Gibb River Road (Early Childhood and Youth Development) Project AUSTRALIA Project Brief FY 2016

EDUCATION

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You can help communities living along the Gibb River Road to achieve positive and sustainable social outcomes by supporting them to develop and run early childhood and youth development programs. Having identified a vision of living in community for generations to come, there is a subsequent need for communities along the Gibb River Road to develop projects that are focused on children and young people. By supporting this project, you will assist these communities as they work towards achieving positive and sustainable social outcomes through the development of community-run early childhood and youth development programs.

$15,000 could provide learning and language materials and nutritious food for children in early childhood Front playgroups in the Kimberley cover: XXX region for one year. Background The Ngarinyin communities of Imintji, Kupungarri, Ngallagunda and Dodnun are located in very small settlements along the Gibb River Road in the King Leopold Ranges region of the West Kimberley. These communities are all self-governed and incorporated under the Aboriginal Councils and Associations Act 1976. The communities have themselves articulated a number of priorities, identifying a need for increased access to early childhood and youth programs as key priorities to support positive and sustainable social outcomes. Their small size, remote location and inaccessibility during the wet season (road closures between November and March each year), have rendered these communities difficult to service, and consequently, they have missed out on many of the development initiatives and opportunities which communities in other parts of the Kimberley have had access to. The region does not receive funding for early childhood provision in the form of childcare, crèche or playgroups and instead is dependent on a mobile service which visits each community for one day each month during the dry season. Community aspirations for early childhood and youth development programs are strong, and the

Gibb River Road

communities have asked for support to establish these programs. They also require opportunities to develop the capabilities and confidence that will enable them to effectively manage these programs into the future.

Project overview In 2011, World Vision Australia was engaged by the Australian Government to assist communities along the Gibb River Road to develop short and medium-term community development plans in line with reforms to the government’s Community Development Employment Projects. During this 18-month assessment, the communities identified a vision of living in community for generations to come and a range of priorities for action which included early childhood and youth development. Front cover: This project is supporting Gibb River Road communities to bring to life their vision for early childhood and youth development. Photo: World Vision

Page 3 In early 2014, the Gibb River Road communities invited World Vision to work with them on developing a project focusing on these priority areas which included the establishment of community-run playgroups and after school programs for young people.

 Increased engagement by Gibb River Road communities in regional planning for early childhood and youth development.

The project has now completed its design stage and has begun implementing activities.

 Establishing community-run playgroups within the communities of Imintji, Kupungarri and Ngallagunda.

World Vision has been supported in its work with communities along the Gibb River Road by a number of organisations including: the Australian Government, community councils, schools located in these communities, and True North Church in Perth that currently organises and facilitates annual school holiday programs with these communities.

 Supporting playgroup workers and other interested community members to receive accredited training that will enable them to work towards an early childhood or youth work qualification.

We have also developed a collaborative relationship with Winun Ngari Aboriginal Corporation and Kimberley Training Institute with whom we will work alongside to provide accredited training in community services and who will support the employment of playgroup and youth workers in each community. We will continue to work collaboratively with these organisations and others in the region as the project progresses. Project length: October 2014 – September 2018

Project goal To ensure positive and sustainable social outcomes for the Gibb River Road communities by supporting them to develop and run early childhood and youth development programs in their communities.

Project activities

 Developing intergenerational reference groups who will advise on the establishment, implementation and direction of early childhood and youth programs in their communities.  Employing community playgroup workers and Indigenous community development facilitators.  Facilitating bush trips and other activities which focus on language and culture, and which nurture “strong spirit” in individuals and communities.  Facilitating parenting workshops which provide training and support to parents, caregivers and early childhood playgroup workers.  Collaborating with True North Church to develop school-age recreation programs which support participants’ development of project management skills.

Recent achievements

 Children and youth are inspired to remain in community.

 In 2015, the project employed a local Aboriginal Project Manager, based in Derby, and engaged community members in the process of recruiting a Project Facilitator. The Project Facilitator will provide extra support and momentum for project activities through fortnightly community visits.

 Increased collaboration between communitymanaged early childhood and youth programs and other early childhood services and staff such as schools, government departments, community councils and health professionals.

 The project is working with the Kimberley Training Institute to conduct learning circles in community to build regional governance and a shared vision for early childhood care and development across the communities.

Key outcomes

Page 4  The Project Manager has been working with community members to identify potential candidates who can be employed as local playgroup facilitators and establishing how each community would like to run the playgroups.  Five women from the Gibb River Road communities attended the Secretariat for National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care early childhood conference in Perth in September 2015.  Project staff collaborated with Ngala, a provider of parenting and early childhood services, to facilitate a brain development workshop in Kupungarri community with participants eager to share these learnings with others in their community.  On their own initiative, the Ngallagunda community commenced running their own playgroup in an empty classroom at the local school.  The project has begun exploring what it means to be a “child safe” organisation with project partner Winun Ngari, regional provider of the federally-funded Remote Jobs in Community Program.  Initial discussions have commenced with Wananami School, which services the Kupungari, Imintji and Dodnun communities, on how we can collaborate with them on transition to school activities.

Beneficiaries The Early Childhood and Youth Development Project is providing opportunities for the Gibb River Road communities to establish early childhood and youth programs which will benefit women, children and the broader community.

Church partnership gives young people a new outlook on life Eager to learn more about community development and to increase its ability to work with Indigenous communities, Perth’s True North Church approached World Vision Australia in 2012. That same year, the community of Ngallagunda on the Gibb River Road in Western Australia’s Kimberley region experienced severe flooding. Seeing the need for an activity to help boost community spirits during this challenging time, World Vision asked the community of Ngallagunda if it would be interested in working with the church who would provide volunteers to run a school holiday program for young people. Since then, True North Church has worked alongside World Vision and the community of Ngallagunda to facilitate an annual school holiday program. During their most recent visit (April 2015), the church expanded the school holiday program to include the communities of Imintji and Kupungarri. Activities run with young people in Ngallagunda have included tennis coaching, song writing and recording, photography, basketball and meals shared together. Over time, True North Church will work with World Vision and the youth of these communities to develop a school holiday program which is directed and facilitated by young people themselves, giving them an opportunity to develop project management skills and ensure that the programming provided is relevant and focused on their interests.

Project sustainability The project is designed to build local capacity and to support the personal and professional development of participating individuals. It does not intend to “reinvent the wheel” or displace existing community-based organisations, but rather to identify suitable models and existing key organisations for partnership.

The school holiday program provides opportunities for youth to have fun and develop new skills. Photo: Colin Battersby/World Vision

Page 5 Partnering with existing service providers and strengthening community-based leadership will help to create a sense of community ownership that encourages sustainability into the future.

Project evaluation and reporting Transparency is at the core of our programs and their delivery. Only then can we strategically assess the level of change achieved in the communities in which we work. All of World Vision’s projects are assessed at regular intervals against implementation plans, budgets and progress towards their objectives. Evaluations help us identify what works and why, and are therefore a critical part of our programming approach. Our partners will receive an annual project report outlining progress against key outcomes and activities undertaken. Project challenges and adjustments will be communicated. Project images and case studies are also often available.

Funding We invite you to partner with World Vision Australia as we seek to fund $1,040,000* in FY16 from donors to support this project. *Estimated as at time of printing and subject to change.

Join us Join World Vision Australia, its partners and the communities of the Gibb River Road as they work towards achieving positive and sustainable social outcomes through the development of community-run early childhood and youth development programs.

Contact us World Vision Australia Tel: 1300 303 401 [email protected] or your WVA representative