Field           Community and Social Services

Registration of Youth Development skill standards

Toitū te Waiora Community, Health, Education and Social Servies Workforce Development Council has developed 23 skill standards in the Youth Development domain, listed below.

Date new versions published                                                               June 2025

Planned review date                                                                              December 2029

Summary

Toitū te Waiora reviewed the New Zealand Certificate in Youth Leadership (Level 3) [Ref: 2448], New Zealand Certificate in Youth Work (Level 4) [Ref: 2449] and the New Zealand Diploma in Youth Work (Level 6) [Ref: 3803] in 2022/2023. An outcome of that review was the development of a new qualification - the New Zealand Certificate in Youth Work (Level 5) [Ref: 4795].

This application is for listing youth work skill standards at Levels 3, 4, and 5. It followed approval of 17 Level 6 youth work skill standards on 10 December 2024.

Development of skill standards at levels 3, 4 and 5 took place in 2023/2024 in consultation with the youth work sector [link]. The skill standards are intended to align with qualifications 2448, 2449, and 4795. 

Main changes

23 skill standards were developed to align with youth work and/or leadership qualifications for Levels 3 - 5.

Detailed list of unit standards – classification, title, level, and credits

All changes are in bold.

Community and Social Services > Social Services > Youth Development

ID	Title	Level	Credit	Review category
40625	Apply Te Tiriti o Waitangi articles to support taiohi in a youth leadership context	3	10	New
40626	Review youth culture in Aotearoa New Zealand	3	5	New
40627	Apply Code of Ethics for Youth Work in Aotearoa New Zealand and Mana Taiohi principles in own youth leadership practice	3	15	New
40628	Adopt group work models and leadership styles to assist with implementation of a youth leadership project	3	10	New
40629	Determine mentoring roles, ethical considerations, and taiohi safety in youth work practice	4	10	New
40630	Produce a mentoring plan with taiohi from diverse cultures and identities	4	10	New
40631	Evaluate Code of Ethics for Youth Work clauses and positive youth development frameworks used to mentor taiohi	4	20	New
40632	Plan, implement, and evaluate a positive youth development project	4	10	New
40633	Implement Te Tiriti o Waitangi articles in youth work practice	4	10	New
40634	Implement evidence-based strategies to enhance hauora and resilience in taiohi	4	5	New
40635	Manage online challenges that may impact on the mental health, hauora and digital safety of taiohi	4	5	New
40636	Implement self-care strategies and a professional development plan in own youth work practice	4	10	New
40637	Determine the roles that personal values, beliefs, and attitudes play in youth work practice	5	5	New
40638	Implement self-care and professional development plans to enhance own youth work practice	5	15	New
40639	Evaluate the impacts of digital, social, and other systemic worlds on taiohi hauora, and apply support strategies	5	10	New
40640	Evaluate the impacts of colonisation in an Aotearoa New Zealand youth work setting, and apply support strategies	5	10	New
40641	Identify crises that impact on taiohi and develop evidence-based strategies to support them	5	10	New
40642	Apply positive youth development principles and frameworks to support taiohi	5	10	New
40643	Interpret principles of Code of Ethics for Youth Work and legislative requirements in youth work practice	5	15	New
40644	Implement strategies to uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi articles in youth work practice	5	15	New
40645	Implement regional and national community services and programmes in youth work practice	5	10	New
40646	Build effective relationships with tangata whenua to support positive youth development outcomes	5	5	New
40647	Develop, lead, and evaluate a youth work development project plan	5	15	New