Older Australians thriving with newfound academic skills

Spearheaded by Council on the Ageing (COTA) Victoria for the Australian Federal Government, a recent report by Workforce Innovation and Development Institute (WIDI), outlined the key results from the inaugural Reach, Train and Employ Project in 2021, which saw 31 Victorian mature aged graduates receive a Certificate III in Individual Support (Ageing and Disability).

The Reach, Train and Employ Project, was created to address the increasing number of older Australian workers who are unemployed.  The program was supported by the Try, Test and Learn Fund – an initiative of the Australian Government Department of Social Services,  in partnership with RMIT University and Good Shepherd Australia and New Zealand, as part of the Cities of Brimbank, Melton and Bacchus Marsh.

The program aimed to escalate employment outcomes for older Australians through accredited training and job placement in the aged care and disability services sector, supporting older people and people with disabilities in the community.

The Reach, Train and Employ Project was designed to provide training that addresses barriers to employment, including low digital literacy, limited access to technology, as well as health and wellbeing concerns and  loss of confidence.  The program also provided extended support to assist older workers into sustainable employment such as becoming a personal carer in residential aged care, an in-home support worker, a disability support worker and community based individual support worker.

Report’s key findings include:

1. Student project retention was high, with 81% of enrolled people over 50 (n=37) completing their training, which is significantly higher than the national average completion rate for the same course (39%). The high retention is even more impressive considering the numerous COVID-19 related challenges that students and project operators have faced, such as the sudden and unanticipated transition to remote learning; multiple lockdowns; and work placement delays.

2. One ageist myth is that people aged over 50 are not willing to learn new skills or pursue professional development. The Reach, Train and Employ participants demonstrated they are more than willing and capable to learn new skills by re-training into a new career. In fact, the report showed that of the 37 participants aged over 50, no less than 52% were still considering further study opportunities, after completing their Certificate III in Individual Support.

3. Reach, Train and Employ adopted a supportive training model, offering a range of project supports designed to increase participant engagement and their project completion. Support ranged from practical supports, such as assistance with coursework and assessments, to mental health assistance, to material supports such as food relief. Evaluation indicates the provision of these supports have played a key role in ensuring high participant engagement and project retention. Data suggest the supports were highly valued by people over 50, and for some participants, supports were critical to their project access and engagement.

4. Evidence suggests the best project model outcomes for people over 50 are likely when they have access to diverse support types, which can be individualised to differing participant needs and are responsive to changes in participant needs.

5. The ongoing life coaching sessions were highly valued by most people over 50 and project staff reported it to be a crucial element of the project’s model.

6. The participants came to training with a wide variety of skills, experiences, needs and responsibilities. Findings suggest, for people over 50 at risk of long-term unemployment, their successful engagement in study requires a responsive and supportive educational model.

7. Evidence suggests for people over 50 at risk of long-term unemployment, the wrap around support and inclusive training model resulted in positive employment outcomes in the social service sector. At the time of preparation of this final evaluation report, the project was on track to meet its 90% employment target within six months of project completion.