Travellers Aid Australia Update - August 2011

Travellers Aid Australia Update - August 2011

Pathways to Education and the need to get to school

Fare evasion is always a big topic in the news. Often this is justifiably so. After all, if we are able to afford public transport fares then there’s nothing to say that we shouldn’t pay them. As citizens, we have rights and responsibilities – whether as taxpayers or user pays. But what happens when someone simply can’t afford the public transport fares they need to get to school?

For our most vulnerable families, sometimes $10 a week can make a huge difference to those struggling to put food on the table. Elsewhere, sometimes buying more cost-effective tickets, such as yearly or half-yearly student passes are simply beyond a family’s means.

In 2010-2011 over 350 Victorian families turned to Travellers Aid Australia for assistance with travel tickets to send their children to school. Our Pathways to Education program provides young people with a travel pass to attend education, employment, extracurricular activities and social events. After all, not all fare evaders refrain from purchasing tickets by choice. Some just can’t afford it.

Our program keeps young people in school and breaks the cycle of disengagement that traps young people and their families in poor communities by purchasing tickets on their behalf.

It has also been hugely successful in empowering students to confidently travel to school lawfully and reduce costly fines for struggling families. One of our program recipients said “Thank you, now I can come to school more often and not have to worry about getting a fine.”

A larger question though is: “What you can do to help?”
You can sponsor a student right here in your own community by donating via our website at www.travellersaid.org.au./donate. We encourage you to do so.

Travellers Aid Australia will also continue to advocate to public transport operators and Government about the importance of providing options for our most disadvantaged students and their families. Without assistance, we risk perpetuating the poverty that traps students into an unbreakable spiral of low education and job opportunities.

Find out more about our Pathways to Education Program.

Tourism & Events Excellence Conference  

CEO Jodie Willmer will be presenting at the Tourism & Events Excellence Conference on Inclusive & Accessible Tourism. Have you got your ticket?

The 2011 Tourism and Events Excellence Conference which will be held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) is all about showcasing business excellence in the tourism and events industries.

Speaking in the Skills Development category, our CEO Jodie Willmer will present on Wednesday 7 September 2011 on the topic of Inclusive & Accessible Tourism.

Put simply, the large people with a disability market and ageing populations in key international and local markets is now resulting in a long-term, tourism demographic explosion.

Tourism and event operators who can provide practical supports aiding with a "need for assistance" will meet their ethical and legal obligations. They will also strengthen their bottom line.

Jodie’s presentation will focus on practical strategies and rethinking of what "accessibility" means. The underlying premise will be that of encouraging best practice and equity for all.

If you would like to register to attend the conference, visit www.teeconference.com/registration.html. Sign up today.

Congratulations Infoxchange!

Technology partner Infoxchange recently won both State and National 2011 iAwards for their CRM4nfp application in the ‘e-inclusions and e-Community Category’. The application is designed to help community organisations like ours improve service delivery by managing our contacts, memberships, volunteers, campaigns, donations, pledges and events more efficiently. Infoxchange worked with Microsoft and other partners, including Travellers Aid Australia to develop the solution specifically for the not-for-profit sector.

Hosted by Microsoft Online Services and integrated into Microsoft Outlook software, the new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) for not-for-profits software manages contacts, plans tasks and campaign activities and better tracks ‘returns on investments’ made for any marketing and fundraising initiatives we conduct.

Due to Infoxchange’s partnership with Microsoft, people using the tool also have a very familiar interface from which to use their CRM. They can also work ‘anytime, from anywhere’ with an internet connection!

In tandem with four other Foundation Partners (The Benevolent Society, Greatconnections, Impact Support Services and Jobs Australia) we worked with Infoxchange and Microsoft on the project. In particular, we provided input and advice about the CRM needs of the not-profit-sector. The experience was invaluable and the consultative process helped ensure that the application has relevance to us and other community organisations.  

Already, as we roll out the CRM4nfp across our organisation, we are experiencing the operational benefits of the app. Our relationship management with clients, stakeholders and others is also already more efficient. Thanks Infoxchange and congratulations!

Meanwhile in other Infoxchange news, Travellers Aid Australia is attending  iTango workshops. iTaNGO is a project presented by the Victorian Department of Human Services,  the Victorian Department of Planning and Community Development and Infoxchange Australia to give Victorian community sector organisations the knowledge and resources to get the most out of their information communication technology (ICT) setup. We have also contributed to iTango’s DVD of case studies providing examples of innovation by non-Government organisations.

Find out more about the CRM4nfp.

To find out more about iTango and its events visit www.itango.infoxchange.net.au.

You should have solid tyres!

At Travellers Aid Australia we provide travel related assistance through different ways and means.

Our low-cost mobility equipment hire service came in handy for Carl one day when his wheelchair tyres blew. He wrote about it on his blog.

***

“My brother Rory was staying over ....Our weekend was pretty relaxed - that was until we finally decided to brave the outdoors and actually do something.

It was a leisurely walk to the train station, picturesque even - with birds chirping away happily. Unfortunately, after arriving at the station Rory looked down and noticed a problem - a massive rivet had made its way into one of my tyres! There are situations in life where all the options apparent suck. Home was a 15 minute walk away, and in that time my tyre could have deflated completely before we would have crossed all the main roads, let alone before we arrived home. My parents were hours away, so calling them was out of the question. So what did we do? We jumped on the train and headed to the city.

I bet you are thinking it was a stupid decision, but there was method to our madness. A great organisation called Travellers Aid Australia is situated at the heart of Flinders Street Station (there is one in Southern Cross as well), they offer a wide variety of services; including the rental of wheelchairs and scooters, charging facilities and even personal care. Our logic was to arrive at Travellers Aid Australia and see if they could repair my tyre, or at least put us in contact with someone who could.

So we boarded the train and waited. A sinking feeling came over me, literally. My electric wheelchair started developing a pronounced lean to the right as my tyre quickly deflated....”

Enjoying the story? Head over to Carl’s blog to find out what happened next! 

Take a tour

Recently Travellers Aid Australia provided Leisure Options, an agency who provides holidays for people with a disability, with a tour of our centre at Southern Cross Station.   This was an opportunity to provide Leisure Options staff with details about our services. It also meant we could exchange information about how we might be able to assist our clients in the future.

Founded in 1994, Leisure Options individually tailors holidays for people with a disability which span places like Fiji, Tasmania, even the Grand Prix in Melbourne. Holidays are tailored according to skill levels, requirements and interests and they were keen to find out more about our services and how they might apply to their business.

As part of the site familiarisation conducted by our staff, we gave Leisure Options a presentation about each of our programs and a tour of our Southern Cross Station facilities. Our guests also received a small buggy ride to demonstrate practically how we assist people with mobility issues navigate Southern Cross Station. This information helped Leisure Options identify the ways and means that we can assist their future clients with their travel needs.

The tour also allowed us to exchange information with each other about our service philosophy and the ways that we both manage client rights and responsibilities. Knowledge exchange is vital for business improvements and is one way to ensure that we all keep on developing.

Travellers Aid Australia tailors tours to suit the needs of your organisation. If you would like to have a tour of Travellers Aid Australia’s facilities contact andrea@travellersaid.org.au to request. You are also welcome to drop by our service locations at Flinders Street Station or Southern Cross Station during opening hours.

To find out more visit www.travellersaid.org.au/contact-us.

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