Tenant councils are encouraged to do the following to support the participation of young tenants:

• Have discussions with youth, Community Housing Unit Managers, Health Promotion Officers and youth staff to see how tenant councils can be more youth-friendly
• Build support for youth who sit at Community Housing Unit councils
  • Welcome them
  • Assign a mentor to them
  • Listen to them - do not assume that their contribution is not valuable
  • Try to make meetings less ‘dry’; Make sure that agenda items that are of interest to them are also on the agenda
  • At the Community Housing Unit council, all elected tenant reps are equal. Everyone must be treated respectfully, and the opinions of each member must be equally valued.
  • Pay attention to the emotional environment of meetings. Is anyone dominating the group? Do most reps get the chance to speak? Do the youth participate actively? How do people respond when youth give an opinion?

OTHER SUPPORTS

The staff of the Children & Youth section will also do the following:

• Meet with elected youth soon after elections and see if they need any support
• Organize regular meetings to support young Tenant Representatives
• Meet with the newly elected reps and introduce them to community leaders and Community Housing Unit staff
• Support them by attending the first three meetings and debriefing with them after the meeting