According to the Police Citizens Youth Club website, the organisation is “about young people”, but it wasn’t always that way. This year, the PCYC is celebrating its 75th anniversary of “getting young people active”, “developing young leaders”, and “protecting young people”, but if you were a girl back in 1938, you could pretty much get bent as far as the cops were concerned.
According to the side of the Burwood branch, it’s about boys. Who knows, in another 75 years, it may even include old people.
Past/Lives of the Near Future 
My father was one of the founders of the ‘boys club’ movement, and the assistant superintendant of the Burwood club until his untimely death in 1959 aged just 40. You probably need to comprehend the reasons behind the formation of the whole boys club movement in the leadup to WW2 in Sydney, Many young males at this time were children of WW1 veterans, and from low income. and broken families. Young girls at this time were vastly better looked after in their family homes, while the boys were basically let run wild on the streets. It was a whole different life back then. The idea was to get the young boys off the streets, and to a large degree it worked. I was born in 1948, and I’ve actually just had a phone call from one of the old ‘Burwood Boys’ who still remembers my Dad, and me being born.
ReI was very disappointed to hear that burwood pcyc club was closing. I spent about thirty years a continuous member from 1974 .I was a troubled, confused 19 year old in need of structural change and a safe place to be. In 1969 my dad died and I was in trouble with the court’s until the club. Over the years at first tried judo and staid with it also fund-raiser, office helper and so on.it all changed me to the positive.i miss all of that! Anyway thanks for reading this.
I was in the Burwood PCBC Band from 1960 until 1964. It had a great influence on my life – creating an interest in music and helped my academic studies in Math, Science & engineering. The band gave me access to many musical instruments including flute, trumpet, saxophone and violin.
I attended many band events including the NSW Sydney Royal Easter Show, Australia Day, local Burwood events & ANZAC marches. We even were on TV shows such as Channel 9: Don Lane & Channel 7: Johnny O”Keith
Shame this band no longer exists. I am grateful to both Constables Rudd & Barnes.
The band also included a famous member – now Catholic Arch Bishop of North New Guinea – Douglas Young.