Police Monthly May 2013 - NSW Police Force
Police Monthly May 2013 - NSW Police Force
Police Monthly May 2013 - NSW Police Force
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Making a<br />
Splash,<br />
A group of young people from remote <strong>NSW</strong> recently<br />
visited Sydney as part of a joint <strong>NSW</strong>PF initiative.<br />
STORY AMANDA BEADMAN<br />
POLICE MONTHLY<br />
IMAGES CHRIS ALLEN PHOTOGRAPHY<br />
No one who saw Brandy Lamb<br />
take to the surf on Bondi Beach<br />
last month would have guessed<br />
she was from an isolated town 821<br />
kilometres west.<br />
Well-balanced on her surfboard<br />
and carefree with the waves, the<br />
14-year-old seemed like a natural on<br />
the nation’s most well-known strip<br />
of sand, although she was modest<br />
about her abilities.<br />
“I think I’m ok at surfing,” she said.<br />
“Although a lot of times I was just<br />
getting smashed by the waves.”<br />
Brandy was one of 10 Aboriginal<br />
kids visiting from Goodooga, a rural<br />
remote town in northern <strong>NSW</strong>.<br />
The trip, with a packed itinerary<br />
spanning seven days, was organised<br />
by <strong>NSW</strong>PF officers, Aboriginal<br />
Community Liaison Officers from<br />
Walgett <strong>Police</strong> Station and staff from<br />
Goodooga High School.<br />
According to Brandy, the initiative<br />
has the potential to change young<br />
lives for the better.<br />
“Trips like this help kids make the<br />
right choices, instead of turning to<br />
drugs and things like that,” she said.<br />
“It makes us feel more positive<br />
about things.”<br />
Aboriginal people comprise<br />
around 80% of Goodooga’s modest<br />
population of less than 300, with 29%<br />
of the Aboriginal population aged<br />
under 15.<br />
Aboriginal communities within<br />
the town and its surrounding areas<br />
are plagued by high unemployment<br />
rates, substance abuse and domestic<br />
violence.<br />
Walgett Det Snr Cst Dane Poole<br />
was one of the officers who helped<br />
make the Goodooga to Sydney trip<br />
a reality.<br />
Having worked across Sydney for<br />
10 years in areas such as Redfern,<br />
Newtown, Ashfield, and the Eastern<br />
Suburbs, he said the communities<br />
around Walgett – including Goodooga<br />
– had presented him with a new set<br />
of challenges.<br />
“The local children have very few<br />
role models in their communities.<br />
School attendance is significantly low<br />
and a vast quantity of the local crime<br />
can be attributed to juveniles,” Det<br />
Snr Cst Poole said.<br />
22 <strong>Police</strong><strong>Monthly</strong> MAY <strong>2013</strong>