Coordinating Leavers Week is one of the many tasks Emma is responsible for in her position as community development officer with the Busselton Shire, and with around 6000 teenagers expected to descend on Busselton-Dunsborough next week, it’s a particularly busy time for her.

So how does Emma feel on the eve of Leavers Week – excited, exhilarated or exhausted?

All of the above, it seems.

“Leavers is a year in the making and with all the people involved being so committed and thorough in their preparation, I’m confident things will fall into place,” she said. “But there’s a hint of nervousness, just in terms of making sure all the little things are ticked off.”

It’s a demanding role, not only due to the logistics involved in managing such a large-scale event, but also because the expectations of many different stakeholder groups need to be taken into consideration. “It can be challenging,” she said. “I have to listen to lots of different views and then make a well-balanced and well-informed decision that keeps as many people happy as possible”.

Leavers Week has evolved considerably over the past 10 years. In the early days it was characterised by large crowds of unsupervised and unoccupied teenagers drinking and causing havoc. The ‘Leavers Zone’ concept was introduced in 2005 and since then it has developed into a tightly-managed and well-contained event aimed at keeping leavers entertained and out of trouble.

According to Emma, organisers, volunteers and leavers believe that the event is getting better each year. “Each year we evaluate the strategy and improve it where possible. Many of the services involved in leavers touted last year as the best yet,” she said.

“In 2008 the Leavers Zone was moved 8km from Dunsborough with the aim of having as little negative impact on the local community as possible. Other changes have included increasing the leavers-only transport around the shire, increasing wristband sales outlets to avoid large queues in Lions Park and improving communication with the community.”