BIKES, BUSINESS & COMMUNITY AGENDAS COLLIDE TO HELP AT-RISK TEENS IN KARRATHA REGION
Established Perth youth development NFP, Dismantle, will be delivering their flagship BikeRescue Local program to the greater Karratha region in 2020 thanks to the collaboration of community and local business efforts. The funds raised enable training and development to extend for 2 years, so that local Karratha youth services can continue the program, independent from Dismantle’s support.
The 10 week bike restoration program sees at-risk teens re-engaging through skills based, hands-on mentoring from local youth workers, to get them back on track and better equipped to deal with personal challenges. Working with over 400 disadvantaged young people each year, Dismantle is nationally recognised as a standout success story for positively impacting teens who are otherwise falling through the cracks. CEO Pat Ryan on BikeRescue; “the program allows youth workers to act as bike mechanics in disguise; building rapport with young people who are having a tough time. Over the course of the program, not only do we build bikes and skills in the process, we also build trust, confidence, pride in finishing something and new sense of motivation for the future.”
BikeRescue has already seen success in regional areas but The Karratha Project is the first example of a long-term commitment embedding the program into a region for a significant period of time. This commitment has largely been made possible by funding from a consortium of businesses including, PowerTechowertech.com.au/, Fugro, KAW Engineering, Robe River Aboriginal Corporation, Kennards Hire Foundation, Yaandina Community Group and the City of Karratha.
Results from previous BikeRescue programs have included a significant lift in school attendance and a positive shift in confidence and general wellbeing of participants. The program has also led to a decreased incidence of anti-social and risk behaviours, with Police reporting in one area that, “it’s the first time in 7 years that there have been no juvenile related offences in a week during the school holidays. There was a clear connection between engaging this cohort in a productive activity [Bike Rescue] and a zero-crime school holiday week.”
BikeRescue is set to launch in early 2020 in three locations across Karratha, Roebourne and Wickham.