Position summary
Tangentyere Council Aboriginal Corporation (TCAC) is a community controlled Public Benevolent Institution delivering human services and social enterprise activities for the benefit of Aboriginal people from the Alice Springs Town Camps, urban Alice Springs, and Central Australia.
Tangentyere's Community Centres Division provides innovative, unique, place-based programs to support Aboriginal children (0-5 years), school age children (6-12 years), youth years), families, and kin to achieve positive outcomes in community safety, education, and wellbeing. There are three programs, delivered through Tangentyere's Town Camp Community Centres that work with families to support improved outcomes for children from birth to 5 years, including:
•Tangentyere's Early Childhood Education Supported Playgroup
•Tangentyere's Child Family Centre program
•Congress' Connected Beginnings Program
The intention of this role is to support improved developmental outcomes through better service integration within Tangentyere services and with external services providing specialist child and allied health services. Congress Child Health Teams, who manage the Connected Beginnings Program in Alice Springs and the broader Central Australian region, provide a range of multi-disciplinary health and development assessments to ensure that Aboriginal children aged 0-5, can access necessary allied health services, early years and pre-school programs as needed.
This role is part of a dynamic team that uses strengths-based, client-centred, community-led approaches to respond to client identified needs. The role facilitates service linkages and referrals to a broad range of internal and external programs and service providers. This role will support Tangentyere's Early Childhood Education Team in undertaking ASQ Trak assessments. It will also support the Early Childhood Education Team and Child and Family Centre Service Connectors to provide wraparound assistance to families where required and refer clients to specialist programs including services provided by Congress's Child Health Teams.
This role will work under guidance from the Division Manager and in close collaboration with the Congress Connected Beginnings Team. The position involves working in Town Camp Community Centres alongside the CFC Service Connectors, Early Years Educators, Local Support Workers, and Community Centre Coordinators. Town Campers recognise Tangentyere's Community Centres as culturally safe spaces to access services and resources. Through the Centres, families get assistance to access a range of support services and programs designed to strengthen family and community capacity in achieving outcomes in overall wellbeing, equity of opportunity and improved outcomes.
The successful candidate will be a highly motivated individual with excellent communication and facilitation skills who is committed to working with Town Camp children and families. Additionally, they will engage with stakeholders and community members to promote the Connected Beginnings and Child Family Centre Programs while ensuring culturally safe, accessibility and responsiveness to individuals, families, and communities across the Alice Springs region.
As part of your role, you will be working with children, people with a disability and people who are vulnerable. It is your obligation to always ensure their safety and report any concerns in line with our duty of care obligations. We have zero tolerance when it comes to abuse of any kind and will take disciplinary action, including and up to termination of employment, should we determine that abuse has taken place or there has been a failure to report any suspected or alleged abuse.
Responsibilities
•Work directly with Town Campers to understand opportunities and maximise outcomes for Town Camp families and their children.
•Identify service gaps and assist in the development of sustainable support networks for Town Camp families and their children.
•With the guidance of the Community Centre Division Manager, lead engagement and build effective relationships with a diverse range of stakeholders and establish service partnerships with providers, where appropriate.
•Work with internal and external agencies and services to coordinate delivery of programs in the Town Camp Community Centres.
•Provide support to Child Family Centre Service Connectors in relation to their role, through both direct and group supervision.
•Provide liaison between Congress Connected Beginnings Program and Tangentyere's Early Childhood Supported Playgroups to use ASQ Trak as a tool for informing referrals to Congress Child Health Teams.
•Work with Tangentyere's Early Childhood Education team to ensure all staff have completed and are confident in undertaking ASQ Trak assessment with Town Camp families and their 0-5 year olds.
•Maximise program outcomes through information sharing, combined resourcing, and integrated planning.
•Prepare program plans, measure performance through maintenance of data management systems, delivery of timely reports and other correspondence, contribute to Child Family Centre and Connected Beginnings quality assurance and continuous improvement, contribute to operational policies and procedures, engage in budget preparation and monitoring commensurate with this role.
•Provide feedback on and advice to the Division Manager on any implementation issues/problems.
•Assist with achieving quality management objectives across the organisation.
•Assist with achieving safeguarding objectives across the organisation.
•Assist with achieving compliance objectives across the organisation.
•Other reasonable duties as required.
Qualifications and Selection Criteria
Required
•Tertiary qualifications or equivalent experience in Community Development, Human and Social Services, Social Work, Early Years Sector, Primary Health Care or a relevant discipline.
•A demonstrated understanding of Aboriginal culture as well as a broad range of contemporary issues affecting Central Australian Aboriginal people.
•A commitment to community led practice, human rights, self-determination, and cultural safety in practice.
•Demonstrated experience in group facilitation, preferable in diverse-cultural situations.
•Demonstrated experience in developing and delivering programs.
•Demonstrated experience in building and harnessing internal and external partnerships.
•Demonstrated strong communication skills – verbal, written, computer literacy and ability to use electronic databases.
•Demonstrated ability to work as part of a team as well as to work with independence and autonomy.
•Strong interpersonal skills.
•Current NT Drivers Licence, NT Working with Children (Ochre) Card, satisfactory Police Check, and proof of full (3) vaccination against COVID-19.
Desired
•Current First Aid Certificate, or ability and willingness to attain.