Involving youths,  not just at planning stage, but continue complementing staff

Advisory panel involving youths

Co-production; helps to be more in tune with youths and their issues

Staff can also guide and mentor youth volunteers

Not just a space for typical services, can also have other services (not just mental health-related), e.g. social, physical activities; holistic

Branding:

For youths by youths

Capture photographs of the space and activities (by the youths themselves), instaworthy space (so youths will keep generating the buzz around it when they share the photos online etc)

Can also generate free publicity

How can you get students involved in branding stage? Design, marketing, business students, etc. Internships? CIP hours?

Youths might avoid coming to centre if it is branded as a mental health centre because they don’t want to be branded with the label and stigma that comes along with it.

Keyword: discreet.

How can youth contribute to reducing the stigma?

First impression experience of youths is important; because they’ll spread the message and their experience by word of mouth.

Results have to be positive and progressive, helping the individual to find their own coping, to help themselves and sustain their progress/recovery (youths can come in here by buddy matching, and helping keeping the youths in check and on track, like older one e.g. in uni can be buddy to a younger one like in JC, and young working professionals can be providing support to uni students, can adapt lessons from rehab (like how they buddy each other and have responsibilities even while receiving)

Can have different tracks for youth involvement:

Sub-committees (direct and non-direct/back end contributions):

Examples:

Marketing and communications

Management

Consultancy/Advisory Panel

Training/Facilitation

Public Speaking

Peer Support

How do we get this youth involvement? Potential partners?

Tertiary institutions (uni, poly, JCs, NSF, young working professionals)

Some not very enthusiastic, how can we get them involved?

Groups providing tuition at void decks, RCs, CCs, PA-related organisations, Young NTUC, Young PAP, NYC, Youth Corps etc.

Build the base of youths first, then ‘convert’ those not very interest in youth mental health

Collaborate with other youth programmes, e.g. NYA