IT MATTERS TO ME: INFORMING YOUTH SERVICES DELIVERY
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Section One: Focus and Framing The purpose of my ELP was for my project partner, Options Community Services Society (OCS), and me to engage in an action-oriented initiative with adults who identify as youth allies for the purpose of informing a systemic change in how young people access youth services. This shift in service delivery could lead to an improved experience for vulnerable young people transitioning to adulthood. For the purpose of this study, youth allies were identified as adults 19 and older who bring the lenses of former government care experiences, young people ages 19 to 24 who would be eligible to access the proposed youth service, parents and/or caregivers who have loved ones under the age of 25, youth service providers, and other youth-invested adults. The information and recommendation gathered in this research will be able to inform the development of a Youth Integrated Services Hub (YISH) initiative in response to Foundry BC’s call for applications. A YISH is a collaborative, integrated services approach that supports young people between the ages of 12 to 24 with a one-stop-shop, “no door is the wrong door” initiative to providing young people with primary care, mental health services, addictions support, life skills training, and other applicable services. Foundry BC (n.d.) is British Columbia’s (BC’s) preferred model of a YISH; it includes an integrated approach that is informed by youth, supported by families, delivered by community partners, and evaluated externally by an outside resource. In preparation to respond to Foundry’s anticipated call for proposals, OCS initiated the establishment of the Surrey White Rock Youth Integrated Services Collaborative (SWRYIC) in 2018. This collaborative table has 14 community agencies, including several-not-for profits, Fraser Health Authority, the Aboriginal Health Authority, the Surrey North Delta Division of Practice, the Ministry for Child and Families Development (MCFD), youth, and families. The leadership of this table includes four co-leads: (a) OCS’s Executive Director; (b) MCFD’s Director of
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