May 3, 2022

No better place to be than in Hedland in the school holidays!

Welcome to Hedland

*The West Coast Eagles Hot Summer Nights program was a huge hit with young people and families.*

There was no better place to be for young people than in Port Hedland during the April school holidays. From family footy days with the West Coast Eagles, dodgeball competitions, and mini slam basketball to pool parties, Tik-Tok content creation, arts and crafts and science experiments – there was so much going on!

The school holiday program is a collaborative project by the Hedland Youth Stakeholder Action Group (HYSAG), providing a diverse range of activities that will engage young people.

Senior Manager of Community Development at Royal Lifesaving WA Tim Turner, who helped coordinate the program, said the collaboration between stakeholders and having young people lead the various activities with so much energy and enthusiasm made the program so successful.

“Young people were selected and paid to lead most of the activities, under the supervision from the Royal Life Saving Club, which was fantastic because smaller kids looked up to them as role models,” he said.

“Seeing all the stakeholders come together to ensure such an inclusive, varied and wide program for our young people of Hedland was a real highlight. It was just fantastic to be a part of that and see so many young people and families really connecting and having so much fun.”

“We brought down some kayaks for the pool party and we got dads on them with their kids, all just having such a great time.”

West Coast Eagles Youth Engagement Coordinator Clint Degebrodt said the program provided great opportunities for young people through sport.

“We had such a great turn out at the footy clinics with people of all ages and backgrounds enjoying kicking a footy about and learning new skills but it’s just as important to be involved in craft, cooking and other creative sessions” he said.

“It really does bring people together at every level, from the participants making new friendships to all the stakeholders working together to achieve the shared goal of giving these kids opportunities to thrive, to grow confidence, connect, engage and learn new skills.”