Stronger Families and Communities Strategy project profiles: First glimpse
Stronger Families Learning Exchange Bulletin No.6 Spring/Summer 2004 pp.28-30
One of the major themes that has emerged from our work with Stronger Families and Communities Strategy projects is the sheer diversity and complexity in the work that projects do. In this section of the Bulletin, as in previous Bulletins, we are pleased to publish project responses to a series of questions about their work.
Koori Link Project
The project setting?
The Koori Link Project, which began in September 2004 and is located in Orange in New South Wales, works with Aboriginal families and young people. It is a support, advocacy, case management and referral service and provides living and work skills programs, where needed. We have two full-time workers and one part-time worker.
Why is the project needed?
Research with the local community identified that the needs of the Aboriginal community were not being met. In particular, there were difficulties for Aboriginal families in accessing appropriate services. Koori Link is a program developed in response to these issues to assist, refer and support clients and families to access services. For example, mentoring, advocacy and support are provided to clients who need to access such agencies as the Department of Housing and Centrelink. Koori Link will also deliver early intervention programs as part of developing skills and a continual support approach.
What are you trying to do in this project?
The purpose of the Koori Link project is to help the Aboriginal community through support, training and skills development, advocacy, mentoring. Using this approach clients are empowered to take positive action in their lives.
How are you going about it?
Initial work has involved letting the local Aboriginal community know that we are available anytime and even if it is for a chat. We have also been meeting local services and informing them about the Koori Link Project. We are also developing understanding of the scope of other services and where the project can fit in without duplication of services.
Through linking in with local community/ government organisations and building up a working relationship, we will be better placed to work with the Aboriginal community. We will also be developing flexible, culture-friendly programs.
Moree Family Support Services
The project setting?
The project began in February 2004. It is auspiced by Moree Family Support and is situated in the Warialda Street Office in Moree in New South Wales. We share the office space with other services who are family based such as the Family Support Worker and the Volunteer Home Visiting Service. Our project is based on early intervention for children aged up to eight years, living in the Moree Plains Shire also within a 60 kilometre radius of Moree. We are going about our work in a variety of ways and taking the programs to the communities.
Why is this project needed?
Our belief is that families are the starting point for significant change in our community and form the foundation for this project. By supporting and strengthening families, long term change will be positive and long asting. Few services in Moree are working with an early intervention and prevention model.
What are you trying to do in the project?
Our project is aimed at providing an early intervention and prevention model of service delivery to families, youth and children. Our goals are to develop the capacity of families and communities, reduce significant disadvantage and develop strong service and support networks for families, youth and children.
How are you going about it?
A work plan has been developed which encompasses a wide range of tasks. These tasks include: the facilitation of opening a parents room which is sorely needed in this area; running of playgroups in isolated areas; creating a mobile service for the Toy Library; recruitment and training of volunteers to assist with some of the projects; a leadership program for youth and newsletters have been produced and distributed to communities. Some of the goals are dependent upon consultation with communities and what they see is needed.
What has the project been doing in the last six months?
In the last six months the project has been able to recruit all of the staff required. The last staff member came on board in May 2004.
There are seven supported playgroups now operating out of the project's office: three Indigenous playgroups, three rural and one that is held at the Family Support Offices. We have further identified more areas for the rural playgroups and are negotiating to begin holding them in those areas.
The Toy Library has become mobile and a catalogue has been developed. We are currently talking with families about memberships and the benefits of joining the Toy Library. A couple of families have indicated that they will become members.
Moree Council has a parents room in the local town hall that is only used for private functions. We are negotiating with them in relation to opening it during the day for a parents room - we are assured that the negotiations are a formality and they will allow us to use this room. This will entail recruiting volunteers, training them and support - a lot of work. The parents room has been a great networking tool for us as a lot of the communities and organisations are excited about there being this kind of facility available in Moree. This has meant approaching business and organisations for funding to supply some of the equipment we will need. We have been successful in finding some sponsors but are always on the hunt for more.
A Project Advisory Group has been formed. There has been problems with availability of some members so I have sent letters to other organisations and community members who may be willing to attend. We have spoken about the formation of an Early Intervention Interagency Group and how we get members. There are many services that attend meetings in Moree and sometimes feel there are to many meetings. Still negotiating.
Project marketing has occurred. As a result of the marketing, Outward Bound has sponsored six young leaders in Moree. Feedback has been positive at this stage.
A new project to support Aboriginal women in South Moree is being undertaken. Consultation has been occurring and a great interest is beingshown in the formation of this group. The idea for this group came about as the young mothers who were out of the target group for the Community Midwifery Team had no other service to engage with. We hope to get the Aboriginal workers from local government and non government sector to come and speak (very informally) with the women about services and what they do in their jobs.
Some of our work plan has been hindered by circumstances beyond our control. The local Murray community has been in disarray due to renovations that are occurring in Stanley Village and Mehi Crescent. All of the families have been moved out of their homes and into town or with other family members which has had a huge impact on consultations and attendance at Playgroups. Some of the families are gradually returning but it looks as though the renovations will be occurring until next year.
How has the project incorporated action research into its work?
Action research is an ongoing process for us. We certainly talk with community members about their thoughts on everything that has anything to do with their community. We realise, especially in Aboriginal communities, that they really need to be part of the process otherwise it is just another program that will fail. We are flexible when we realise that something may not be working and look at why and strategies for how it can be changed so the program will not fail. Particularly in Playgroups this has meant in some communities that it has helped in building community capacity.
How is the project recording its processes and learning (including but not only action research)?
There are numerous strategies I personally do such as small file notes with dates and times. We record supervision sessions on a table where some of the issues we face are talked about. I have worked on action sheets in relation to some projects that have been occurring. We also provide Family Support with monthly reports where some of these processes and learnings are talked about. The Early Intervention workers keep sign-on sheets for Playgroups and use the Smart software package for their statistics.
What has been learned in the last six months that may be of interest and value to other projects?
One valuable thing we have been taught is that sometimes we may not get the desired goal but it does not mean we should give up hope on goals. As long as the programs that we run, now or in the future, changes something (big or small) in a child's life, or gives a child a positive experience, then it is worth it. With the renovations that are occurring in some parts of Moree the numbers for the playgroup has been very low. However the playgroup activities will go ahead with one child in attendance. Staff at the agency realise that things will not change for communities overnight.
Tilligerry Family Network Project
The project setting?
The Tilligerry Family Network in New South Wales is based at Tilligerry Place, a community shopfront shared with Tilligerry Youth Project and Tilligerry Adult and Community Education. The Tilligerry Peninsula is a geographically isolated community situated between Tilligerry Creek on the south and the southern shore of Port Stephens on the north, with the only land access being via Lemon Tree Passage Road. Tilligerry consists of the small villages of Tanilba Bay, Mallabula, Lemon Tree Passage, Oyster Cove and Salt Ash, and has a current population of approximately 5,600 people. There is a predominance of families with children and older residents; 23.7 per cent of the population are under 14 years.
The project particularly targets those families of Tilligerry who are disadvantaged - that is, sole-parent families, young parents, families experiencing violence, families who have had a long involvement with the welfare system, low income families, geographically and socially isolated families, families with a member with a disability including mental illness, Indigenous and culturally and linguistically diverse families, families living with the effects of drug and alcohol use, and families with child protection issues, including specifically the children of all of the above families.
Why is the project needed?
The nearest centre for social services for families of the Tilligerry Peninsula is Raymond Terrace, located 40 km away. Inadequate transport for Tilligerry is the largest single barrier for families in being able to access this service. The combination of poorly run services and facilities and difficulty in reaching those that do exist, means that many community members, particularly those on low incomes and/or without reliable access to a car, simply have no choice but to cope with the reduced quality of life. According to the Port Stephens Crime Profile 2001, "a leading risk factor for criminal behaviour is poor access to social and community services". The recently opened Landcom Estate with 300 lots will see a dramatic increase in families with children on the Peninsula. Increased services are needed to meet the needs of this expanding community.
The services that do outreach to Tilligerry have identified the need for a coordinated response to service provision on the Peninsula. The Tilligerry Family Network project aims to bring the services together and lobby for and promote new services to the area. This would avoid duplication and provide a vital link between service providers and local families. This provides the opportunity where community services, information and resources can be shared and utilised. The venue for this is Tilligerry Place.
What are you trying to do in this project?
Our aims are to: support disadvantaged families of the Tilligerry Peninsula in their parenting role; make services accessible to families; to break down social isolation; and link in with the network of support and referral services and contribute to its expansion.
Our objectives are to: strengthen the social fabric of the Tilligerry community through access to a range of services and activities, otherwise unavailable to disadvantaged families; encourage families to provide the best possible environment for their children's health and wellbeing; encourage participation by the client group in locally driven community projects; and develop the Tilligerry Family Network's ability to work directly with children in Tilligerry.
Through extensive community and service providers consultation we are aiming to provide a service that is truly representative of what this community sees as needed and wanted. The service grows and changes term by term in line with feedback shared by service users, including children. This feedback shapes and moulds the project, strengthening the community by its approach.
Various means of obtaining the necessary information are employed from low-key conversations, art work, message boards, drop-in at Tilligerry Place, forms (though these are not very popular), sharing narratives, scrap booking and collages, group gatherings, community cuppas, newsletters, and lots of eavesdropping (with permission). Participants in all groups, including children, have their own journals which grow and develop week by week. The playgroup journals are mostly artwork and photos. The kids groups include arts, crafts, recipes, photos, memoirs and self esteem building information. The parents' groups include personalised information and shared inspirational narratives both self produced and copied from various sources. The community cuppas include a lot of arts and crafts and share a Tilligerry Family Network photo album.
The service provision approach is non-threatening and focuses on fun. A light-hearted atmosphere is created and encouraged, and the breaking down of divisions within the community is the desired outcome.
How are you going about it?
The project is currently staffed by one project leader, two casual early intervention children's workers, one administration officer, and 11 volunteers.
The project offers: Tilligerry counselling service; Tilligerry Place dropin; Tilligerry parents group; Tilligerry playtime group; Tilligerry Family Network Community cuppa; Fun Kids Club (for children aged 5-8 years); Good Kids Club (for children aged 8-12 years); Tilligerry volunteers group; participation at the Tilligerry Fair; and participation at the Tilligerry Festival.
The project has been very well received within the community. All the activities are very successful and well attended. The children's groups are all full with waiting lists. We have far more requests for service and activities than what we can accommodate.
Though the use of action research methodology to guide the project has been quite time-consuming we're sure that it has contributed to the community taking ownership of the project and promoting its aims and objectives. We would like to be able to provide more activities for children in particular, however are restricted by lack of resources in this area. We are constantly looking at ways to fund these requests.
To finish, I would like to quote one of the children from Fun Kids Club when asked: "What do you like about Fun Kids club?" The response was: "It is the best kids club in the whole wide world!" This is what motivates the staff and volunteers and assures us we are definitely on track.
