Youth information workers deliver youth information, guidance and counselling services in a variety of settings in order to empower young people and support their wellbeing and autonomy. They ensure that those services are accessible, resourced and welcoming for young people and run activities aimed at reaching the entire youth population, by means that are effective and appropriate for different groups and needs. Youth information workers aim to enable young people to make their own informed choices and become active citizens. They work in close partnership with other services.
No competences in this bucket.
The ability to access media, to understand and critically evaluate different aspects of the media and media content and to create communications in a variety of contexts. It involves a range of cognitive, emotional, and social competencies that include the use of text, tools and technologies, the skills of critical thinking and analysis, the practice of messaging composition and creativity and the ability to engage in reflection and ethical thinking.
The discipline of project management, the activities which comprise this area and the variables implied in it, such as time, resources, requirements, deadlines, and responding to unexpected events.
The purpose and fundamental features of youth work: helping young people to reach their full potential. Youth work encompasses a broad range of activities carried out with, by and for young people through non-formal and informal learning.
Young people’s interests, needs, problems and psychology and their environments, the issues affecting them, and the opportunities and services to support them.
The set of commonly shared principles in regards with communication such as active listening, establish rapport, adjusting the register, and respecting the intervention of others.
The planning, development, and implementation of strategies aimed at managing social media platforms, the publications, the social media management tools, and the image of organisations in them.
No competences in this bucket.
Apply minimum standards and quality measures in youth services while upholding youth work values and principles. An example of such quality standards are described in the European Youth information charter and refer to principles such as independence, accessibility, inclusiveness, needs based, empowering, participative, ethical, professional and pro-active.
Evaluate the different aspects of development needs of children and young people.
Communicate with professionals of other organisations that support young people such as social care, health, police, education and local authorities in order to identify needs and areas of improvement in youth work, and to establish a collaborative relationship.
Develop non-formal education activities targeted to the needs and aspirations of young people. These activities take place outside of the formal learning system. The learning is intentional but voluntary and takes place in diverse environments. The activity and courses could be run by professional learning facilitators, such as but not limited to youth leaders, trainers, youth information workers.
Build a sense of empowerment in young people in their different dimensions in life, such as but not excluded to: civic, social, economic, cultural and health areas.
Build positive, non-judgemental relationships with young people by being open, tolerant and non-judgemental.
Use appropriate questions and active listening in order to identify customer expectations, desires and requirements according to product and services.
Inquire and identify the information needs of young people and adapt services and approach towards their individual or collective needs.
Carry out high-quality research of information relevant for young people, summarize information and create youth-friendly content that is accurate, understandable and accessible for different groups of young people.
Make sure young people are aware of their rights and the services to which they may apply in case of need. This includes providing support in selecting and evaluating the quality of available information, guiding young people in reaching their own decisions and offering customised information on relevant opportunities and services.
Target and reach out to young people from different racial, social and economic backgrounds.
Support young people's choices, showing respect and reinforcing their autonomy, self-esteem and independence.
Identify the strengths and weaknesses of various abstract, rational concepts, such as issues, opinions, and approaches related to a specific problematic situation in order to formulate solutions and alternative methods of tackling the situation.
Use digital tools and technologies for collaborative processes, and for co-construction and co-creation of resources and knowledge.
Communicate professionally and cooperate with members of the other professions in the health and social services sector.
Use verbal and non-verbal communication and communicate through writing, electronic means, or drawing. Adapt your communication to children and young people`s age, needs, characteristics, abilities, preferences, and culture.
Reach out to and meet up with people in a professional context. Find common ground and use your contacts for mutual benefit. Keep track of the people in your personal professional network and stay up to date on their activities.
Have patience by dealing with unexpected delays or other waiting periods without becoming annoyed or anxious.
Provide founded feedback through both criticism and praise in a respectful, clear, and consistent manner. Highlight achievements as well as mistakes and set up methods of formative assessment to evaluate work.
Give attention to what other people say, patiently understand points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times; able to listen carefully the needs of customers, clients, passengers, service users or others, and provide solutions accordingly.
Work with clients on a confidential basis. Respect your clients' privacy by not disclosing any personal information about them. Also do not disclose personal information about yourself to the clients. Make sure clear rules are set to maintain confidentiality.
Regularly attend educational workshops, read professional publications, actively participate in professional societies.
Organise, store and retrieve data, information and content in digital environments. Organise and process them in a structured environment.
Mentor individuals by providing emotional support, sharing experiences and giving advice to the individual to help them in their personal development, as well as adapting the support to the specific needs of the individual and heeding their requests and expectations.
Plan, organise and evaluate information activities and services. Those include searching for information relevant to the target group, compiling easily understandable information material and finding various ways to disseminate the information through different channels used by the target group.
Ensure quality and correctness of provided information, depending on the type of audience and context.
Help children and young people to assess their social, emotional and identity needs and to develop a positive self image, enhance their self esteem and improve their self reliance.
Lead and guide employees through a process in which they are taught the necessary skills for the perspective job. Organise activities aimed at introducing the work and systems or improving the performance of individuals and groups in organisational settings.
Compose work-related reports that support effective relationship management and a high standard of documentation and record keeping. Write and present results and conclusions in a clear and intelligible way so they are comprehensible to a non-expert audience.