Education and training providers are again joining with industry and community representatives to create real opportunities for Sunshine Coast’s young people and launch the new Student Futures website.
The first meeting of the Youth Sector Change Drivers Group (YSCDG) for 2014 will be held on Thursday 27th February at the Institute of Professional Learning, bringing together representatives from school principals, business and industry members and community leaders.
The YSCDG is a Sustainable Partnerships Australia (SPA) partnership brokered through SPA’s delivery of the Australian Government Department of Education School Business Community Partnership Brokers Program. The YSCDG was established on the Sunshine Coast in 2010 and brings representatives from key local, regional, state and national agencies together to network, share knowledge and collaborate to benefit education attainment and career transition for students.
SPA’s Regional Engagement Manager Geoff Timm said the YSCDG aligns career awareness, education and training delivery within schools to the needs of industry for enhanced employment, further training opportunities and career pathways.
“Strong collaboration between SPA and the Queensland Government Department of Education, Training and Employment (DETE) has enabled the YSCDG to become a self-sustaining partnership,” Mr Timm said.
DETE led the creation of Sunshine Coast Education, Training and Employment Consortium to identify and strategically address the provision of education and training needs on the Sunshine Coast in alignment with the Sunshine Coast Regional Economic Development Strategy 2013-2033.
As a working group of the Consortium, the YSCDG undertakes strategic workforce development and employment pathway planning for young people.
This includes:
- Aligning education and training with business and industry to create clear pathways for young people to transition from school to a chosen career.
- Ensuring young people have the appropriate entry level skills for local employment opportunities.
“SPA is delighted to see the YSCDG become an independent group, that can deliver real change and opportunities for the young people of the Sunshine Coast,” Mr Timm said.
The meeting will include a presentation from Mayor Mark Jamieson on the economic development of the Sunshine Coast and how young people play a vital role in its future. Breakout sessions will focus on sharing models of good practice.
Geoff said the Sunshine Coast now has a regional collaboration of stakeholders that are active participants in supporting the regions youth attainment and transition outcomes.
“YSCDG has successfully created discussion and identified employment pathways and local employment opportunities for the young people on the Sunshine Coast,” Geoff said.
SPA, formerly known as QYIL (Queensland Youth Industry Links Inc.), is contracted by the Australian Government Department of Education to deliver the School Business Community Partnership Brokers Program across the Sunshine Coast and Moreton Bay regions. SPA’s aim is to broker strategic and sustainable community partnerships between education and training, business and industry, parents and family, and the wider community. (The Partnership Brokers program is managed by Geoff Timm, Regional Engagement Manager, SPA)
