Strategic Plan
YACSA’s strategic plan is being formulated for the next period. The following information relates to the 2007 - 2010 plan.
2007 saw the expiration of YACSA’s strategic plan and in March YACSA held a planning day involving representatives from Management Committee, Policy Council and our young members, to determine our strategic direction over the next three years. Through our discussions on this day we identified a draft new strategic plan and we invited your comments on it! After reviewing your comments it was ratified by YACSA Policy Council in August 2007.
Many of the concepts in the new draft strategic plan are similar to, if not the same as, the concepts contained in our 2004-7 strategic plan. However, there have been some shifts, such as the inclusion of a goal specifically prioritising the voices of young people being heard. We have adjusted our vision statement so that it not only states our objective as an organisation, but clearly states how we will work towards it.
YACSA’s strategic plan 2007-2010
Vision
That young people are vital and valued members of their communities. We will achieve this by representing the issues of and supporting excellence within the youth sector, and promoting and providing opportunities for young people to engage.
Goal 1: Influence through advocacy
Goal 2: A strong and vibrant youth sector
Goal 3: Young people’s voices being heard
Goal 4: A strong and sustainable organisation
Goal 1: Influence through advocacy
YACSA seeks to impact on decision-makers to ensure positive outcomes that are in the interests of young people and promote their engagement within their communities. We will achieve this by:
- increasing community awareness of issues relating to young people through a greater focus on external communication through marketing and media.
- influencing public policy at all levels of government so that it responds to the needs of young people.
- establishing and maintaining relationships that assist YACSA in effective advocacy.
- effective and coordinated responses to issues and emerging trends identified by the youth sector.
- establishing advocacy priorities through YACSA Policy Council, ensuring a strong relationship between the work schedule of Policy Council and annual YACSA state budget submission.
- actively engaging on federal issues, recognising the current absence of funding for a federal youth peak.
- a strong evidence-base to advocacy work, informed through partnerships with academic and research organisations;
- developing and maintaining a base of active, young advocates.
- regular forums to discuss issues relating to people and issues of interest to young people and the youth sector.
Goal 2: A strong and vibrant youth sector
YACSA is committed to promoting a strong and vibrant youth sector that fosters innovation and excellence. We will achieve this by:
- developing a code of ethics for the youth sector.
- articulating sound and ethical service standards and practice for the youth sector.
- advocating for better resources for the youth sector.
- assisting the youth sector to undertake advocacy and campaigning.
- ensuring, through membership and other partnerships, that YACSA is broadly representative of the youth sector and young people.
- delivering training and engaging in other partnerships to assist in meeting the training and professional development needs of the youth sector.
- developing new initiatives to promote networking and professional development within the youth sector.
- promoting the history of the youth sector over the past 30 years and recognition of its significant contribution to South Australia.
Goal 3: Young people’s voices being heard
YACSA believes that the best advocates to speak on behalf of young people are young people themselves. We will achieve this by:
- developing and supporting a group of youth advocates who can represent the issues of young people through a range of mechanisms.
- increasing by 50% the numbers of young members who are active participants in YACSA’s work.
- improving succession planning for young members.
- expanding our reach to young South Australians and their opportunities for engagement with YACSA.
- building diversity within YACSA’s young membership, both regionally and with respect to specific target groups.
- expanding the use of technology to engage with and promote opportunities for participation to all young South Australians.
- providing youth leadership training within the YACSA membership and more broadly.
- increasing the number of organisations seeking support and advice on engaging young people.
Goal 4: A strong and sustainable organisation
YACSA is committed to building a financially independent and socially, environmentally and financially sustainable organisation. We will achieve this by:
- increasing income from diverse sources, including increased engagement with corporate and private funding sources.
- greater financial planning to build reserves and financial sustainability.
- developing and implementing a strategic plan for the attraction and retention of staff.
- developing and implementing an infrastructure plan and a long-term plan for capital expenditure.
- developing and implementing an organisational succession plan, covering Management Committee, Policy Council, active young members, volunteers and staff.
- building our volunteer workbase through the development of effective partnerships with educational organisations and other programs.
- evaluation and measurement of achievements against the YACSA strategic plan.
- implementation of ethical and environmentally sustainable business practices.
- effective knowledge management within the organisation.
Download the Strategic Plan ( 76Kb)
Ratified by YACSA Policy Council in August 2007
Launched on 9 October 2007