The Youth Engagement Lab
Who We Are
Rams Sports Group operates The Youth Engagement Lab a consulting arm built on over a decade of frontline experience in sport-based youth development, community engagement, and cross-sector systems work with young people from diverse and complex backgrounds.
Our lead consultant, Marial Machar, is a Winston Churchill Fellow whose international research — spanning the UK, United States, and Canada — examined what actually works in youth violence prevention, gang diversion, and community-led intervention. That fieldwork, across 20 organisations in 10 cities, informs everything we do.
We don’t consult from theory. We consult from experience
Overview
WHY IT MATTERS
Too many young people sit on the sidelines of school and sport. Not for lack of talent, but because the environment is not built with their cultures and families in mind. When that happens, confidence dips, potential hides, and opportunities drop away.
Adults
Training
Working with a personal trainer is one of the most effective ways to bring consistency and quality to your fitness routine. Whether you’re new to the gym or a seasoned athlete, Eagle Elite’s trainers will design a customized workout plan that aligns with your fitness goals and lifestyle. Our trainers are certified across a wide range of specialties, including strength and conditioning for athletes, speed and agility, Pilates, yoga, kettlebells, powerlifting, and more. No matter your fitness journey, we have the expertise to help you succeed.
Private Training
Whether you are a newcomer to the gym or a competitive athlete, working one-on-one with a personal trainer is the first step to creating an effective fitness routine.
Masterclasses
90-120 minute professional development sessions available virtually or in-person. Designed for teams who need practical insight fast.
Understanding Child Criminal Exploitation & Urban Street Gangs
One of our most indemand sessions. Available as a 90–120 minute masterclass or a half-day (3 hour) deepdive. Draws on direct fieldwork with gang diversion programs in London, Brooklyn, Newark, and Minneapolis. Covers how young people are recruited and groomed into criminal networks, what CCE looks like in an Australian context, the difference between ganginvolved and gang-exploited young people, and what effective organisational responses look like. Essential for youth workers, educators, legal professionals, justice staff, and anyone working with at-risk young people
Cultural Intelligence — Working Effectively with CALD Young People
Builds the knowledge, skills, and awareness professionals need to engage effectively with young people from East African, Pacific Islander, and other culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Covers communication styles, family structures, intergenerational trauma, settlement pressures, and how cultural context shapes behaviour and identity. Practical, evidence-based, and immediately applicable
Youth Disengagement — What’s Actually Driving It
Moves beyond surface behaviour to examine the underlying social, emotional, and environmental factors that drive young people
away from school, sport, and community. Covers identity formation, relative deprivation, belonging, labelling theory, and what protective factors consistently make the difference. Reframes the conversation from “what is wrong with this young person” to “what conditions
shaped their environment.”
The Public Health Approach to Youth Violence I
Introduces the public health framework as an alternative to punitive, enforcement-first responses — and shows why it consistently outperforms them. Draws on Violence Reduction Units in the UK, credible messenger programs in the US, and integrated youth services models in Canada. Designed fororganisations wanting to understand and adopt a prevention-first approach in their ownwork.
HEART.
RESPECT.
TEAMWORK.
INTEGRITY.
ACCOUNTABILITY.
HUMILITY.
SPIRIT.
SELF-BELIEF.
CULTURAL INTELLIGENCE TRAINING
Half-day, full-day, or multi-session program available in-person or virtually.
A deeper, more structured capability-building program than a masterclass. Designed for teams and organisations that work regularly with young people from CALD backgrounds and need more than awareness—they need practical tools, shared language, and a framework they can embed into their day-to-day practice. Delivered in partnership with lived experience and grounded in research from Rams’ Churchill Fellowship fieldwork across 10 cities internationally.
What We Deliver
- Cultural context sessions tailored to specific communities (East African, Pacific Islander, South Asian, or broader CALD cohorts).
- Frameworks for culturally safe engagement, communication, trust-building, and family involvement.
- Understanding intergenerational trauma and how it presents in young people and families.
- Navigating cultural expectations, identity conflict, and the in-between experience.
- Practical tools and scenarios your team can apply immediately.
- Optional: follow-up coaching session or team reflection debrief.
Best For:
Law firms, schools, sporting clubs, health services, NDIS providers, youth justice agencies, child protection teams, NFPs, and government departments.
SPORT & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT ADVISORY
4-6 week consulting project
For organisations that want to build or strengthen grassroots programs that meaningfully engage young people particularly those from marginalised or culturally diverse backgrounds. We help you design programs that break down barriers to participation, create real pathways, and ensure sport serves the whole person not just their athletic development.
What We Deliver
Discovery and needs assessment with your team, community, and young people.
Co-designed program model with clear objectives, delivery structure, and staffing requirements.
Engagement framework that reflects the cultural and social context of your community.
Final program model with implementation plan and evaluation approach.
Strategic pathway framework development (available as a standalone 6-8 week engagement) for mapping participation pathways across clubs, schools, and community.
Best For:
Sporting clubs and associations, peak bodies, councils, schools, and community organisations.
PUBLIC HEALTH APPROACH ADVISORY
1-day workshop or 4-6 week implementation project
The public health approach to youth violence and disengagement is the most evidence-backed framework for prevention and it consistently outperforms punitive, enforcement-first responses. We help organisations understand, adopt, and embed the public health approach into their programs, policies, and strategy – drawing on direct fieldwork with Violence Reduction Units in the UK, credible messenger programs in the US, and integrated youth services models in Canada.
What We Deliver
Introduction to the public health framework, why it works, and how it applies to your context.
Mapping your current approach against the framework to identify gaps, opportunities, and quick wins.
Action plan for your team to take forward.
For 4-6 week projects: Full organisational assessment and theory of change development.
Program logic, outcome measurement design, and staff capability building.
Final framework document and implementation roadmap.
Best For:
Youth services, schools, sporting organisations, health agencies, government departments, NFPs, justice agencies any organisation seeking to move from reactive to preventative in their work with young people.
Policy Development & Strategic Advice
Light review (2-4 weeks) | Moderate review (4-8 weeks) | Full reform process (8-16+ weeks)
We support organisations to develop, review, and reform the policies and frameworks that govern how they work with young people – ensuring they are fit for purpose, culturally responsive, and aligned with funder expectations.
What We Deliver
Strategic workshops (1 full day or 2 x half-day sessions) from discovery through to final recommendations.
Stakeholder consultation reports (template-based, tailored per client).
Inclusion, safeguarding, engagement, or governance policy review and rewrite.
Reform recommendations with implementation steps.
Best For:
Any organisation that needs its policies and frameworks to stand up to funder scrutiny, community trust, and sector standards.
YOUTH ENGAGEMENT & STRATEGY
1-day strategy workshop or 4-6 week project
We help organisations design, review, or rebuild the way they engage young people creating models that work in practice, not just on paper. Whether you need strategic clarity and a shared language through a 1-day workshop, or your work is linked to long-term outcomes needing a full implementation plan and staff capability uplift over a 4-6 week project, we determine the right format for your needs.
What We Deliver
Engagement model design or full review.
Program logic and evaluation framework development.
Implementation support and staff training.
A comprehensive youth engagement strategy your team can actually use.
Typical outcomes include: Reduced behavioural incidents, stronger school and community outcomes, practical frameworks staff can apply immediately, and increased competitiveness for funding rounds ($50k-$300k+).
Best For:
Schools, youth services, sporting organisations, NFPs, government-funded programs.
JUSTICE & SYSTEMS REFORM
Project-based scope determined on engagement
For government agencies, justice organisations, and peak bodies seeking to improve outcomes for young people from multicultural and marginalised backgrounds by reforming the systems that work with them. Grounded in international fieldwork across youth justice systems in the UK, US, and Canada – including Violence Reduction Units, credible messenger programs, and community-based diversion models – this service brings a rare combination of research rigour and lived experience to systems reform work.
What We Deliver
System reviews and reform recommendations.
Community-informed consultations and reports, including youth voice.
Design of culturally responsive intervention models.
Workforce capability building for justice and community safety staff.
Cross-sector collaboration frameworks (justice, health, education, community).
Best For:
Government departments, youth justice agencies, law enforcement, corrections, peak bodies, law firms, policy teams.
Youth Justice Advocacy & Court Support
Engagement-based per matter
For legal practitioners who need a credentialled subject matter expert to contextualise the background of a young person from a CALD or marginalised community before a court or tribunal. This service bridges the gap between lived community experience, international research, and the legal system – giving lawyers the evidence-informed context they need to properly represent their clients. Grounded in Churchill Fellowship research across youth justice systems in the UK, US, and Canada, and over a decade of frontline work.
What We Deliver
Cultural Background & Context Reports: Written assessments for sentencing submissions, bail applications, or child protection proceedings framed within the public health approach.
Pre-Sentence Report Support: Working alongside the instructing solicitor to ensure the young person’s full story is captured.
Expert Statement or Affidavit: A formal written statement for use in proceedings, prepared to court standards and available for cross-examination.
Referral & Diversion Letters: Confirmation that a young person is actively participating in Rams Sports Group programs.
Case Consultation: An advisory session with the instructing solicitor or barrister to assist with understanding the cultural, community, or systemic context.
Best For:
Criminal lawyers, youth lawyers, child protection practitioners, family lawyers, Legal Aid SA, the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement, and any firm working with young people from CALD or marginalised backgrounds.
THE FOUNDATION OF OUR SUCCESS
Every service we deliver is built on the same foundation that funders, government, and peak bodies are now demanding: evidence, cultural credibility, and community trust.
The strategies, frameworks, and systems we build for clients directly position them to compete for and acquit significant funding. We do this by:
Designing evidence-based programs with clear theories of change and measurable outcomes — the language funders require.
Ensuring alignment with common funding priorities: reducing antisocial behaviour, improving school engagement, inclusion, and community safety.
Building the organisational infrastructure funders assess as indicators of capacity — risk management, delivery plans, staffing structures, operational frameworks.
Strengthening cross-sector partnerships with schools, community groups, and justice or allied-health providers — significantly boosting competitive funding scores.
Creating models that are scalable and replicable — positioning clients for grants that prioritise growth and sustainability.
Join Us
THE GAME-CHANGER STARTS HERE.
From the court to the community, Rams Sports Group is building pathways for youth to truly thrive. Whether you are a school, sporting club, or community organization, we equip you with the tools to create an environment where everyone belongs. Get in touch today to partner with us and be part of the movement.
FREQUENTLY ASK QUESTIONS
Our 90-120 minute Masterclass professional development sessions are available both virtually (live or pre-recorded) and in-person.
We consult for a wide range of organisations including sporting clubs, schools, law firms, government teams, not-for-profits (NFPs), boards, justice agencies, and community organisations.
Yes, we provide Expert Witness & Court Support for legal practitioners. This includes Cultural Background & Context Reports, Pre-Sentence Report Support, Expert Statements or Affidavits, and Case Consultations to contextualise the background of a young person from a CALD or marginalised community.
It is an evidence-backed framework for prevention that serves as an alternative to punitive, enforcement-first responses. It draws on international models like Violence Reduction Units in the UK and credible messenger programs in the US.
We design evidence-based programs with clear theories of change and measurable outcomes, which is the language funders require. We also help build the organisational infrastructure (like risk management and delivery plans) and create scalable models that boost competitive funding scores.
No, all pricing is exclusive of GST, and travel and accommodation for in-person delivery outside metropolitan Adelaide is an additional cost. Packages and retainer arrangements are available on request.