HYC Middle Years

HWLLEN Middle Years Resources

Page 9 Update

Hume Middle Years

The HWLLEN would like to acknowledge the support of the Australian Government Communities for Children program and Uniting for their previous funding support which has enabled us to complete a number of projects on Middle Years in Hume.

Since 2010 there has been significant and quite targeted work on the middle years in Hume. The HWLLEN would like to acknowledge all previous partners who have worked in and contributed to shine a spotlight on middle years in Hume.

Resources that have been compiled by the HWLLEN over that funding period are included on this page.

There have also been numerous conferences, discussions, professional development opportunities and several active versions of the Middle Years Action Plan and the DET Transition NET.

Despite our best efforts middle years still remains a time of concern and is often missed as it sits between work in both the early years and youth work spaces.

We have however also had significant successes and the fact that Hume service providers overwhelmingly have a commitment to work collaboratively is also a significant strength.

In 2023 the middle years in Hume remains a key focal point for the Hume Youth Commitment.

Hume City Council also recognises the significance of the developmental period for children aged between 6-11 years defined as the ‘middle years’ and recognises the importance of a successful transition between primary and secondary schooling.

The HCC 0-24 Framework provided the Youth Engagement and Pathway Unit (YEP Unit) with a context through which to consult with children and young people, aged 6-24 years, to inform the development and key directions and actions as outlined in Connect and Thrive. A plan for Young People in Hume 2022-2026.

Through the Connect and Thrive Youth Plan, Hume City Council has made a commitment to providing tailored supports and programs to meet the specific needs of middle years children and young people, working within a family-centred approach to support parents/carers, families, schools, and communities.

For more information on Hume City Council’s work please visit: Hume City Council Middle Years and Transition

We are excited to be able to present these 2 videos by Maggie Farrar who will be the Presenter and Facilitator of our event “Broadening our Horizons – Collective Impact for a stronger Hume, now and into the future”. Based in the UK Maggie is an Internationally recognised strategic thinker and Educational Leadership Consultant with particular skills in linking and collaborating with local government, schools and community partnerships.

The video for practitioners outlines the focus and process that Maggie wants to explore with us. The “Big Day” or Day 1 will ask that we:

start exploring the power and potential of integrated approaches to working that connect communities, sectors and people to support us in building stronger communities, and achieve better learning, civic and social outcomes
make sure the best of what we do is shared and we will jointly tackle some of the issues that get in the way of us being our best
work on turning the strategy into practice both as a group, as teams and individually
use examples from your own work and internationally to inspire and motivate us
look in detail at effective and ambitious collaboration and what this means for our practice
look at how we work and what we do to ensure we have sustainable impact
explore what it will mean for the children, young people and wider community to grow up and live in Hume and our role in making this the best place in the world to be
We will be active, we will have time for reflection, we will learn practices and approaches that we can take into our everyday work
We will strengthen ourselves and our commitment to the wider learning community of Hume

The strategic video is aimed at those who will be involved in the formation of the 3 days and specifically the “Where to from now” session we will run on the final day.and outlines;

The Aim over the three days is to connect the strategy with the necessary culture change, capacity building, and daily practice that is essential if the strategy is to take root
We will explore the power and potential of integrated approaches to working that connect communities , sectors and people drawing on good practice internationally - we will in particular look at what we know about highly effective locally led, self improving learning systems and what that could mean for the Hume community
We will look at the local leadership required to achieve this and the role of policy makers, strategists central administration and leadership
We will explore how policy and practice go hand in hand to achieve an adaptive and dynamic learning system
We will look at the work over three days through the lens of ' wicked issues' and increase our capability to handle such issues through a series of activities which will introduce protocols and practices - through this we will strengthen our ability to collaborate effectively

By the end of the three days the Hume community will have strengthened their resolve and commitment to the 2040 vision, they will have explored the factors most likely to help them achieve their dreams and those factors that limit them and get in the way. They will have worked practically to tackle some of these issues. I would like to invite the Hume community to share its work internationally and articulate the knowledge, processes and practices that have brought you to where you are now and to use that wider community to help you shape the next stage through critical review and reflection on practice.

I aim to achieve a strong accord between policy, strategy and practice and a way of working that enables highly effective collaborative working within and between all levels across the Hume local system. The 3 days will address the required shifts in culture, capacity building, systems and processes if the vision for Hume is to be fully realised.