In the rural district of Tumby Bay, the ‘Living Well’ project supported by Office for Ageing Well is promoting wellness at all ages. The project has started a movement to upskill women – particularly those whose careers have been paused or challenged by the roles they play in family life, their remote location, or by rapidly changing technology.

Janene Piip, former regional manager of TAFE SA is a staunch advocate, particularly for women, to continue reaching new potential, no matter their age. She is now spearheading the upskilling movement – the Women’s Leadership and Development Program.

Janene is working with up to 40 local women to help them connect with training in new skills for their current job, a new job or even to re-enter the workforce. She said for older people, re-learning even smaller elements of a job, such as computer skills, can be daunting.

“Our careers go in stages. The first stage around 18-24 is exploration, then at 25-44 you think you know it all, but 45 and onwards is when we decide we actually don’t know it all, and we have to keep trying, and decide where we are going for the next 20 years,” she said.

“There can be roadblocks throughout life, but it’s about re-engaging and stretching ourselves, and that is empowering.”

Established just before National Science Week in August, the program in Tumby Bay is training mainly women over 45, with a particular focus on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and maths) and improving digital literacy.

Each Tuesday and Thursday, Janene meets with participants and helps them through various short courses – some delivered by her, others by TAFE SA, or another registered trainer.

Some participants are benefiting from specific training such as a Certificate II in Kitchen Operations or Xero cloud bookkeeping software training, others are undertaking smaller modules such as Internet Basics or Introduction to Microsoft Word.

Jan Franklin, 61, manages a busy motel and while she has good computer skills, is often frustrated by not knowing enough of the bookkeeping software the business uses; travelling to the nearest city of Port Lincoln for training has been too expensive and time consuming.

She said having the face-to-face training brought to town was a great opportunity, and she was learning much more than she could in the software’s online tutorials.

“To have training where you have someone there and can ask questions is a lot better – this will be awesome to have more confidence to do things within my role, for myself rather than having to get help from an external accountant or bookkeeper.

“I am just as capable as the next person – and now even more so.”

For more information about initiatives under Tumby Bay’s Living Well project, email awilliams@tumbybay.sa.gov.au.

The District Council of Tumby Bay is supported by an Age Friendly SA Grant from Office for Ageing Well, SA Health to deliver the Living Well project. Click here to read more about Office for Ageing Well’s Community Grants.

Photo: Women’s Leadership and Development Program and Living Well Think Tank - Tracy Liddicoat, Julie Elliott, Janene Piip, Marie Elson and Keryn Hibbit