Linda Walton, PATHS family development coordinator at BESTCDG; Gordon King, community programs manager at Sarina Russo; Sharon Home, PATHS family case manager at BESTCDG; and Darren Coppin, vice president at Ixion Holdings.
G’day readers.
As always, it has been a busy period down under with lots going on.
The PATHS programme has begun in earnest and staff have made an excellent start to the project, which will help many jobless families in Bundaberg, Queensland. The success of the project will also demonstrate what can be achieved by partnering with likeminded organisations that work together to meet customers’ needs.
Here are the views of one PATHS staff member on the training:
“This week we had the wonderful opportunity to experience Intense Welfare Applied Positive Psychology with Darren Coppin. The interesting thing about this training is that you feel you already know so much of it, because we are reminded of how we humans naturally think and behave.
“It reinforces that it is the simple and open techniques that really work the best, but that they are also the ones that probe the most thought. Our minds have been crammed with information and we are grateful for having the written text to reach for when we need a brush up or a new strategy. We are excited to meet our clients again and work through some of these newly-acquired techniques and experience the affects and changes it is surely to have upon them and us.”
The partnership with Wesley has gathered momentum and after the recent visit of some of their staff to the UK, where they were shown the operations of CDG, the future is looking bright as both BESTCDG and Wesley begin to develop a clear understanding of the long term objectives of the partnership.
I am working closely with Wesley to implement a new innovation project in one of its social enterprises as well as working with their employment services manager to pilot the UK’s ‘Expert Volunteer Initiative’ from 1 July.
The federal budget will be released on 10 May, and will give some indication on the future contracts in JSA and DES that may be available to tender for later this year.
BESTCDG, BEST Community Development and Wesley have a strategy in place where all three organisations can work together effectively to ensure high quality tenders are submitted. This strategy will also be aided by resources from CDG UK.
At the end of May, Richard Clifton, director of business development for CDG, and David Bradford, trustee for CDG and BESTCDG, will visit Australia to work with BEST CD and me on future strategy and also to meet with the board and staff of Wesley.
