Arts OutWest made supporting programs developing the arts skills and participation of young people a strategic priority area from 2010-2015. (Each Arts OutWest three year strategic plan names up to three areas of strategic focus for the organisation as developed through Board and community consultation, and now with the assistance of our Advisory Council; young people was one of these priority areas for six years).

This followed two decades of managing the now defunct biennial TAFE Artstate youth arts funding for the region.

For this period we employed a specific, part-time youth arts officer and received funding from state and federal government for a number of projects.

Some of these youth projects included:

• Support for the Orange Youth Arts Festival (2014, 2015)
• Youth Media Skills training (2011, 2012)
• YAOW (2012), an online site showcasing creative work by young people.
• ArtStart small grants funding (every two years since the 1990s to 2011)
• Arts OutWest Young Consultants (2010)
• Syn-thesis (auspiced dance-theatre project of Lingua Franca) (2012)
• Talk 2 Me contemporary dance project (auspiced project) (2011)
• Aboriginal Dance Development Project (2008)

Arts OutWest continues to support the development of arts programs for young people in the region through our core business.