A new youth development trainee has been hired by the City of Busselton thanks to a youth services sponsorship from Rio Tinto, one of the region’s biggest employers.
City of Busselton youth development officer Angela Griffin said the position was made possible because of the sponsorship and it was the fourth year they were able to run the program.
Last year’s trainee Keeley Milner said the role had opened her to opportunities in the community, introduced her to more people and gave her new workplace skills.
Alice McAuliffe, the city’s new trainee, said she was looking forward to organising activities for youth week and the battle of the bands competition and hoped to engage more youth in the area.
“I want to get people involved who may not necessarily get involved, it always seems to be the same people doing the same things,” she said.
City of Busselton mayor Grant Henley said the city had funding for youth intervention programs and while it was great to engage some children in the community they wanted to engage all children.
“If we are prosperous as a community we need to bring everyone with us and divert children away from getting bored and doing the wrong thing,” he said.
Rio Tinto superintendent community engagement regional Justin Francesconi said the initiative provided employment opportunities for many young people, while also increasing engagement and development activities.
"Rio Tinto is committed to regional fly-in-fly-out in the South West, with more than 700 employees living in the region,” he said.
“Busselton plays an important role in our regional FIFO program and our partnership with the City of Busselton demonstrates our commitment to the community, with a focus on the increased engagement of youth.”
Starting at the end of February, Ms Griffin said there would be skate and basketball programs being run at the skate park that would also teach people about the Choose Respect message.
“For those children who engage and do the right thing we will get Subway involved and we will have role models there,” she said.