Communities

What is INSTEP?

The Indigenous Skills Transfer and Exchange Partnership (INSTEP) is a skills exchange, with senior volunteers working on specific projects identified by the Indigenous communities as projects that they believe will benefit their members. We are a not for profit organization.

Some example of skills that can be passed on by INSTEP volunteers are:

• education and youth engagement
• reading with children
• sports coaching
• after school and school holiday activities
• grant writing and administration
• business assistance
• market garden set-up
• construction and maintenance
• health and community well being
• mentoring young mothers
• justice advisory
• accounting and budgeting assistance
• mentoring community leaders
• governance training
• project management
  

Our volunteers can help Indigenous communities, organizations and individuals realize their potential.

How does it work?

Indigenous communities, organisations and individuals anywhere in Australia can ask for a volunteer with any particular skills that are needed.

We work with you to develop the project - you decide what skills are needed, how and when the project will proceed, and then you select the volunteer. Projects generally run between two weeks and three months.

You get to learn new skills and volunteers have an unforgettable experience. They want the chance to learn more about Indigenous culture – it’s a two way learning experience.

Recruitment of Volunteers

To date the INSTEP Program has received expressions of interest from more than 450 potential volunteers. Of these volunteers more then 120 have completed the stages of application submission, police checks; Blue Card approval and issuance, reference checks, medical checks and interviews.

Briefing of Volunteers

Before deployment, all volunteers undergo a day of training. The training includes cultural awareness, a thorough briefing on the community they have been assigned to, including information on living and working in Indigenous communities and appropriate training for the specific project they are to undertake. Volunteer induction also occurs in the community where the volunteer is placed.

Community Support

Community support is essential to the success of each project. INSTEP projects are requested by the community and must benefit the community. Ideally projects should involve a transfer of skills so that when the project is completed, community members that have been trained by INSTEP volunteers will be more able and self-sufficient.

Prior to volunteers being placed we require information about the community and the projects to be undertaken. This helps us ensure that the correct volunteers are recommended and that we have sufficient information to brief and train potential volunteers. Nominating a community or staff member to show volunteers around also makes their stay easier and more productive.

For more information on requesting an INSTEP volunteer please download the forms or contact us.