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HomeYouth LeadershipYouth Advisory Groups

Youth Advisory Groups

Youth Advisory Groups (YAGs) are groups of young people who provide advice and feedback to government bodies or community organisations on topics or projects that affect young people. They help ensure that the perspectives and experiences of young people are considered in decision-making processes and planning.

There are four main types of YAGs:

  1. Regular and ongoing. Typically attached to organisation and intended to run long-term with a new intake of young people either in a rolling capacity or through a timed application process.
  2. Project specific. Sometimes organisations will engage a group of young people to work on a particular piece of work, or project—often in a co-design capacity.
  3. Location specific. Typically, location focused YAGs are local government ones.
  4. Demographic specific. These YAGs are exclusively for young people who are from one demographic or have shared lived experience, such young people with lived experience of mental health challenges, FDV or LGBTIQA+ young people.

Free Youth Advisory Group training and resources

In July 2025, YACWA received funding from the Department of Communities to support and build the capacity of YAGs across WA. This work supports Action 1.2 of Koorlangka Bidi: WA Youth Action Plan 2024–2027.

As part of this work, YACWA is developing a suite of resources and templates that your Youth Advisory Group can use to help further develop your group.  Click on the links below to download what you need. Please note this list of resources will be updated over time.

YACtivate

For many years, YACtivate! was an annual event that brought together young people from Youth Advisory Councils/Groups (YACs/YAGs) across Western Australia to build connections and develop new skills. It was first initiated by the Town of Mosman Park Youth Advisory Council and later delivered as a collaborative effort between several local governments over multiple years. The last event before the pandemic was in 2019.

With more Youth Advisory Groups than ever before, in 2025 YACWA brough the event back. The Department of Communities, RAC Ignite Program, and the City of Cockburn all supported the event. The result was YACtivate 2025! This event empowered young people involved in YAGs to learn, share, network, and act. It served as a catalyst for youth-led initiatives and ongoing engagement across the State. Over 80 young people and 25 staff from 30 Youth Advisory Groups attended, travelling from as far north as Karratha, as far south as Albany, and many places in between. Click on the links below to see photos and the report from the event.

  • Photos taken by Jack Findlater
  • YACtivate! 2025 Findings Report (Coming Soon)