A youth-led approach means that young people have responsibility for creating their own opportunities and outcomes. Young people work together to plan, develop and manage projects that respond to a need that they have identified within their own community. As a first step they learn how to analyse and define their own community so they know the context in which they work.

This approach fundamentally differs from a traditional approach to youth services in that it does not encourage dependency. The well-known phrase “help others to help themselves” used in sustainable community development is the fundamental principle behind a youth-led approach.