At-risk youth ‘need hope’ to steer clear of trouble
Youth mentors are helping to give young people a brighter future but a lack of funding can get in the way.
Amanda Betts, who mentors young people going through the youth justice system, said it was time youth mentoring was looked at more seriously.
‘‘Mentors are a crucial part of a wraparound approach for young people – you have Oranga Tamariki, police, lawyers, social workers and psychologists but as a mentor you can develop a different sort of relationship with the young person and act as a go-between to get them help.
‘‘These young people need someone they can relate to and connect with and often that means someone who has been through similar life experiences.’’
The main work for a mentor was making the young person believe more is possible and that they can break free from cycles of neglect and abuse, Betts said.
‘‘I find out as much as I can about the young person before I meet them – the crimes they’ve committed, any gang affiliations, the first thing I say is: we are equals. I like to share my own story with them and just be straight up and real.’’
When working with youth, Betts said, one of the most important parts was finding out what they wanted to do with their lives.
‘‘One boy said he wanted to be a forklift driver and I asked him the question I ask all my kids: if you had $100,000 what job would you do? and he told me he’d be a photographer. From there I sorted out a scholarship for him at one of the top photography studios in Auckland to get a taste.’’ Betts said usually when she met young people needing help ‘‘they’re feeling hopeless and powerless and what works is educating them, inspiring them and giving them hope and faith’’.
Nearly all of them were suffering deep trauma. ‘‘If people knew what these kids have been through they would be sick.’’
Looming court dates were another big motivator for young people to change, Betts said. ‘‘It’s often the moment they realise they’ve reached the end of the line.
‘‘The bottom line is if we don’t do something about these behaviours at 13, 14, 15 then who is going to clean up the mess when they reach 17 and go to prison?’’
It was time more money was invested into helping these kids, Betts said.
An Oranga Tamariki spokesperson said international and local research suggested mentoring (along with other therapies) had a strong role in reducing further offending. ‘‘Oranga Tamariki are looking to further invest in these services as part of the ‘Raising the Age’ programme of work.’’
Betts said at times she felt her work was cut short.
‘‘Sometimes budgeting does become the deciding factor on whether the young person gets extra care or not,’’ she said.