Keeping young people safe and striving for a positive future is harder than it sounds in today's day and age.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
This is something Murrumbidgee Police District's youth officer, Senior Constable Fiona Spinks knows too well.
Senior Constable Spinks has been with the NSW Police Force for 23 years, meaning she has seen and encountered many situations during that time.
In her role as youth officer, she is now focusing on helping young people in the Murrumbidgee district live healthy and positive lives, while also assisting in early intervention programs.
Those areas are the tip of the iceberg of what the role is all about, with Senior Constable Spinks hopeful of creating real change during her time in the position.
Some of the areas she wants to hone in on with young people in Leeton shire and the wider area including education on the dangers of vaping, behaviour on school buses and showing why it's okay to speak up when you need help.
"There's so many things I would like to do as part of this role," Senior Constable Spinks said.
"There's different thing I want to do in relation to domestic violence as well when it comes to young people and the impacts that can have on them.
"I think people don't realise the damage that can be done to kids who see or are impacted by domestic violence."
Senior Constable Spinks' role is part of the Murrumbidgee PD's Crime Prevention Unit.
One of their upcoming initiatives will be targeting student behaviour on school buses.
Police want to work on anti-social behavior and assaults that can sometimes take place on these buses.
"So many kids catch the bus, there's the vaping on buses too that we would like to target," Senior Constable said.
"Cameras are being looked at for school buses and potentially even (police) riding buses.
"Ultimately, you want the bus driver to drive and not be dealing with these kinds of behavior).
"That (work) will be coming up in the next couple of months by police."