Timber Creek training lifts employment opportunities for remote CDP participants

Media Release - Victoria Daly Regional Council

Employment opportunities in their own backyard and further afield are now on the cards for almost 20 Community Development Program participants following an innovative collaboration between Victoria Daly Regional Council and Batchelor Institute earlier this month.

In total, 18 participants from five remote communities converged on Timber Creek for the four-day course, which provided a formal qualification and personal development, in addition to having the “contagious” effect of inspiring other members of Bulla, Myatt, One Mile, GIlwi and Gulardi.

The course built on civil operations training already undertaken over the past 12 months, and CDP Regional Manager Janelle Iszlaub said the skills and knowledge that had been acquired meant that participants were now armed with the qualifications needed to secure employment in the sector.

'Training has done wonders for the local community, with community groups that previously have not come together for training putting aside community issues for the greater good of training and skills development,' she explained.

'There are employment opportunities in the local area that offer pathways of personal development and breaking the unemployment cycle, like the Keep River Road project.

'It’s been incredible to watch these men and women increase their knowledge and employability, and it becomes contagious once a community member is working and doing well – they inspire others to follow.”

Logistics played a pivotal role in bringing the training to a remote area, and Mrs Iszlaub praised CDP staff who made the daily 120-kilometre round trip to pick up and drop off participants.

'To maximise the training, participants stayed longer then their time requirements, which helped create a terrific feeling of camaraderie and engagement between them, CDP staff and the trainers from Batchelor Institute,' she said.

Timber Creek CDP Activities Supervisor Shane Sluggett said he was incredibly proud of the participants and threw down the gauntlet for other community members to get involved with the positive outcomes the program was delivering.

'Supervising participants in proactive projects has resulted in several full-time jobs filled by CDP participants, but it’s more than that,' he said.

'Having the self-belief that they can achieve anything, and the proudness when they do, is why I do my job.

'In conjunction with training organisations like Batchelor Institute, Council’s CDP approach is breaking barriers and building solid results.'

Council runs CDP projects in its local government area on behalf of the National Indigenous Australians Agency.

The Commonwealth Government initiative assists jobseekers in remote communities to find employment as they contribute to their communities and gain new skills in the process.