Since 2005, Charter Australia, a long-standing Registered Training Organisation (RTO) has been providing practical work-ready training for the healthcare sector.
In 2021, Charter collaborated with the Thai Welfare Association (TWA) to introduce a combined Foundational Skills and Certificate III Individual Support program, specifically targeted to Thai-speaking trainees.
TWA has supported the Thai community in Australia since its establishment in 1990. The collaboration with Charter will provide Thai people who want to be employed within aged care, the opportunity to train and up-skill. As well as providing much-needed workers for this industry, this collaboration solves two issues that TWA has seen emerging from its research in the Thai/Australian community:
- under-employment of some, particularly female, Thai settlers; and
- provision of culturally-specific bilingual assistance to elderly Thai who, in common with other cultures, often lose their English second language as they age.
The first successful course was held in 2021.With pandemic restrictions easing, multiple classes for the combined Foundational Skill Training and Certificate III Individual Support classes are now being offered.
Charter’s course program provides specialist teaching and carefully designed course content, delivered with the latest technologies.
The Foundation Skills course provides essential preliminary training and an opportunity for assessment. It provides students with an understanding of the teaching methodology, course content and particularly the level and intensity at which they are expected to study. It also allows trainers to determine the support that students will require from either organisation in order to successfully complete the Certificate III course. With TWA, the Thai students will be assured of ongoing student support, including advice, encouragement and mentoring in the Thai language.
A combined course started in April 2022 but the demand has been such that a further class will commence in mid-July 2022.
The course involves a work placement training component within an aged care organisation. Last year’s Thai graduates were all quickly employed on completion of their course, despite the disruptions, restrictions and delays caused by the pandemic and generally with those organisations with whom they undertook practical training.
TWA President, Rob Clifton-Steele said: "This collaboration with Charter, which is rightly a highly regarded RTO, has been extremely successful and has allowed TWA to address two very significant emerging problems in the Australian/Thai community, while also providing much-needed, well-trained workers into the aged care sector. Charter has been with us in this project all the way and the students have told us how much they enjoyed course and working together as a group. The partnership between Charter and TWA is creating a supportive and productive community strategy for the long-term benefit of Australia’s Thai community. It provides for professional, culturally sensitive and quality care for Thai people in their later years, and the delivery of viable career paths and opportunities for further education and training to younger Thai in Australia. We could not have wanted a better partner."
