5 May 2015 | General Interest
SNAICC travels to Western Australia’s East Kimberly region for transition to schools project
In April SNAICC CEO Frank Hytten and Senior Training Officer Kate Booth took off to the East Kimberly region as part of a week-long getting to know the community visit, looking at community needs in preparation for the five-year program.
The journey started in Kununurra when Frank and Kate met with Natasha Short from the Wunan Foundation to start talks about our partnership and how we would like to work together. Then it was on to Halls Creek where the local community embraced Frank and Kate, allowing them to attend and speak at community meetings and gatherings about the project, and listen to community needs. It was clear that the community are deeply committed to the education and care of all children in the area, and that culture is a strong part of everyday life.
SNAICC has identified some core program elements based on our time in community members:
- culturally appropriate and inclusive programs and partnerships that bridge Western practice with Aboriginal perspectives and ways of being;
- local children thrive with culture alive;
- strength based approaches and partnerships; and
- holistic supports…there will be more after our next visit.
After meeting with many local community members and visiting organisations – including Ningkuwum-Ngamayuwu Halls Creek Children and Family Centre, Kimberley Language Resource Centre, and Kimberley Training Institute – it was then time for a quick radio spot with Maria Lovinson at PRK Radio 98.1FM before getting back on the road for the trek home.
Frank and Kate felt very privileged to have met with so many community members and have such memorable moments that will stick with them from their journey. We wish to thank everyone for taking time out of their busy schedules and lives to meet with SNAICC for a yarn. SNAICC look forward to many more yarns over the next five years and being part of the Halls Creek community.
A special thank you is extended to Maria Lovinson for all her support and efforts to introduce Frank and Kate to community members and make them feel welcome.
SNAICC shares knowledge on reconciliation at early years presentation
In April SNAICC Manager, Training David Ellis, presented to two groups of 150 participants at the Early Childhood Management Services professional development day.
Early Childhood Management Services is a not-for-profit community enterprise that provides quality early childhood education and care for children, families and communities across Melbourne.
The program focussed on reconciliation for early years services, while David’s presentation focussed on the theme of hands on reconciliation. The discussion looked at how to build Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural competence into services and approaches.
Training gearing up: visit to Mackay for family violence prevention kicking off a busy training period
SNAICC has been invited to attend the annual Queensland Indigenous Family Violence Prevention Forum, which will be held in Mackay on the first week of June.
SNAICC will start the week by delivering a Through Young Black Eyes workshop on the 1-2 June. The following two days will involve SNAICC facilitating two 90-minute skilling circles at the forum. One of the workshops is related to healing approaches with a trauma informed practice, with the other circle focuses on family violence. The content being delivered will have a strong correlation to our Safe For Our Kids resource.
SNAICC will be represented by David Ellis and Nick Joseph from the Training Team, and Hannah Donnelly, Policy Officer. It’s going to be a busy week, as the trio will also attend various networking events each evening.
Mackay will be the start of a busy few months for the SNAICC Training Team, with workshops to be held in Melbourne and various regional New South Wales and Northern Territory locations (including The Journey to Big School workshops, Through Young Black Eyes workshops, and Recognising and Responding to Trauma workshops).
Check out our training calendar for all upcoming workshops. If your organisation is interested in hosting a workshop, contact Alice at training@snaicc.org.au or on 03 9489 8099.
