The sign for the new Integrated Supports for Yukon Youth Centre, colourful and featuring a giant arrow in the direction of the facility at 2090 A Second Ave., sticks out “like a sore thumb,” Health and Social Services Minister Mike Nixon admits.

And that’s the way he wants it.

Nixon was on-hand this morning for the official opening of the centre (which will run as a two-year pilot project).

“We want it to be visible,” he told reporters at the opening today.

The minister noted it’s important that local youth know where they can go to find whatever services they might need.

The centre is open from 2 p.m. until 10 p.m. Tuesday to Saturday.

It’s staffed by a manager, a social worker, two family support workers and an administrative worker.

Space is also available there for education and justice workers who will come in as needed, depending on the individual circumstances.

“It something completely new for our territory,” Nixon said in his opening remarks.

Many youth are often not aware of the services available to them, nor how they can go about accessing those services after regular business hours, he said.

The new centre will provide a “holistic and individually-driven approach” to youth who come in whether they need crisis intervention or some help filling out forms for a health card, identification or the like.

It will mean rather than going to a number of different government offices (many of which are only open during regular business hours) to find the right service, youth can go to the new centre.

There, they can speak with staff about their situation and get the right services immediately.

Workshops and programming will also be offered from the space.

The initiative comes out of the territory’s mental wellness strategy.

While the project is being led by Health and Social Services, Education Minister Doug Graham was quick to note his department’s intentions to be “fully-involved” in the initiative.

“Education doesn’t really end when you graduate from Grade 12,” he said.

About twice a year, he hosts a meeting with students. In those sessions, he said, they have stressed the need for such a centre.

It’s easy to see the confusion on many face as they contemplate a plan for their lives after high school. This will help add to the options students will have as they work out a plan for their futures.

While the territory’s schools have counselling available to students, this will provide additional services after regular school hours.

Justice Minister Brad Cathers also offered his praises in a statement this morning: “The new centre is an opportunity to further align Yukon’s services with nationally established best practices for youth victims and their families.

“By developing a youth-friendly and youth-centered space, they and their families can attend one central space to receive the services they require.”

Funding for the new centre is being covered within Health and Social Services’ annual budget, with staff being redeployed from within the department.