A new outreach service is making Point Cook home.
Youth Off The Streets (YOTS), a non-denominational community organisation working for disadvantaged young people who may be homeless, drug dependent or recovering from abuse, is concentrating its efforts on the suburb, launching its outreach program at the Point Cook Town Centre last week.
YOTS chief executive Chris Riley said the move was in response to African youth involvement in crime and anti-social behaviours.
“I first arrived in Wyndham in early January and it was clear that the young people in the area just weren’t getting the support they needed,” Father Riley said.
“Since then, we have established a skilled team to provide young people in the area with services, activities and even just a place to hang out and get something to eat.
“We have worked with local police, community elders, local politicians and young people to determine what is needed and wanted.”
Father Riley said a youth worker and three African trainees had already made inroads in helping young people turn their lives around.
“What we’ve seen is much more controlled behaviour,” he said.
He said he discovered young African residents were being overwhelmed by news reports.
“Kids were hiding in the trees, trying to avoid people taking photos of them [and] putting them down, so we’ve had to build that trust up,” he said.
“One of the things in favour with these kids is that most of them attend school.”
He said that while Ecoville Park in Tarneit appeared to have become much less of a trouble hot-spot, the YOTS service would continue to run outreach and street walk programs throughout Wyndham on an as-needed basis, for all residents.
“One of my jobs is for every person in Werribee [to feel safe],” he said.
“I understand the anger of the shopkeepers who had been broken into, or whose stores had been trashed by kids … I wasn’t naive about that. My job is for the whole of Werribee.”
