Central Coast Council is now accepting nominations for the 2025 Central Coast Youth Week Awards. For the fourth consecutive year, these awards honour and celebrate outstanding young people aged 12-24 who have made significant contributions to the Central Coast community.

Council Director Community and Recreation Services, Melanie Smith said the awards align with key plans and strategies.

“The Central Coast Youth Week Awards are a good example of Council delivering on our Community Strategic Plan and Youth Strategy,” said Ms Smith.

“They connect young people with opportunities, celebrate diversity and inclusion, and empower them to be active contributors to our community’s future.

“It’s important that we recognise the valuable role young people play, and these awards are a powerful way to do that.

“With ten categories encompassing a wide range of contributions, we encourage nominations for young people making a difference. Nominations can be submitted by anyone in the community via Council’s website.”

The award categories are:

• Arts and Entertainment Award 
• Community Service and Activity Award
• Environment and Ethical Sustainability Award
• First Nations Cultural Award 
• Social Impact in Education / Community Award
• Youth Sportsperson Award
• Youth Entrepreneur Award
• Youth Leadership (Individual) Award
• Youth Leadership (Group) Award
• Youth Volunteer Award

Additionally, the Central Coast Youth Week Awards has a Nominator Award category. Central Coast schools and services that nominate at least one young person for an award have the chance to win a $1,000 grant to implement a program that benefits young people.

A panel of six judges, including a young person, a Council representative and four youth service representatives will assess the entries. To ensure impartiality, each category will be evaluated by three judges who have no conflicts of interest. Winners will be selected based on their applications and adherence to the specified criteria.

Council Mayor, Lawrie McKinna said the awards not only recognise outstanding achievements, but also empower young people to continue their impactful work.

“We have over 50,000 young people aged 12 to 24 residing on the Central Coast, many of whom are actively contributing to a better Central Coast, both now and for the future,” Mayor McKinna said.

“These awards recognise their contribution, and also encourage them, and other young people, to continue to channel their energy and initiatives into the community to help make it a place where their efforts are valued.”

Nominations close on Sunday 23 February 2025. To be eligible, nominees must be Australian citizens residing in the Central Coast Local Government Area.

Finalists and their guests will be invited to attend the Central Coast Youth Week Awards presentation night on Thursday 10 April 2025 at The Hub Erina Youth Entertainment Venue. All award winners will be announced at this event.

The Central Coast Youth Week Awards is an initiative of Central Coast Council, partially funded by the NSW Department of Communities and Justice.

For further information, eligibility criteria and to make your nomination, visit the Central Coast Youth Week Awards web page.