It'S 60 years since the Police Citizens Youth Club (PCYC) was created with a philosophy of getting to the kids before the kids get to the police station. As PCYC week celebrations begin, DENISE CARTER talks to two club managers about their roles

Sergeant Scott Pottle may not have become a police officer if it weren’t for the PCYC.

As a young boy of 14, ‘the Sarge’, as he is affectionately known by the kids of the Cairns club, was living in Redcliff, south-east Queensland, and joined a PCYC to work out in the gym and play squash.

"It was my first introduction to the police service," Scott says.

Scott decided he wanted to be just like the sergeant in charge, so at the age of 24, he became a police officer with his sights firmly set on becoming the manager of a youth club.

Now in his ninth year of managing Cairns PCYC, Scott’s job is to be a good role model for the kids, and he loves his work despite the long and unsociable hours.

"It’s very rewarding," Scott says. "But sad as it sounds it’s more of a lifestyle than a job. You’ve got to be into it."

The work PCYCs do is difficult to quantify.

Yes, they have after-school care, and sporting facilities, and classes ranging from boxing and martial arts to drama and arts and crafts. But the underlying goal of PCYCs is crime prevention.

"We offer alternative activities to the anti-social behaviour that comes from boredom," Scott says.

The Queensland Police-Citizens Youth Welfare Association was formed in 1948, with the first club opening at Lang Park in Brisbane in 1950.

Its creation was recommended by a committee formed by the then Queensland premier, Edward Michael Hanlon, to investigate the increase in juvenile crime in Brisbane’s suburbs.

There are now 45 branches in Queensland with as many programs to suit the needs of individual communities.

The Cairns branch had its humble beginnings 19 years ago in the old scouts hall in MacNamara street, opening just on Thursday nights and Saturday mornings, and offering cricket, gymnastics and karate to a mere 130 children.

It has since moved to new premises and grown to more than 1000 members and 58 staff. And it has made sure boredom is a far-away memory for the kids who attend.

The club offers gymnastics, and has two Olympic-sized trampolines.

There is boxing, tae kwon do, capoeira (a Brazilian mix of dance and self defence), Brazilian ju-Jitsu, and Aikido.

"We also have indoor bowling and we have a kindy gym, so there are activities for people of all ages, from three to 80," Scott says.

PCYCs also aim to build up relationships between police officers and young people who most likely would have no contact with the cops unless they were in trouble with the law.

Yarrabah’s PCYC manager Sergeant Graham Burridge has seen the benefits of such interaction.

Police call into his club every week and throw basketball hoops with the kids, who as their confidence grows, open up and get to know them.

Graham knows his PCYC – which began officially three years ago, but has been running for 10 years as a drop-in centre – has turned young people’s lives around.

The club opened because Yarrabah had the highest rate of youth suicide throughout the country.

Since its inception, there have been no young suicides among those associated with the club.

The club has also helped teens who were starting to commit crimes.

"We have a core group of about eight kids who were breaking into places," Graham says.

"PCYC diverts them from crime, giving them other activities."

All is quiet once up to 250 youngsters from Yarrabah and outlying communities descend on the club.

There they receive robust meals, all part of a healthy eating education program, and they have a variety of outlets to develop their talents.

The club offers after-school care, followed by sports and arts and crafts.

There’s movie nights, a Friday night teenage disco, and even X-box video games for kids who want to play alone.

One of the club’s most recent successes is a debutante ball that is soon to be part of PCYC week for older teenagers.

Graham laughs.

"The older kids kind of scoffed at it, but when they saw the younger kids in their suits and looking so well, they changed their minds," he says.

"We had the hall decorated in maroon and white, the colours for PCYC, and we had a band onstage."

Sgt Graham Burridge is a man with a passion for helping young people.

"I love to see the huge smiles on the kids’ faces when they receive praise for something they have done well," he says.

Graham derives great pleasure from watching them achieve recognition in their chosen fields too, like when young rugby league player, Theeran Yeatman, was selected to play for the Newcastle Knights under 21s team.

And that’s just as well, because on the downside, Graham has to travel more than 1000 kilometres per week between Cairns and Yarrabah, as well as to outlying communities to bring the youngsters to and from the club.

The particular problems Yarrabah children face, Graham says, are boredom and the subsequent danger of turning to drugs and alcohol, coupled with the difficulty in finding employment once they graduate from school.

"There is little scope, and if they get work in Cairns, they have to travel 60 kilometres in and out daily," he says.

Still, he is determined the considerable talents in the area will flourish.

His next plan is to organise an artists’ co-operative group.

Graham is bringing in professionals to run arts and crafts workshops for the talented long term unemployed in the area and their finished work will be brought to various markets in Cairns.

"I just want to keep the interest up," Graham says.

"We have about two dozen talented local artists and I know in my heart their work is just brilliant," he says.

"Their work will be genuinely localproduced indigenous product."

• PCYC week runs from July 19 to July 26. Cairns PCYC is offering 100 free memberships to people who haven’t been to a PCYC previously. Visit the club at 91 MacNamara Street, Manunda.

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