The data confirms what local youth service providers have known anecdotally and comes on the backdrop of Federal Government cuts to youth funding.

One group at the coalface of local youth unemployment is the Bellingen Neighbourhood Centre (BNC). They’ve been concerned about the deterioration of the shire’s youth employment services and opportunities for some time, and flagged there’s the potential for worse to come.

“We are very concerned about the continued rise in youth unemployment and the subsequent impact this has on the future of our young people,” a BNC spokesperson said. 

“With continued funding cuts to services, more young people are likely to be falling through the cracks, left with little support or opportunities to help them navigate their way into becoming independent adults who can participate fully in society.”

BNC said widespread funding cuts were already impacting on a local level. 

“We are losing two valued Bellingen-based youth programs at the end of this year which have been very successful at providing support to young people who are at risk of, or have already disengaged from education for a variety of reasons,” the spokesperson said. 

“This will leave a significant gap in support services for Bellingen Shire youth who are looking for pathways into employment and need the added support to ensure they have the best outcomes. Losing these services will also put added pressure on existing local youth services.”

One service under enormous pressure is the Bellingen Shire Youth Services (BSYS), which provides caseworkers for young people experiencing problems with school, family, friends, income, health, housing, the law.

“The cuts to TAFE funding earlier this year by the NSW State Government are compromising the quality of skills and training available, courses are being slashed and young people are having to travel further to find the courses they need, often having to enrol in fee-paying courses through private education providers,” the spokesperson said.

“On top of this, the changes to the Newstart allowance planned from January 1 will force young people to wait six months before they become eligible for payments. This will exacerbate the problem, with young people having no source of income, as well as fewer services available to assist them, and hence the risk of increased mental health issues, a reduced sense of hope for the future and a negative sense of self worth.” 

BNC and BSYS encourage everyone in the shire to help create opportunities for the young to participate and contribute to the economy.

“We encourage all local businesses to consider the benefits of training and employing local young people and to think about innovative ways collectively to support young people looking for work,” the BNC spokesperson said. 

“We would also encourage young people to get involved in volunteering, as a way of learning new skills, meeting other people and getting a sense of which areas they may be interested in working in.”