Tom Quinn Centre - Bundaberg QLD
The Tom Quinn centre provides a range of education and employment programs for young people.
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The Tom Quinn Centre at Bundaberg, Qld, aims to help with a range of needs in the local community.
The Tom Quinn centre is a safe alcohol and drug free place or ‘home’ where you can meet with others and learn new skills, enjoy recreational activities, and gain emotional support.
This page outlines some of the services provided by the Tom Quinn centre.
'Survivors' support group
Meets weekly for people recovering from drug and/or alcohol dependency or who have attempted to self-detox.
'Positive Lifestyles' program
The Positive Lifestyles and Behaviour Management program is for mature-aged people recovering from substance dependency, for youth at risk and for people suffering emotional crisis.
Family support
Family support including recovering drug and alcohol support program, self esteem programs, welfare and emergency relief support, pastoral counselling and crisis support to those grieving through loss by death, family break-up, imprisonment and drug related issues.
Financial counselling
Financial counselling for clients who have been receiving assistance for some time through its welfare area, and are in need of legal or budgetary help to get them to a stable level. Tom Quinn, who is a Qualified Accountant, Chartered Company Secretary and holds a law degree, provides this service with a legal/financial flavour as required.
Counselling
Counselling is available for:
- recovering addicts and their families
- clients experiencing financial difficulties
- people who seek pastoral care in times of grief and crises
- people needing legal advice and support
- clients of the service’s youth refuge
Education & employment programs for youth
- Numerary, literacy and computing programs.
- Access and assistance to necessary support programs eg Centrelink, Department of Families.
- Subsidised lunches for participants and as part of (soon to be accredited) hospitality training
- Other Employment, Work Experience and Community Workshop Programs:
- Furniture and bicycle restoration
- Landscaping
- Computer operations
- Nursery – seedling production
- CJP program for identifying mature age who are looking to get back into the workforce
- Get Set for Work program that we’ve got, targeting youth disengaged from education.
- Work for the Dole
- Post Work for the dole Volunteer to train TAFE accredited volunteer literacy and numeracy tutors.
‘HUB’ project
This project provides participants with access to computer equipment, photocopier, telephone and daily newspapers to study and research the job market. The project caters for a minimum of 45 young people aged 15 – 24 years of age and the most likely figure would be at least 100+ participants seeking the assistance of the service.The 'Hub' liaises with employers, providing employment and training advice and assessment to all participants and works to establish pathways into mainstream training, education and employment.
Employment Assistance is provided by way of professionally prepared resumes, work experience interviews, and marketing job seekers to prospective employers.
Living skills and personal development skill components have been developed and integrated into the program, including such areas as personal barriers, teamwork, work ethics, rights and responsibilities and decision making. Literacy and numeracy training is also available.
Work for the Dole Scheme
The Tom Quinn Community Centre and the Salvation Army have recognised and experienced staff who have a history of managing community based programs and working with unemployed people. This includes managing a variety of employment and training programs including Work for the Dole, Community Jobs Plan, and the Community Employment Assistance Program.Participants are provided with comprehensive training in furniture and bicycle/car restoration, hospitality training and horticulture, as well as other personal development training. This includes time management, communication and team building.
Manager Tom Osborne said: “Many of our Work for the Dole participants tend to re-sign with us in some capacity, either under mutual obligation or go back and do more Work for the Dole, or come back here as volunteers because of what the centre’s done for them. We provide ongoing counselling, personal development, camaraderie… there are a lot of additional peripheral skills or opportunities offered.”
Furniture and Bicycle/Car Restoration
Work for the Dole, work experience participants and volunteers recycle and repair used furniture, bicycles and cars. Work experience is also provided in areas such as landscaping, gardening, IT (renovating of old computers and electrical goods) and hospitality.