Code of Ethics
YACSA is engaged in ongoing discussion within the youth sector about the relevance of a Code of Ethics to cover the youth sector. The sector has expressed a wish for ongoing dialogue around ensuring that ethical practice has a place in youth work in South Australia. Whether this is achieved through the development of a series of resources intended to embed ethical standards of practice within organisations, a code of ethics, or through some other means, will be the focus of ongoing consultation and engagement with the sector.
Since then, we have: published two discussion papers on the topic; conducted an online survey of our membership regarding their observations of practice within the South Australian sector and their views on how ethical practice can better be promoted; and engaged in one on one and group-based consultations with our membership, training organisations and managers within the sector.
YACSA has produced the following discussion papers
The first discussion paper (144Kb)
The second discussion paper (100Kb)
Ethical Youth Work: A DIY Guide for Developing Your Ethical Base
As a result of this work, YACSA has produced a resource for organisations and individuals to promote organisational and individual ethical practice in working with young people. This resource operates as a stand-alone support for individual workers and organisations and in future will also be delivered as part of an extended training session for workers, which will also be available to individual agencies upon request.
The resource focuses on strategies to promote reflective practice amongst youth workers in their consideration of ethical issues, and is relevant to youth development officers in local government, youth workers in government and non-government agencies, and other workers and organisations that work with young people in a variety of work areas and settings.
To order it and other YACSA professionally-developed Best Practice products go to the Publications page.