TABOO YOUTH INITIATIVE
Taboo is a multi-agency based educational initiative catering for young people who, through non-attendance, exclusion, or disengagement, have suffered an irretrievable breakdown in their education and are unlikely to either go back into the schooling system or progress into youth training, further education, or employment.
Taboo works with young people between the ages of 13 and 16 years that are currently not attending school or who are on the cusp of exclusion in order to re-engage them back into a learning environment through a structured programme accredited through ASDAN and Getting Connected. The programme also encourages young people to develop constructive leisure time activities and interests that they can participate in outside of their time at Taboo.
The programme offered to young people is individually tailored and includes the following core subjects:
- Basic Skills (Numeracy and Literacy)
- ICT skills
- Healthy Options
- Independent Living skills
- Art Music and Media
- Personal, Social and Health education
- Sport
- Work and Community
- Culture and Diversity
Taboo uses the youth work process in order to befriend socially excluded people by working in a holistic manner in order to create pathways for them to continue with their education, ultimately with the schools, other educational providers and local communities that they have become disengaged from. It is intended that young people are encouraged to return to mainstream schooling as rapidly as possible when appropriate.
Upon being referred to Taboo, a young person will undergo an initial screening process, which will include assessments in basic skills (numeracy and literacy), health and key skills. The results of the assessments will determine the structure and content of the programme that is offered. An individual development programme will be established which is reviewed regularly with a key worker.
The programme also includes group sessions, which encourage the young people to gain confidence with peers through addressing issues of relevance to them, i.e. drugs, relationships, sexual health, etc.
The learning opportunities that are offered take place in various venues across the city, in response to the specific learning needs of the young people. It is important to integrate young people into new environments such as libraries, colleges, schools, youth centres or anywhere with the relevant resources, to enable them to develop an awareness of what is available to them in their everyday environment that they did not previously know about.