Youth pages. This resource explores the characteristics of physical disability while providing a checklist and discussion starters to help build an inclusive brigade program for all abilities.
In response to feedback from brigades, Part One: Introduction to Disability set the foundations for disability inclusion in brigades. Part Two: Autism is a supporting section focusing on autism with tips and advice on how to support someone with those needs. These resources have had positive feedback and are being used across the state.
“Juniors with a disability can bring an enthusiasm and excitement to the environment that others may not do so, as often they have had limited opportunities to be a part of social activities like this,” said one Junior leader.
As one member explained, who is also a parent of a Junior, “As a parent of a child with autism, it was great to be able to share the fire brigade experience together – something that was important to me that he could be a part of too.”
Support to address disability needs in your brigade, whether Juniors or seniors, is also available from both the Youth Team and the Inclusion and Fairness Team at CFA Headquarters. STORY JEN CLEMENT
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