Geelong child protection worker Diya Thakkar has received the “best possible start” to her career.
Having completed her degree in social work at the Australian College of Applied Psychology University College, Ms Thakkar enrolled in the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing’s Child Protection Employment Program (CPEP).
A 12-week program, CPEP provides participants the chance to learn about child protection in a structured environment while working with experienced practitioners.
Ms Thakkar, who completed the course in the Barwon region, said there was “so much support and professional development embedded into the program”.
“It allowed me to put my knowledge into practice and kept me moving forward in my learning,” she said.
“There’s also fantastic networking opportunities. Here in the Barwon region, I get to work with various communities, multi-disciplinary teams, hospitals, schools – the list goes on. I get to build my network and my working relationships with people.”
Ms Thakkar said she enjoyed all parts of the program, which allowed her to do rotations with different teams and see workers’ variety of responsibilities up close.
“What we hear about child protection is so interesting; it’s 10 times more when you’re actually in it,” she said.
“On top of the rotations to different teams, the networking and relationship building, the support you get throughout is incredible.
“I’m originally from India myself, and there’s such a variety of cultural backgrounds within the CPEP cohort. It was amazing to see.
“I would definitely recommend the CPEP to people; it’s a fantastic opportunity and gets you the best start in your child protection career.”
Visit vic.gov.au/child-protection-jobs for more information on CPEP and other child protection career opportunities in Victoria.
