Organisation: Department of Justice and Attorney-General
Job Title: Caseworker
Word Limit: 2 pages
Location: Cairns
With seven years of experience as a Youth Worker, and having completed a Diploma of Youth Work, I am committed to making a difference in the lives of young people, and specifically to reducing the rate of offence and re-offence through positive interventions. My experience with both Victory Life Centre and Generations Centre involved providing support for young people ranging in age from 8 to 12 years old. Here I facilitated workshops and events designed to uplift youth, resulting in the building of trust and confidence. This created a safe place in which the youth could confide, and whereby I could facilitate assistance through the use of mindfulness, positive psychology principles and person-centre therapy techniques. I demonstrated respect for each individual I worked with, helping them break free from the judgement of others to develop greater self-judgement skills. Through this process I have seen many troubled youth grow into well-adjusted adults.
To provide the best possible service to these ones, I worked collaboratively with a range of stakeholders, both professional and family. With these ones I worked to develop a proactive strategy that engaged the youth in positive life activities. The creation of this safe place, where young people were not judged and were positively engaged, contributed to the reduction of engagement in criminal offences.
Having grown up in an area of high indigenous population, I have many years of experience in understanding the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures. In my current role with the Central Institute of Technology I worked in partnership with the Commonwealth Bank to provide opportunities for indigenous ladies in the community to train toward a position with the bank. At the end of the training these ladies were offered positions with the bank. Through this process it was discovered that, although the people from the bank were very good at their job, they had little understanding of how to effectively teach these roles, and little understanding of the Aboriginal culture. My responsibility was to go in and mediate the situation. There was one particular student refusing to join in the activities, however the bank staff were continuing with a confrontational approach. I explained to them that that approach was shaming her, and that was not going to be effective in encouraging her to rejoin the group. The advice I was able to provide facilitated a change in approach, and a successful rejoining of the group to continue training.
In addition to this, I had the opportunity to mentor a young indigenous student who had registered to do a traineeship with the college. Although this was not a part of my role requirements, I made myself available to his questions, and assisted him wherever I could to achieve a solid working foundation. In spite of his circumstances, he has worked hard to excel in this area, and has now found paid employment with the government. Through my working relationship with this student, as well as my work with the David Wirrpanda Foundation, I have developed an in-depth cultural understanding and sensitivity.
Although my opportunity to engage with the youth justice system has been limited, I am aware that restorative justice processes facilitate the mediation of each person, according to individual needs. My understanding of the needs of individuals in terms of support and learning processes was enhanced in my position as a Barista Lecturer at Foyer Oxford. But adapting my teaching style to facilitate different learning styles, I developed the ability to disarm and engage young people quickly and effectively. This was a program designed for ‘at risk’ youth aged 16-25. By completing an initial assessment of the students’ current knowledge and skills, I could target my teaching to meet their needs. This resulted in excellent learning outcomes, with every student passing the course.
I understand also that youth make little progress when they are not yet ready to engage in the process. Through the Foyer program, as well as the indigenous program with the Commonwealth Bank, I developed the ability to assess the readiness and dedication of the learner. I learned that when the individual is not ready to engage, sometimes you have to let try again when they are ready and see the value in the program they are engaging in. As a Caseworker, it would be my primary aim to first demonstrate the value of the intervention program to best engage the youth in restorative practices.
My excellent interpersonal skills, combined with high level written and verbal communication skills, have enabled me to develop and maintain positive working relationships with a range of stakeholders, including clients, families, team members and external organisations. My ability to work effectively as a contributing part of a team has been demonstrated in my current role, where I provide regular support and assistance to colleagues within the Beauty, Building and Engineering portfolios. In addition to this, I provide support to other staff in understanding academic procedures and practice. My role as a part of this team means I am often called upon to communicate with students on behalf of academic staff in relation to the organisation and completion of forms for the exemption process. This results in students’ previous learning and experience being recognised, and often credited toward their qualification.
The principle I endeavour to apply to every part of my life stems from a motivational speaker I heard when I was younger: ‘Give the person you are with or the task you are doing the gift of your full attention’. This has served me well in dealing with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, as I am much better able to empathise having given my full attention to understanding their situation and culture. I understand that ATSI people get a lot of their identity from their heritage and community, and subsequently struggle with issues of not feeling like they belong in contemporary society. By showing empathy for their struggles, I am able to provide effective support and guidance in overcoming these issues. My success in being able to develop positive relationships and communication channels with ATSI people is further demonstrated by the CEO of the David Wirrpanda Foundation enthusiastically agreeing to be a reference for me in this position as she remembered the positive impact I had on the organisation, despite me having no contact with them in approximately five years.
Throughout my career, in a range of administrative positions, I have demonstrated excellent time management skills. Whilst working as an Executive Personal Assistant, I was also balancing volunteer work with the David Wirrpanda Foundation, and utilised tools such as the calendar and task functions of Microsoft Outlook to facilitated a structured approach to my work. Utilising these tools, and a flagging system for emails to indicate what still needs to be addressed, I was able to effectively prioritise my work and set realistic expectations for when a task would be completed.
I am committed to a culture of continuous improvement and professional development. Specifically, every year I endeavour to undertake studies to enhance my professional capacity. This year, that has included a Certificate IV in Business and a Certificate IV in Customer Management. In addition to this, I embrace feedback within my employment. In my current roles that includes performance management meetings every six months, and feedback from students every six weeks in the Barista course. I respond positively and proactively to constructive feedback. Specifically, I had a situation where a particular Lecturer asked me to send out a letter to students on their behalf requesting them to withdraw from the class or pay their fees. I drafted the letter and sent it to the Lecturer for approval before sending it out, but received no feedback in response. The next week there was a general email stating that Lecturers were unhappy that their letters had not been sent. Understanding that approaching the Lecturer directly would only escalate the situation, I chose instead to approach my Manager to explain my actions. She was very supportive, and the letter was approved and promptly sent to the relevant students.
I am confident in my professional writing skills, and my ability to quickly learn specific structures and protocols as they apply to a particular context. Having worked at a live-in house for ‘at risk’ youth, I am experienced in providing detailed documentation, including details of medications, money and youth attitudes. In addition to this, I have been involved in the development of risk assessments for youth facing court appearances, as well as working with a team to develop a plan to assist youth to achieve their goals. I am confident these skills will be easily transferred to the statutory environment, in the writing of case notes, reports, affidavits, risk assessments and intervention plans.
My volunteer history demonstrates my passion for working with ‘at risk’ youth, and I look forward to the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of young people in the youth justice system.
