Child Youth Services

About

Our Child and Youth Team provides interventions to support tamariki, rangatahi and the wider whānau.

We aim to support rangatahi and their whānau with warmth, empathy and evidence-based practice to empower positive change through awareness, understanding and action.

The Central Lakes Family Services Child and Youth team works closely with Government agencies, schools, GP’s and other local organisations to find the best supports for whānau.

What we offer

What we offer rangatahi aged 12 and up:

• Support with challenges in the home, school and/or community.
• Social and emotional wellbeing and mental health challenges.
• Exposure to or experience of, family violence.
• Sexual violence, acute or historic.
• Advocacy.
• Safety programmes.
• Non-violence programmes.
• Strengthening Families Service.
• Education, training and workshops, including professional development.

These services are available to those in Whakatipu basin area, Wānaka, Upper Clutha and Central Otago (and surrounding townships). We can be flexible, but our main office is based in Frankton.

Safety Concerns & Programmes

We offer programmes and support for rangatahi and whānau with safety concerns or those exposed to family violence.  We also work with rangatahi who are using violence in their whānau or other relationships, these programmes are mandated.  

These programmes involve safety planning and risk assessment for the young person, and the family, building and identifying support networks, problem solving and space to talk about their experiences and learn skills and tools to support them.

Programmes are a 10-session minimum and can include the whānau if safe and possible. Whānau and parents can also receive separate and individual support if needed.

The Non-Violence Programme is for rangatahi to support those who use violence within their whanau and relationships to learn new skills and strategies that don’t include violence. The focus of the programme is to create healthy coping strategies, understand the cycle of violence and the impacts, look at values and beliefs, work on healthy communication, and set healthy boundaries. We work with youth to motivate change for themselves and their relationships and support them to reach their goals. Referrals come to our service from the court (as a respondent of a protection order) or from the Department of Corrections to complete the programme.  

Workshops & Education

We are proud to be a service with a prevention lens alongside our intervention and support services. We offer a range of community workshops, trainings, education packages and hui to prevent harm, especially the harms associated with family and/or sexual violence.

Cover a range of topics, flexible in length and location and rooted in local knowledge and experiences. We offer these free publicly regularly, check out our Community page for more.

We also offer bespoke packages for schools, offices, professionals and community groups. These are a great opportunity for professional or personal development while also supporting a local organisation to support more people.

Strengthening Families

Strengthening Families helps you get the best support and outcomes for your family/whānau to thrive.

It is designed for families with children under 18 years who need help from more than one support service or government agency. We bring together all relevant agencies needed to help your family to plan goals suited to your needs. This is a family led process and the coordinator will walk alongside you to ensure all plans are being met, it is collaborative, and the family understands the roles of each service.
Strengthening Families is a voluntary process and families give their consent to be involved.