
OUR HISTORY
PCYC was established in 1937 by Police Commissioner William John Mackay. It was a partnership forged with the community via Rotary and Police to provide young people a safe and positive alternative to the streets.
William John Mackay was born in Scotland in 1885, and had grown up on the streets of industrial squalor of 19th century Glasgow. As a teenager, Bill Mackay discovered that the only places he could meet his friends was out on the streets. There were no organised games, activities, or safe places.
At age 19, William Mackay followed his father into the City of Glasgow’s police force. Looking for greater opportunities afield, Mackay immigrated to Australia and in 1910 at the age of 25, joined the Police Force. In 1936, William Mackay, as the new Commissioner of Police, travelled overseas with a brief of “reviewing the methods of combating crime”.