We embrace skate-culture and combine it with credible and proven expertise in education and community services … to make a difference! Our program logic and working methodology is explained in our How We Work page.
Our Local Context – Australia
- 4.3m young people aged under 14
- Another 3m aged 15 to 24
- More than 50% own a skateboard
- Skating is a major influence in youth culture
- In one school 40% + enroll in a skate program
- Many schools lack an approach to skaters
The best way to explain what we do is through true stories of lives changed through existing skate programs.
Success on The Sunshine Coast
A school on the Sunshine Coast started their skate program in 2012. Starting with just 16 students it now has over 150 participating in the coaching program each week. The program is designed to build self-esteem, improve skills, improve and reward positive behaviour and lift academic results.
Self Esteem: Through sequential skill development, the children feel a sense of self achievement in a safe environment.
Skill Development: As the skills are taught sequentially with support and spotting or supervision, the children learn the movement patterns required without the fear of injury. This allows for rapid skill development in a way that cannot happen at a public skate park.
Positive Behaviour Reward: The children at the school receive a skate license that reflects “Manners, Behaviour and Effort”. In order to attend skating during their lunch break they must ask their teacher for their license. If, during that week, the student has not shown positive behaviour, effort and good manners they do not receive their license for that week’s session. This has made an amazing impact on the school. So many children who were previously less engaged in the class are now engaged, learning and feeling positive about themselves and their learning.
For more information see our lives changed page …. The use of skating or sport in general to build bridges to youth is well established, with a 2013 Commonwealth Government paper in regard to sport in indigenous communities stating:
“Sport, uniquely, enables people to belong, to develop a sense of loyalty and community, to have a purpose. Above all, sporting competition is about anticipation: the next match, the next season. = It is a future-oriented activity — whereas suicide resides in the immediate past and the very immediate present…”
These concepts underpin a approach that is centred on hope, on a brighter future for the young people we work with, young people with whom we would have no bridge were it not for that created through the sport of skateboarding. The immediate results are reflected in our Lives Changed page.