Become a DYS Youth Club

Are you interested in your club becoming a member of Donegal Youth Service? Want more information on the benefits of affiliation? Are you looking for value for money? Look no further!

Affiliation (becoming a member) is quite a painless process once you have your preparation done. The affiliation process can be done completely online and our Youth Outreach team are on hand for any club in need of assistance with filling in the form.

So what’s the benefit of affiliation?

  • Insurance – through Donegal Youth Service you can get full Public Liability Insurance for your club. By taking out this insurance you will become a ‘Full Member’ of DYS. For those clubs who do not need insurance cover, you can still affiliate to DYS as an ‘Associate Member’.
  • Training for Adults – DYS offers accredited training in Child Protection, Youth Leader Training and Love Hurts (Sexual Health Train the Trainer) for Adult Volunteers as well as Garda Vetting for all adults involved with your youth club.
  • Training for young people – DYS offers accredited and non-accredited training for young people in areas such as Personal Development, Peer Education, Peer Mentoring, Sexual Health Awareness, Drug & Alcohol Awareness, Community Event Planning, Conflict Resolution and Community Development.
  • Information Sessions – DYS provide various information sessions for adults and young people on topics such as Sexual Health Awareness, Drug & Alcohol Awareness and Cyber Bullying.
  • Programmes and Events – The Youth Outreach Project runs many programmes and events annually. Programmes include Youth Sport, in which young people can compete in Soccer, Basketball, Table Tennis, Table Quiz, Chess and Draughts; Youth Factor in which young people can compete in Song, Dance, Music, Performance and Band Categories as well as our annual Christmas Card Competition. All of the above events are run at both local and national level through Youth Work Ireland. We also run events such as Photography competitions, Cross Border Soccer events and our annual Celebration Event.
  • Support – On affiliation to DYS you have access to the support of the Senior Youth Worker and Youth Outreach Worker, as well as links to all the other DYS Projects. Staff in DYS are on hand to support youth clubs via email, on the phone or in person as needed. All youth clubs will receive a minimum of one club visit per year which will be scheduled at a time suitable to the club leaders and members.
  • Place on the Volunteer Forum – The Volunteer Forum is a panel of volunteers who come together twice per year to help shape and evaluate the work of the Youth Outreach Project. These meetings allow club leaders to remain up-to-date in terms of what is coming up through DYS and to give feedback on the events during the year.
  • Funding – The Youth Outreach Project team will forward information on all suitable funding applications to all clubs and also offer guidance on how to fill in funding application forms.
  • Places on the Youth Advisory Panel – A group of young people who shape the work of Donegal Youth Service. Each youth club affiliated to DYS is invited to nominate two young people to sit on the panel.
  • Summer Programme Support – Staff of DYS will support any Summer Programmes running in Affiliated Youth Clubs by running sessions on art & craft, cookery, information sessions or sports.
  • Flag weekend – Each year DYS organises a Garda Permit for the second weekend in May for door-to-door, street and church gate collections. DYS will work in partnership with youth clubs in order to ensure that the permit is used to its full potential countywide.
  • Volunteer Achievement Awards – DYS annually run Volunteer Achievement Awards, in which youth clubs can nominate young people, volunteers and youth initiatives for awards in recognition of their contributions through local youth clubs. Every affiliated youth club is also entered into the Youth Club of the Year Award which is given to the club participating in the most DYS events throughout the club year.
  • Publicity – All affiliated youth clubs are welcome to submit articles into the ECHO newsletter, which is distributed via email through the Letterkenny Youth Information Centre every quarter.
  • Policies – Affiliated youth clubs will receive a fully comprehensive policy pack on affiliation, to assist with club development and progression.
  • Quality Standards – The Youth Outreach Project team will assist all affiliated youth clubs with completion of the National Quality Standards for Volunteer Led Youth Groups (NQSFVLYG) documentation.

For more information, or help please contact the Youth Outreach Manager Charlene on 074 91 29630 or e-mail: charlene.logue@donegalyouthservice.ie