Developing a professional youth sector is harder than we first thought.

Today I was at the Annual General Meeting of the Youth Workers Association here in Victoria. It was a modest affair with about a dozen die hard youth workers attending of the over 400 members. The Association launched its objectives for the next three years and reading through it I pondered how the objectives would be met with only a dozen youth workers.

One thing holding the Association back was that those without a degree had limited voting rights, if any. This issue has been changed with a simple vote on changes to the constitution allowing those holding a two year diploma the ability to vote. We need to stop trying to keep people out and work out how we can bring the youth work family together.

For us to all work together will be difficult… but it is the only way we will be taken seriously. We have to stop our petty infighting and band together to change the sector for the better. Lets stop the fighting and stand together for the future we want to develop.

Aaron Garth

Aaron Garth is a Melbourne-based youth worker, social worker, and mental health practitioner with over two decades of experience supporting young people across Australia. As Executive Director of Ultimate Youth Worker, he leads a team dedicated to training, coaching, and developing professionals in the youth sector. A graduate of RMIT University and current PhD candidate, Aaron has worked across some of the most challenging areas of youth services — from homelessness and mental health to drug and alcohol outreach and residential care. He is a sought-after speaker, educator, and advocate for a more professionalised youth workforce, and has taught at institutions including RMIT, Chisholm Institute, and Eastern College Australia. Aaron's work is driven by a simple belief: when youth workers are better supported, young people get better outcomes.

Aaron Garth

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