Crime Stoppers Victoria is hosting free skate lessons in Brimbank for locals aged between 12 and 24, with a focus on building community resilience.
In addition to learning a new skill, every program participant is offered the chance to meet with local youth employment and transition-to-work services to discuss their future and employment pathway opportunities.
The free hour and a half skateboarding workshops are run by the Victorian Skateboarding Association and are open to all skill levels, from beginners all the way through to advanced.
Term 3 of the program kicked off in July at the Keilor Downs Skatepark and will continue to run afterschool every Wednesday from 4-5.30pm, up until September 13.
Community engagement manager Sam Boivin said the launch of the program received great support from the local community.
“This program is a lot of fun and engages the community with lessons to learn how to skate, and also addresses youth unemployment and disengagement,” he said.
“We are linking young people to employment service providers and employment opportunities as well as giving advice on community safety and crime prevention to young people in the area.”
The program is supported by the federal government’s Safer Communities Fund aimed at providing early intervention activities to at-risk youth. The objectives of the grant involve working with youth to develop educational and vocational skills to prevent them from becoming entrenched in the criminal justice system.
Details: shorturl.at/itHOU
Hannah Hammoud
