Skills for Good - October 2023: Te Pūkenga collaboration, drop-in sessions, graduates success and more

Tēnā koutou

In this month’s newsletter, we share details about the upcoming 2023 annual employer survey. I can provide assurance that we consider the results and your feedback very carefully, and the arrival of the results each year is always a ‘moment of truth’ for us. I encourage you to take 5-10 minutes completing the survey, as the whole intention of the survey is to better understand what we can or need to do better for you so we can continue to improve overall satisfaction results.

We also share reminders around changes across a number of our programmes including version changes and unit standards expiring. These changes do place an additional impetus on learners completing specific unit standards or modules, so please contact your Careerforce advisor if you are unsure about any of these changes.

As always, we have also shared some inspiring and uplifting learner stories. These people are our “why”, and I applaud them for their achievements, and their mahi.

Ngā mihi nui

Rod Bentham
Executive Director
Te Pūkenga, trading as Careerforce

Early in November, you will receive a personalised email invite to complete our seventh annual employer survey, and we really want to hear from you. You can say as much or as little as you want to, but your responses give us an understanding on how we’re performing, and where we can improve. This year, we are also asking some specific questions around learner assessment capability, and also some questions around what is most important to you from your training provider. While we have continually refined our service offering over many years, we do need to make sure that we are putting our efforts and resources into the things that matter most to you.

Just a reminder that this survey is conducted by an external research company, Carte Blanche, and all responses are completely anonymous. The survey invites will be sent by Carte Blanche. If you don’t receive a survey invite, please check your spam folder, or email Marcomms, and we will arrange for a survey link to be sent.

As with recent years, every 20th survey completion receives a $50 Prezzy Card.

Te Pūkenga business divisions Careerforce and UCOL are working collaboratively to support THINK Hauora with the general practice (primary care) workforce in the Manawatū region to upskill and gain a recognised qualification.

Alaina Cameron, Academic Portfolio Manager Social Services for UCOL, says kaimahi (staff) from within general practice teams will be completing the New Zealand Certificate in Health and Wellbeing (Level 4) – Primary Care Practice Assistance via an apprenticeship programme, which is designed to improve the knowledge and skills of general practice staff to support the effective running of a general practice.

“The programme supports them to perform clinical tasks under the direction and delegation of a health professional and perform administrative tasks to contribute to the effective functioning of general practice. As a result, the Primary Care Practice Assistant is able to provide seamless support to patients and their whānau who are accessing medical care at their general practice.”

“This collaborative initiative between Careerforce and UCOL will provide the opportunity to recognise the prior experience of general practice kaimahi, in turn minimising time out of mahi (work) for the kaimahi as they gain relevant health qualifications and establish connections and shared learning across general practice teams.”

We know that learners benefit from the opportunity for face to face engagement, and we have had great feedback from the sessions to date. Please feel free to share details with your learners.

Registration
Auckland: register for the Auckland events here
Dunedin https://forms.office.com/r/SvuYnQTKDa
Gisborne and Hawke's Bay: email kaye.ross@careerforce.org.nz
Whanganui UCOL: email damika.hirst@careerforce.org.nz
No registration is required for the other events.

We will keep you updated as we plan more sessions.

Support for Pasifika and Māori learners

Please remember that we provide a number of resources and supports for learners who identify as Māori or Pasifika. This support also includes face to face learner sessions. Please check out these pages for Māori learners and Pasifika learners and to see which face to face sessions are planned in your area.

If you have learners that identify as Māori or Pasifika, and don’t receive our dedicated Maori or Pasifika newsletters, and would like to, they can email amio.mobile@careerforce.org.nz or pacific.support@careerforce.org.nz.

15-year-old Marlborough Girls College student Hope Te Whiu has always been passionate about the elderly and is now on track to forging a rewarding career working with them, when she leaves school.

Thanks to a school Gateway programme through Careerforce | Te Pūkenga, and a work placement at Redwood Oceania rest home, Hope has already successfully completed the New Zealand Certificate in Health and Wellbeing Level 2. She has also been offered the opportunity of specific palliative care training at a local hospice, to further broaden her skills.

Hope jumped at the chance of attending a 2-day noho marae in Nelson for learners who identify as Māori.

“It was really enjoyable,” says Hope. “..being Māori really helped as it is an environment that I am comfortable in."

With the needs of struggling young New Zealanders becoming greater, so too is the need for qualified youth workers who can support them.

Phil Tavai, 32, and Eloni Taulafo, 30, are just two of many youth workers prioritising their professional development in an increasingly challenging sector. They have both just completed their apprenticeship in youth work through Careerforce | Te Pūkenga and, with the level 4 qualification under their belts, the teammates are already moving onto further study.

Passionate about fostering youth, Phil and Eloni work for Quality Education Services (QES), a youth services provider in South Auckland that is bringing help and hope through free education, career pathways and social services.

Please encourage your staff to be active in their learning

Earlier this year, a number of learners were withdrawn due to lack of activity. Within our training agreements, we do require learners to achieve at least 10 learning credits per calendar year, and that failure to achieve credits within any 12 month period may result in withdrawal.

Withdrawal of learners is clearly a last resort, but we do require learners to be active in their learning as we are accountable to our funding body, the Tertiary Education Commission, for this.

It is important that you encourage your learners to be active in their learning to avoid future withdrawal from their training programme (and where re-enrolment fees will apply). Your monthly training reports from Careerforce will help you to identify any learners who are at risk of withdrawal.

If you require any guidance or support, please contact your Careerforce Workplace Advisor.

If eligible, learners can apply and receive from $11,000 to $31,000 each to support their full-time course costs and living costs such as accommodation, transport, and childcare.

Applicants are required to be studying full time towards a formal qualification at a tertiary provider during 2024 to be eligible. There are seven scholarships available for vocational applications: four in the continuing to study category and three in the career changer category. Applications for this scholarship will close on Tuesday 7 November 2023.