Reconnect Services :
Are you a young person aged 12-18?
Are you the parent/guardian of a young person 12-18?
These pages are for you!
We help young people and their families who are having a difficult time with family life and if that’s you, we can help you to:
We at Reconnect are here to listen to you and help find out how we can best provide support for you and your family.
We are only a phone call away and our services are free and confidential.
ABOUT RECONNECT
The Reconnect program uses community based early intervention services to bring about family reconciliation for young people who are at risk of becoming homeless.
Reconnect helps young people improve their level of engagement with family, work education, training and their local community.
Reconnect provides the following seven good practise principles
• Accessibility of service
• Client driven service delivery
• Holistic approaches to service delivery
• Working collaboratively
• Culturally and a contextually appropriate service delivery
• Ongoing review and evaluation
• Building sustainability
.
Reconnect is an Australian Government funded initiative aimed at helping families. Reconnect is auspiced by the St Vincent de Paul Society.
Our program is run by professionally trained mediators and counsellors, with the primary services being:
• Early intervention strategies
• Assistance for young people with personal issues
• Case Management
Reconnect offers families information, practical support, family mediation, conflict resolution and referrals to specialist services.
Action Research is a key component of the Reconnect Program.
For Reconnects early intervention methods to be effective, all services government and non government, need to respond to their clients using a reflective model of service delivery
For Young People:
Are you between the ages of 12-18 and experiencing difficulties with life? Please call us on 03 5881 7411 to see how we can help.
Reconnect can help you if you are having a difficult time at home, school or life in general.
Reconnect can help you:
• Work things out with your family
• Find work
• Stay in school when it gets tough
• Find training programs in a career that interest you
• Access income support if eligible
• Find somewhere safe to stay if necessary
• Talk about what is happening for you when your unsure about things.
We at Reconnect are here to listen to you and help find out how we can best provide support for you and your family.
We are flexible and can meet with you where you feel most comfortable. That may be at the Reconnect office, your school, at home or even a coffee shop for a milkshake.
We are only a phone call away if you have any questions about our service. Our conversations are kept confidential unless you are at risk of harm or at risk of harming someone else.
For Parents:
Reconnect believes that families are the experts in how their family operates.
Being the parent of a teenager can be tough work. During these times conflict can occur and young people may think about leaving the family home. This can be a very stressful time for both parents and young people. There are many reasons that conflict can occur during this time and it is often associated with the rapid changes that occur during adolescence.
We not only help young people, but also offer assistance and programs for you, the parents as we recognise that in areas of conflict, everyone involved needs support.
The services provided by Reconnect focuses on case management and mediation. All services are confidential and work best when everyone involved shows a desire to resolve the conflict or issues that are impacting their family
Reconnect can help you to:
• Work things out with your children
• Find the most effective way to work things through
• Learn to live comfortably with your teenagers when times are hard
• Learn to live apart, but stay connected
• Help young people stay at school and engaged with the community
• Act as an advocate for you and your child when working with other services
If you are a parent of a 12-18 year old and feel you are needing support in dealing with issues affecting your family, please feel free to contact us for support and advice on 03 5881 7411.
For Schools and groups:
Vinnies Reconnect works in collaboration with many schools throughout our service area. We offer support to individual students experiencing difficulties in their lives which impact on their school achievements.
In addition to our individual work with students, we also offer tailored workshops on a variety of subjects such as:
• Healthy relationships
• Conflict resolution
• Self esteem building
• Anger management
• Responsible risk taking
If your school or group think we may be able to assist you, please call to discuss your needs on 03 5881 7411
Refer to Reconnect:
There are many ways to access the Vinnies Reconnect Program. These include:
• Self referral
• Referral by family members
• Referral by other agencies eg; schools, Police, Juvenile Justice, Mental Health, Centerlink
• Referral by extended family or friends
If you are a representative of an organisation, a friend or a family member , and you think that the service we offer may be the type of support you, someone close to you or your client needs, please contact us by phone on 03 5881 7411, or fill in a referral form so we can make an assessment and offer the most effective support.