Our Professional Development Framework
Our Professional Development Framework provides a structured framework for ongoing workforce development within the youth work sector.
Online Professional Development: A new phase for Ultimate Youth Worker
In today’s fast-paced and ever-evolving world, the role of a youth worker is more vital than ever. These dedicated professionals play a crucial role in empowering young people, supporting their development, and guiding them towards a bright future. Recognising the need for high quality continuous growth and professional development opportunities, the team at Ultimate Youth Worker, is thrilled to announce the launch of our online professional development platform. This innovative initiative aims to equip youth workers of all levels with the necessary skills, knowledge, and resources to excel in their careers and make a lasting impact on the lives of the young people they serve.
Training: The next evolution in Ultimate Youth Worker
Training for the future Well the world turns and we are still kicking. Funding cuts hurt us as an organisation as you know. We decided that that was not ideal. We rely on fee for service work to keep going. We have most often focused on supervision sessions to meet our funding needs. Occasionally we would […]
Knowing mental health: Anxiety
We kick off mental health week with the most prevalent of disorders, Anxiety. Anxiety robs people of their ability to cope with the turmoil of everyday situations. It robs them of the ability to reach their potential. Most of all it robs them of life. When we speak of anxiety as a brain disorder we […]
Professional development for Youth Ministers about youth work.
We know that a significant number of our readers are youth ministers who are seeking to develop a deeper understanding of young people and youth work. We commend this endeavour. One of the slurs thrown at youth ministry is that it is little more than games and coffees… We disagree wholeheartedly. Youth work in a […]
Ongoing professional development: Its all about your budget.
I have been in a number of agencies throughout my youth services career and only one of them had a written down budget for youth work professional development. In this organisation I had one of the largest budgets for professional development I had ever had… $1000. However in most organisations I worked in a professional […]
Why you need to read youth work journals
Late last year Australian youth work was dealt a blow which hurt us to the core. Youth Studies Australia, our journal of 18 years, lost its funding and even after outcry from the sector and pledges to step in it closed up shop. As an avid reader for almost a decade I will miss the […]
Using writing as a tool for critical reflection: Youth worker skill building
I always hated journaling. When I was a young intern in my 20’s I absolutely hated Tuesday morning as it was journaling time. My other intern colleagues would open their books and just write. I would stare at the blank page and start to sweat. I am sure my supervisors thought I was wasting time…They told me as much… […]
Be kind to youth work students: they are the future of the profession.
As a youth worker with over a decade in practice a number of qualifications and a private practice I have supported many youth workers on placement. In these situations I have tried to provide the best learning environment for each individual student. However many youth workers report that they are little more than gofers. Go […]
Good self care in youth work
Self care is an ethical requirement I have heard, over the past year or so, more excuses as to why youth workers can’t commit to self care than I care to recall. These excuses ranged from a lack of time and money to not knowing where to start and lack of support from management. Many of […]