Program to give teens an edge

A group of Burdekin teens are learning more about their mental and physical health after the PCYC brought the Blue Edge program to the district.

IN ONE of their most disrupted years of schooling, a new program to the district is hoping to teach students goal setting, resilience and accountability while creating a better relationship with police.

The Blue Edge program, which has been previously rolled out in other towns such as Charters Towers, has secured funding to run in the district for the next few years.

Police-citizens Youth

Club Ayr’s Sergeant Andrew Sherrington said the program aimed to foster life skills, such as goal setting, and highlighted the connection between physical activity and mental health.

“It’s huge, there is not many opportunities living in small community,” he said.

“It just gives positive outcomes for the future and in the end the youth are our future leaders.”

Sergeant Sherrington said for students who were in tough economic situations,

the program gave them opportunities to engage in sports they may not have the chance to.

“All you can hope for in the long run is the relationships they set up as youth is going to be positive in the longevity of the future,” he said.

The program is run over a number of weeks and involves students getting up early for the breakfast-based program, which gives them the chance to learn different sports while testing their

physical ability. Sergeant Sherrington said each week a guest speaker visited the students to share their stories.

“The guest speakers that attend for each session are from different backgrounds,” he said.

“They are actually experiencing things they have never experienced before.”

Queensland Blue Light Association’s Blue Edge program is delivered in partnership with Queensland Police Service and PCYC.