We are very proud of our outcomes for young people at BYS. Each year we conduct a survey of young people to see if we are on the right track with our services and responsiveness. This year we conducted 139 surveys (representing approximately 10% of the young people we see each year). The good news was that 93% of young people were very happy with our services and would recommend BYS to other young people. We also asked young people how we could improve.
We have put together some other highlights below. To view the full report, click here.
Satisfaction with our Services
Results showed that all average ratings were high, between 4.4 and 4.7 out of 5, indicating a strongly positive response to BYS services. Areas of particular strengths were in providing open, non-judgemental services; focussing on the things that young people felt were important (client centred services); being interested in young people’s life as a whole (holistic services) and over-all satisfaction ratings.
Accessibility
Survey respondents rated the ease of getting to a BYS service, or staff coming to them at convenient locations, as 4.4/5 with 65% very happy. One third of respondents said that their worker mostly came to them, rather than them having to travel to BYS. Travel time to see a BYS worker was most commonly less than half an hour and 7% travelled for more than an hour to see their worker.
Holistic Service Delivery
Young people were asked whether they experienced BYS worker/s as interested in your life as a whole or lots of the things that they were dealing with. This statement received one of the strongest positive responses with 92% of young people happy or very happy with the holistic nature of BYS service delivery.
Suggestions for Improvement
Young people’s suggestions for improvements predominantly focussed on more activities, with some suggestions for different types of activities that could be provided (eg relaxation classes). Young people also wanted more services, more workers and more time with workers, more money for emergency relief and more service funding generally. Some suggested improvements to service delivery included better communication between workers for more consistent responses; quieter spaces for support; better worker management of the foyer space at the HUB; more services in other areas (eg towards Sunshine Coast); more employment support services (a dedicated jobs worker); quicker and more consistent responses from workers to phone calls and requests; more performing arts activities, and that we make a documentary on youth homelessness.
Some positive quotes from young people
“In my experiences with BYS everyone has been helpful in all aspects of my life and life troubles. I have felt nothing but support and help during my times of need.”
“I am satisfied with it because they have helped me in every area that I need help and support me lots.”