Projects

Lead On Projects

Lead On's objective, when it comes to a project, is to engage young people with their community and provide them with opportunities to:

Develop skills that will help with life's journey, employment or education
Develop contacts with the community - networks and connections. Young people connected to their community are more likely to be productive and stay or return to that community
Discovery as to what is possible in their community
Connecting young people with all segments of the community
Grow confidence, self esteem and sense of worth

Why Have Projects?

Whilst projects vary in size, scope and complexity all projects are planned and structured involving community representatives and young people in the process.

Projects are integral to the Lead On model as it is in this environment that young people have the opportunity to work alongside business and community leaders. Most projects are sourced from Businesses and Community Organisations thereby providing "meaningful real-life" experiences that introduce young people to the businesses, and businesses to young people. Community based projects tend to involve "cross-community" project teams resulting in segments of the community becoming more integrated. A "cross-community" project team can also bridge generational, racial, social and socio-economic gaps.

Project Examples

Here are a small number of projects Lead On has been involved with. There are many others that have been run across Australia, and you can find more detail of these on the Lead On Locations page of this website.

Walk In My Shoes

Living In Harmony - Walk In My Shoes project

The Walk In My Shoes project was developed to engage young people from diverse cultural backgrounds to produce stories and a website focussing on the diversity on Australian values in regional communities. The project hopes to increase the level of understanding, tolerance and acceptance and explore the different experiences of young and older generations from a range of diverse groups living in regional Victoria.

Community Door

Community Door project

The Community Door program enables young people to become actively involved in, and contribute to, the decision making structures within their community (under the guidance of mentors). The decision making bodies will be varied, ranging from the local sporting organisation, festival committees to business and community committees and boards of management.

"If it wasn't for Lead On I wouldn't have the interpersonal and business skills that I have today which definitely played a huge part in my ability to literally walk into jobs."

Loop

Loop project

When the rather radical idea of a newspaper supplement being written, designed and edited by young people through Lead On first surfaced back in 2000, it was greeted with a tremendous response from the community.

"As a Graphic Designer I became involved with Lead On during my university studies. Lead On provided me with real life experiences that enhanced my skills in dealing directly with clients, working to timelines, and learning the skills of the trade. Today I use these skills, along with the confidence gained from Lead On to work with our Mulqueen Creative clientele spread across Australia. I think this is something that could have only been achieved through the spring board that Lead On provided."
Drew Jongebloed
Youngblood Ink - http://www.youngbloodink.com.au/

Mentor Market Place - Doing It Differently

Mentor Market Place

The Mentor Marketplace Program encourages the use of mentoring activities to improve outcomes for young people, particularly those at greatest risk of disconnection from their families, community, education and work. The Australian Government has provided $12 million for the Mentor Marketplace Program over four years ending 30 June 2009. The program currently has funding agreements with 26 service providers across Australia.