Taranaki's young people leading youth festival in Stratford

20 years on from the establishment of the Stratford District Youth Council (SDYC), Zeal Taranaki and SDYC are joining forces to put on the free rangatahi led Youth Festival to celebrate and encourage the talents of local young people.

The Stratford Youth Festival, on Saturday 18 November from 11am to 2pm at Stratford’s Victoria Park, is a familyfriendly event aimed at intermediate and high school aged rangatahi, and will bring together live entertainment, sports, creativity, and kai.

There will be plenty of opportunities for local talent to get out in front of the crowd, with music and dance performances throughout the day, 3-on-3 basketball and scooter competitions, prizes on offer, and a hip-hop dance battle. Face painting, a free BBQ, and ice creams will round off the programme.

Luke Galley, Manager at Zeal Taranaki, says the Youth Festival will give a platform for local emerging talent to showcase their skills, but there are wider opportunities for development, too.

“Putting on a youth-led festival like this is a big undertaking, and it’s giving our young people the chance to gain handson skills right throughout the development, planning, and promotion of the event,” says Luke. “Having rangatahi working alongside our professional team on the festival has been amazing,” he explains. “It’s going to be an awesome day.”

SDYC Co-Chair Zoe Pitcher says while she won’t be throwing down in the dance battle, she will be there alongside fellow youth councillors to showcase the work SDYC does in the youth community and encourage applications for Stratford’s 2024 Youth Council.

“This year we’re proud to be celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Stratford District Youth Council; making us one of the oldest in Aotearoa!”

“SDYC has a long history of putting on and supporting epic events for our community, and the Stratford Youth Festival will be no exception. If you are interested in our work and want to join the

Youth Council to help develop next year’s events, come and see us.”