On Wednesday, Souths Cares Liverpool Opportunity Hub hosted their second annual Community Consultation Evening with parents, teachers, students and community members working collaboratively to help shape the Opportunity Hub’s service delivery for 2023.
The event commenced with an afternoon tea, followed by an Acknowledgement of Country, stakeholder introductions and a summary of the Hub’s Term 1 priorities and Workshop content.
The attendees then broke into smaller focus groups, to explore and discuss some of the key issues impacting Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander young people within Liverpool LGA, as well as brainstorm new workshops which would benefit program participants. The focus groups came up with some valuable insights and ideas which will be incorporated into the Hub’s programming this year.
The event was well attended by the Hub’s stakeholders including students and teachers from All Saints Catholic College, Liverpool Boys High School, Liverpool Girls High School, James Busby High School, Prestons Public School as well as representatives from NSW Education and Marumali Aboriginal Health Promotion Service.
2023 will be another huge year for the Liverpool Opportunity Hub, with the program currently delivered at 24 schools within Liverpool LGA to over 315 Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander student between grades five to 12.
Major activities will include industry visits, four leadership and cultural camps, an Education, Employment and Health Wellbeing Expo, school holiday programs, cultural workshops, education/employment workshops as well as holistic mentoring support for each student.
Bianca Williams, Liverpool Opportunity Hub Program Coordinator explained community consultation was a fundamental part of their approach.
“Giving our community the opportunity to come together to learn and share is a powerful means of keeping what we do relevant and meaningful to our students.
It was great to see and hear the thoughts and ideas of those that were able to join us and we now look forward to putting these ideas into practice throughout 2023’, Bianca said.
Adam Reid is the Aboriginal Education Coordinator at Liverpool Boys High School and enjoyed the opportunity to build connections with the Hub and other service providers.
“It was a pleasure to meet the Souths Cares team and learn more about the vast array of opportunities and innovative ideas they have planned for our students this term.
I’m looking forward to working together with the Hub and our local community to help our Koori boys excel in and out of the classroom”, Adam said.
The Liverpool Opportunity Hub is proudly supported by Training Services NSW.
