Young people using Christchurch’s central city Bus Exchange are reporting feeling safer, while security staff have described reduced fighting and abuse.

Youth and Cultural Development (YCD) FRESH Outreach Program lead Jared Keil told Christchurch City Council an independent evaluation carried out earlier this year had gathered feedback from young people, schools, council staff and security services.

The council commissioned the hub, known as Igloo, as a city safety initiative, providing a space for young people who might otherwise feel anxious or fearful about using the Bus Exchange.

Keil said the Igloo recorded 1,989 sign ins during the first school term. Those using the service included students from 15 secondary schools and 11 primary schools, alongside young people attending training courses and disability support services.

The sign ins recorded use of the hub, rather than the number of individual young people attending.

Keil said the evaluation found young people were developing a stronger sense of belonging through friendships, social connections and relationships with youth workers.

The hub offered board games, cards, arts and crafts and competitions, along with access to health professionals and education providers.

Free food was also making a practical difference, easing pressure on families, improving young people’s moods and helping reduce trouble after school, he said.

Keil said the evaluation considered whether YCD’s outreach reflected its values and was delivered safely and in a culturally appropriate way.

Feedback identified accountability, encouragement, inclusion and compassion as strengths of the service. That included holding young people responsible for their behaviour while helping them make positive changes.

Keil said youth workers were supporting progress in areas including offending, drug use, school and course attendance, and achievement. Successes were shared and celebrated with young people.

At the Bus Exchange, he said incidents had declined since YCD became involved, alongside other safety measures.

Feedback from Red Badge security staff described a collaborative but professional relationship with the youth workers, including communication when young people were behaving badly or had been trespassed.

“I think they’re really good value for the place,” one security staff member said in comments included in the presentation.

Another comment described an improvement in behaviour while acknowledging that problems remained.

Keil’s presentation said the diversity of both the youth work and security teams helped them build relationships, with different young people responding to different staff members.

Young people were generally seen as respectful of both teams and engaging positively with them.

Security feedback also highlighted the value of taking time to establish relationships.

Keil said schools and families had reported feeling reassured about young people’s safety and wellbeing after school. Feedback also linked the hub’s social connections with greater enjoyment of school and engagement in learning.

YCD had worked with young people for three decades, providing mentoring, educational workshops, recreational activities and events, he said.

The wider FRESH Outreach Project, a collaboration between the organisation and the council, was entering its third year after receiving council Better Off funding two years earlier.