There is a shortage in the Illawarra of workers in aged care and, as a community, we need to try and address this issue. As a community we need to also ensure we provide assistance to a wide range of people, in this case, to people of refugee background.
Over the previous 12 months the RC (Rotary Club) of Dapto has been researching the development of a Scholarship Scheme to address these needs.
Over the previous 12 months the RC (Rotary Club) of Dapto has been researching the development of a Scholarship Scheme to address these needs.
The research has resulted in a focus on providing a scholarship to refugees living in the Wollongong area and to targeting the Certificate III in Individual Support (Aged Care). The project will involve the RC of Dapto in partnership with Marco Polo, and SCARF (Strategic Community Assistance to Refugee Families). The focus of the scholarship will be to provide financial help as well as mentoring and tutorial advice. Each scholarship is worth $2000 which can be used for a variety of assistance such as childcare, fees, equipment or transport. The intention is to provide assistance to a person to take up study and employment, to give them a sense of belonging and inclusion and empower them in our community as well as to address, in a small measure, the need for more aged-care workers in our community. Participants will be identified through a selection process during October and November. The successful participants will enrol in the Certificate III in Individual Support (Aged Care) in TAFE NSW – Illawarra Institute to begin study in February 2020. The RC of Dapto and Marco Polo will provide the financial support, SCARF tutorial support. The RC of Dapto will also provide mentoring as participants work through the course. Clinical placement will be provided by Marco Polo. It is hoped that on conclusion of the course, the participants will be successful in gaining employment at Marco Polo. This is a pilot program and will be evaluated to establish its effectiveness in meeting the needs of participants and the ability to provide committed, well trained employees for the aged care industry.