A youth advisory group (YAG) was proposed for Lismore City Council at Tuesday’s council meeting by Labor councillor Harper Dalton-Earls who highlighted that Lismore is the only local council in the region that does not have one.
‘In light of [the fact] there’s been youth crime myself and councillor Waters attended a community event in Goonellabah, and it highlighted the necessity to have more youth activities,’ said councillor Dalton-Earls.
‘So it got me thinking in well, what could we realistically implement in council with a limited budget that might actually increase the youth engagement?’
Dalton-Earls pointed out that Ballina, Tweed, Byron and Kyogle shires all have a YAG and that, ‘Lismore was the only one that didn’t have a youth advisory group’.
The LCC advisory groups from the last term are currently under review and Dalton-Earls said that as part of that review ‘we should be looking at establishing a youth advisory group’.
‘I think a best case model would be one that looks at school leaders, other active youth in our community, to get them involved talking about what’s important to them. So we’re not making decisions for youth about what’s best for them. We want them involved in that conversation.’
Councillor Andrew Gordon said that while he thought the idea ‘came from the heart’ he felt that it should wait for the review to be completed.
Mayor Steve Krieg sought to support the YAG by keeping line one of the Notice of Motion (NoM) ‘Theat Council: 1. establishes a Youth Advisory Group (YAG)’ and that council ‘ get the report as part of the review, and then that can be packaged as part of our whole engagement strategy’.
Councillor Big Rob said he wasn’t sure what was happening with the advisory groups but felt that he was all for them.
Councillor Krieg reminded councillors that the advisory group model review as part of the engagement strategy was due this month.
The LCC staff highlighted that the establishment of a YAG would ‘represent a new budget item and would need to be submitted as a part of the 2025-2026 Budget process’.
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