NEW DEVELOPMENT.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 16, 19 January 1940, Page 11

NEW DEVELOPMENT.

YOUNG PEOPLE'S RECREATION. Recently the Labour Department, through its youth centres, conducted investigations into the leisure-time activities of youths and girls in New Zealand. This inquiry showed a most marked deficiency in hobbies, reading and wholesome social activities. Of the 1157 youths and girls interviewed • a large number of them indulged in no wholesome recreative activity whatever.

The physical welfare and recreation branch, fallowing on the moral of this report, has made the organising of recreation clubs one of the main planks in its platform. The pioneer effort in this direction ie the boys' club formed in Ihvercargill by the Southland recreation officer. It is reported that already the physique and health of the boys have shown noticeable improvement. Boys who found themselves witli nothing to do in the evenings now occupy their leisure hours with recreation in various forme at the club. The branch does not intend to compete' with existing organisations and, as every pereon engaged in social welfare knows, there is an unexploited field large enough to occupy all the attention that can be brought to bear for years to come.