Bulletin

BTG BULLETIN Issue 7 | April 2014

BTG

Bulletin

BTG Bulletin

Easter Edition

April 2014

Issue Date

BTG HAS PARTNERED WITH MISSION AUSTRALIA TO ASSIST YOUNG PEOPLE IN REMOTE WA. IN THIS ISSUE

Bridging the Gap has teamed up with Mission Australia’s Remote Youth Leadership and Development Corps (RYLDC) to assist young people in remote Australia, aged 24 years and under, to transition successfully from school to work by assisting them build foundational and vocational skills to secure sustainable employment.

The partnership, which commenced in February of this year, will see Bridging the Gap provide a variety of activities to support participants to develop life, leadership and employability skills.

Bridging the Gap Chief Executive Colin Kerr said the program will build on the strengths of Job Services Australia, Disability Employment Services and the Indigenous Employment Program, providing a more streamlined and holistic participation service in remote Australia.

“Along with ongoing coaching and mentoring, our trainers will deliver Certificate III in Community Services, supervise a Duke of Edinburgh Bronze

Award and facilitate a Crossing Point expedition,” he said.

Mr. Kerr said assistance will also be provided to improve literacy, numeracy and basic employment skills to overcome vocational and non-vocational barriers to employment.

“Mission Australia’s Remote Jobs and Communities Program is a great initiative that supports people to build their skills and contribute to the strength and sustainability of their community,” he said.

“We are extremely proud to be working in partnership with Mission Australia to deliver a range of services that will allow us to explore leadership skills, increase self-esteem and support participants to identify the necessary steps to confidently attain their personal goals.”

If you would like more information on Bridging the Gap’s various youth development programs please visit bridgingthegap.org.au.

“My Chance, Our Future” With around one in four young Australians neither working nor studying full-time, find out how Bridging the Gap’s Youth Connections program provides a safety net for young people.

More on Page 2

Golden Discounts with BTG

Here at Bridging the Gap we’re well known for our community fundraising efforts and this year is no exception! Turn to page two to find out how you can support our various youth and community initiatives.

More on Page 2

Getting Alternative Bridging the Gap teamed up with the Department of Education and CCIWA to deliver the Alternative Education Forum at Murdoch University in March.

More on Page 3

A New Mission

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BTG BULLETIN | Issue 7 PAGE 2

Enjoy the discounts and benefits of your Entertainment

TM Membership on your

Smartphone! Proceeds from your Entertainment™ Book purchase will help fund our vital community programs such as Crossing Point, ASPIRE and Ngulla Training and Community Centre. For more information on these programs please visit our website.

With youth unemployment nearing crisis point in the South West, Bridging the Gap has jumped on board the My Chance Our Future campaign launched by the Brotherhood of St Laurence welfare group to highlight the positive work achieved through Youth Connections.

With new figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showing that unemployment in Rockingham/Kwinana has reached 11.7 per cent, Bridging the Gap’s Assistant Youth & Community Manager, Nicola Squires, welcomes attention to this urgent issue.

“Youth Connections knows better than most how tough it is for our young people to get a job in the South West, so this campaign is sorely needed,” she said.

“We also know how much damage unemployment can do to our young people and to our local community. We need this issue on the radar, and the My Chance, Our Future campaign will help do that,” Ms. Squires added.

With around one in four young Australians neither working nor studying full-time, Youth Connections provides a safety net for young people through the provision of tailored case management, mentoring and alternative education.

Ms. Squires said the program, which was launched in 2010, has seen over 30,000 participants across Australia with 94 per cent of those reengaged still connected with education or employment after six months.

Ms. Squires added that parents and young people alike are encouraged to

visit Bridging the Gap for further information surrounding the alternative education programs on offer.

“At Youth Connections we really encourage anyone in our local community who is concerned about youth unemployment to sign up to the new campaign so we can really start to tackle this growing problem together,” she said.

If you would like more information on the My Chance Our Future campaign please visit ww.bsl.org.au.

More information is available at the Brotherhood of St Laurence’s website: www.bsl.org.au.

We’re fundraising with

Bridging the Gap is well known for their community fundraising efforts and this year is no exception.

We’re excited to again present an opportunity for our friends and colleagues to pre-order their 2014 | 2015 Entertainment

TM

Membership from us, with 20 per cent of every purchase going towards our community projects.

For the first time your EntertainmentTM

Membership is available in two formats: the traditional Gold Book, or in digital format allowing you to redeem offers directly from your Apple or Android device.

Memberships are available from May – but if you pre-order yours now, you’ll receive $260 worth of bonus offers that you can use straight away!

Discover hundreds of valuable up to 50 per cent off and 2-for-1 offers for many of the best restaurants, cafés, arts, attractions, hotels, travel, shopping and much more, with an Entertainment™ Membership!

Available from 1st

May, the new 2014 | 2015 Perth Entertainment™ Memberships cost just $65 and you’ll receive over $20,000 in valuable offers you can use until 1 June, 2015.

Ordering is easy. Simply visit: http://tinyurl.com/btg-gold

Let Us Entertain You!

Campaigning for the Future of our Youth

To find out more please visit:

http://www.youthconnections.com.au/partnership-broker

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BTG BULLETIN | Issue 7 PAGE 3

Highlighting Alternative Education

BTG BITES

Saving Life, Limb and Property! The team at Bridging the Gap would like to congratulate our own Bert Scarrott from Ngulla Training and Community Centre who was recently recognised at Government House for his 30 years of volunteer firefighting – saving life, limb and property! Congratulations Bert!

Bon Voyage Linda! After 14 years at the helm of our youth and community projects, it was with a heavy heart that Bridging the Gap bid farewell to Linda Colley.

Linda, on behalf of the entire team at BTG we wish you the best of luck. You will be sorely missed.

Kay Masters will replace Linda Colley as Manager for Training and Community and will commence with Bridging the Gap in April, 2014.

FAST FACTS

1347 The number of young people assisted by Bridging the Gap into further education or employment since 2010.

Proudly organised by the Department of Education, Bridging the Gap and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (WA), the Alternative Learning Forum launched at Murdoch University on March 21.

The forum, which aimed to provide educators, pastoral mentors and youth workers with information and resources to support alternative education opportunities for young people, was attended by around 100 youth and community workers across the Peel to Fremantle region.

Bridging the Gap’s Youth Connections Coordinator Robert Bray said the forum, which featured guest speakers from the Education Department and Dismantle, was long overdue.

“It had been identified throughout the South Metropolitan Region that there was a lack of knowledge within schools and the community sector as to the options available for young people in regard to alternative education and training options available,” he said.

“The initiative was specifically designed to provide an in-depth understanding of the alternative learning programs on offer in the region and the target markets that each program specifically caters for,” Mr Bray added.

If you would like more information on Bridging the Gap’s alternative education programs please visit bridgingthegap.org.au or contact Robert Bray on (08) 9550 1111.

Nicola Squires, Kiri Faithfull and Gareth James at the Alternative Education Forum in March.

Above from top: Bridging the Gap’s Katy Montgomery, CCIWA’s Russell Trowbridge and Sean Wrigley and Robert Bray and Gareth James representing Youth Connections.

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BTG BULLETIN Issue 7 | April 2014

Bridging the Gap’s computing short courses are back for 2014, and they’re popular!

For just $5 per hour, our non-accredited series of courses for beginners cover everything you could possibly need to know to power up your PC and stay safe online.

Our friendly, experienced training team will guide you step-by-step to create simple documents and spreadsheets, master the mysteries of Microsoft and find out more about Facebook.

More information about our computing short courses is available at our website:

bridgingthegap.org.au/short-courses

Start Date Course Title AM/PM Duration Last Date Cost

8th April 2014 Word Basics AM 4 weeks 29th April $40 pp

8th April 2014 Excel Basics PM 4 weeks 29th April $40 pp

6th May 2014 Internet & PC

Basics AM 4 weeks 27th May $40 pp

6th May 2014 Facebook 101 PM 3 weeks 20th May $30 pp

AM sessions start at 9.30am and finish at 11.30am

PM sessions start at 2.00pm and finish at 4.00pm

Conquer Computing with a BTG Short Course

For Further Details:

Contact the training team on 9550 1111 or email training@bridgingthegap.org.au.

Payment Information

The preferred payment method for each course is cash; however invoices can be issued with direct deposit details available upon request.

BTG

BTG’s Life Long Learning Centre boasts a fully equipped computer lab.