About the Practitioner
Taster Property Incorporated (Taster) is by design a domestic violence and suicide prevention (early) intervention model. Taster engages young people through a variety of social enterprises and partnerships designed to create inclusion while nurturing individual talents and skills. Taster is best described as a Men's Shed but for young people aged between 5 and 25. Taster creates interest based opportunities that encourage young people who come together to 'taste a trade and untap new skills'.
The program encourages and supports a young person to ignite interest that sees them enter a trade or seek further education through positive, enriching and successful engagement.
The aim of Taster is to skill them up to do things they enjoy doing, and in turn assist them to become more motivated. Taster creates an atmosphere where young people become part of a new regime by forming and maintaining long-lasting relationships and belonging.
Inevitably there will be occasions where there will be conflict between our participants, however we try to prevent the potential for conflict by opening our workdays with an around the table discussion to clear any misunderstandings before they arise. The coordinator of the group is responsible for facilitating the group with the help of Taster volunteers.
Rachael, the founder of Taster Property Inc, has been a community services professional spanning across 30 years. Her experience is in children, families and youth services.
The use of Restorative Practice with primary school children is the undertone of programs and practise developed to address children's needs. This is pinnacle in the transition from junior through to their senior primary school years and beyond.
These programs address 'At Risk' behaviour in children in the years leading up to high school.
Rachael has also managed a youth centre and coordinated youth programs in Wagga Wagga where, on occasions, she was involved in the criminal justice system for Restorative Practice youth conferences.
Taster was developed as a consequence of identified gaps within the youth sector, where addressing the key indicators for 'At Risk', or potential 'At Risk', behaviour by implementing a different model of service provision.
Taster Property Inc. provides staff who share their experience, expertise, strength and commitment from a broad range of child and youth services.
Our referral system is multi layered with levels of expertise from more than 110 local business partners.
Taster has direct involvement from professionals including doctors, social workers, government agencies and departments including Education, Community and Justice, including the Primary Health Network. We also employ accountants to work along side us to ensure financial transparency.
The Taster model is innovative and designed to lead by building healthy relationships and connectivity. Our aim is to prevent the possibility of violence in a family setting or for young people to become a victim. Therefore reducing the incidence of Restorative Practice if possible. Taster is taking shape in becoming a suicide prevention model, given its ability to nurture connectivity through positive engagement. We create a place of belonging, inclusion and purpose that fosters an understanding of community and individual need.
Organisation
- Founder
- Community based
- Family Court
- Local police
- School
- Victims of crimes
- Advocacy-direct
- ATSI health and well being-direct and referral
- Community based mental health services-direct and referral
- Community Development/Education-direct and referral
- Consultancy-direct
- Corrections and prisons-direct and referral (to be established over time)
- Counselling-referral
- Criminal Justice-direct and referral
- Culture change-direct
- Education - RTO-direct and referral
- Employment programs-referral
- Facilitation-direct and referral
- Family group conferencing-referral
- Family violence advocacy-direct and referral
- Gendered violence-direct
- Grief and loss-direct
- Human rights-referral
- Leadership development-direct and referral
- Management and HR Training-direct
- Peer support services-direct
- Program development-direct and referral
- Reflective practice-referral
- Restorative Circles-direct and referral
- Rights of people with disabilities-referral
- Rights of those experiencing mental ill health-direct and referral
- School - K-12-direct and referral
- Support groups-direct and referral
- Team Building-direct
- Training-direct and referral
- Violence risk assessment-direct and referral
- Violence risk management-direct and referral
- Workplace assessment-referral
- Youth justice-direct and referral