It has been proven over time, that having a good quality education improves employment opportunities, and social connections. In this feature, we showcase Miranda Walton, a student enrolled in Centacare’s Skills for Education and Employment (SEE) Program, who has recently found employment.

Originally from Geraldton (a country town, 424 kilometres north of Perth, Miranda moved to Perth in order to enhance her skills for the workforce.

“I thought I would move to Perth to try and better myself. At first, it was a bit of a challenge, because I didn’t have many skills that people wanted, so it was a challenge trying to find a job,” Miranda said.

She found out about Centacare when she was looking at courses that could help enhance her skills.

“I actually looked up online about Centacare because I looked at it before. I was Centacare previously at a different site – the Armadale site. Due to circumstances, I dropped out of that one, and then you have to wait twelve weeks before you are able to re-apply again,” she said.

“So I did that and then I was closer to Cannington here, so I decided to re-enrol to Cannington and I’ve been here since June last year [2023],” she elaborated.

And since being at Centacare, Miranda has noticed some significant personal growth.

“Since I’ve been at Centacare I’ve made some great friends, and I feel like I’ve grown as a person. I’ve gotten more confident. My English and my numeracy have also improved, and I think I’ve grown a lot with my computer skills,” she said.

Miranda has recently found employment at SodaSwap – a family-owned and operated business that offers a CO2 in cylinders service which will allows people to carbonate their favourite beverages at home.

“What I do is mostly the factory work, so I fill, bleed, cap and put little stickers on top of the bottles,” Miranda said.

“I also do some customer service as well, so when people finish with their bottles, we swap them over and we give them a full one,” she elaborated.

Miranda is full of praise for Centacare and her teacher, Tausaga, for helping her improve her skills.

“I think Centacare is just a really good place to be. The teachers are actually really helpful. Like Tausaga, she’s a really good person and she helps a lot. She’s really good,” Miranda said.

“That’s why I came here to Centacare to try and better myself. And I ended up coming to a fantastic centre and met a lot of new people. This place has really helped me a lot,” she said.

By providing students with a nurturing environment, individualised learning, and opportunities to grow, Centacare’s Skills for Education and Employment (SEE) Program opens doors for its students to have a successful future.