A Gaf with a bit of class

Where are teenagers meant to go to socialise? A youth cafe in Galway might have found an answer for the rest of the country to copy, writes Gráinne Faller

Have you heard about the Mosquito? Essentially, it's an anti-teenager device. It emits an ultrahigh tone that is incredibly annoying for young people. The noise is too high for most adults to hear, as our ability to hear high frequencies diminishes with age. The idea is that shopkeepers and home owners who don't want teenagers loitering on or near their property will install a Mosquito and the teenagers will clear off. The device has been such a success in Britain that a high-powered version is being made available to police and local authorities.

But where, then, are teenagers supposed to go? What are they supposed to do? Too young for the pub and too old to want to stay at home in the evenings, teenagers are reduced to hanging around on streets or corners - anywhere that allows them to be in a group without provoking the ire of local adults. Young people say that alcohol use, drug taking and other problems stem from having nothing better to do.

But in a world where people actually market a product called the Teen Tormentor (another name for the Mosquito) does anybody care? The lack of facilities for young people is often astonishing.

Some places are making an effort, however, and youth centres and cafes are beginning to pop up here and there. A transition-year survey led to the opening of a youth cafe in Mallow, Co Cork, three years ago. Elsewhere in the county, youth cafes in Bantry and Bandon are going from strength to strength. Some others have been established around the country, too.

Many of them struggle, however. Finding staff, voluntary or otherwise, to man the cafes during the hours when teenagers would use them can be difficult, and resources are scarce. But what happens if the commitment continues and the money is there?

Walking into the Gaf, in Galway, on a Saturday morning, the place is buzzing. This is what a youth cafe should look like. People are sitting around, drinking coffee or hot chocolate. One or two are surfing the internet. Past the computers, and down a few steps on the right, is a large bright room where groups of teenagers are lolling on yellow and red couches, chatting and laughing. At a glance, about 40 people are milling around.

Since it was set up, five years ago, the Gaf has become part of Galway's youth scene. Teenagers can hold gigs or events here. They can also go to yoga classes or take part in drama, photography or DJ'ing workshops. More than that, though, the cafe is just a place where they can meet up and have a laugh without being told to move on.

It does have another function, however. The Gaf, which is funded by the Health Service Executive, was also established to help make health information and services more accessible for teenagers. John Fitzmaurice is the Gaf's manager. "One young person can come in and have a coffee, pick up a guitar, a sketch pad or whatever and can do that from 1pm until 10pm if they want," he says. "Another young person may come in needing advice or support, or they may need to be referred to another service."

The cafe also has upstairs rooms that provide excellent rehearsal or class spaces, sometimes for other youth services in Galway. A teen-parent project at University College Hospital holds antenatal classes at the Gaf every week, for example.

All the same, the health-and-services element, although it is a major reason for the existence of the cafe, is kept low-key. Staff - there are seven, including a full-time nurse and part-time counsellor - are anxious that the Gaf maintain its relaxed, open-door air. "We want everyone to be able to come in here, not just people with problems," says Fitzmaurice.

Young people are instrumental in the development of the cafe, and transition-year students in particular are involved in helping staff both with running the place and in giving health information to younger teenagers.

"The TY programmes are a great way to introduce people to the Gaf and the services we provide," says Frances Ford, who is project co-ordinator. "We're very much about youth ownership and youth involvement, and this is a way of handing over to the young people as much as possible."

One way of handing over to young people is the "takeover weekend", when a transition-year group takes charge of running the Gaf on a weekend evening. "That's when the real chaos happens," says Fitzmaurice, jokingly.

"We had to organise an activity for a Friday night," says Caireann McDonnell, a student at Coláiste Iognáid. "We figured that a good gig was what most teenagers would want," adds Gallen Hawkins.

Before the night, the students selected a health issue that they felt was relevant to young people, then completed a mini-project on it. These are still to be seen on the walls of the Gaf.

The gig itself was a success, despite clashing with other events that night. "There was a big gig in the Black Box that night," says Gallen. "Our school musical was on as well, so it wasn't the best night to have it. We got a good turnout all the same."

"These TY students really know what we are about," says Ford. "They know about important things like the nursing project, that this is a direct access [ to a nurse] for young people. They don't need permission from us. It's a separate support system for them."

Another transition-year group at Coláiste Iognáid was involved in a peer-education project for which they delivered informal 40-minute workshops about drinking to first-year students.

"We drew up the course ourselves," says Anna Brown. "The people from the Gaf covered the different issues," explains Aoife Kirk. "When they were doing that, we picked out the stuff that we thought would be most useful for our workshop," adds Yasmin Cawley. "I think first-year students have more respect for us telling them about drink than they would if an adult tried it," says Anna. Her classmate Aimee McGreal says: "It's much better to get the information when you don't have much experience."

The workshop environment is controlled, as a member of the Gaf staff sits in on every one, but he or she takes a back seat in the proceedings.

This element of leadership among older students goes a long way towards integrating different age groups. When a cafe is supposed to cater for people aged from 14 to 21, the risk of either younger or older teenagers being elbowed out is obvious.

"We have to be very careful of that," says Fitzmaurice. "But, surprisingly, there has been a huge level of integration among the age groups."

Ford says: "The older teenagers tend to be very, very good at encouraging the younger ones, and the younger teenagers prefer that kind of encouragement when it's coming from other teenagers rather than adults."

"A good few people use the Gaf," says Anna. "There are certain groups that use it, but that's always the way."

"We had a brilliant time," says Aoife. "They gave us lunch and looked after us." "It was really relaxed," adds her classmate Karl Rabbitt. "But you really got the sense that they listen to young people."

The Gaf is on Francis Street, Galway