Supports Youth mentoring
Youth Mentoring in the Sunshine Coast
One-to-one mentoring for young people with disability. Building confidence, independence and the skills that carry into adult life.
Someone in your corner who is not a parent or a teacher
Mentoring is one to one, regular, and led by what the young person wants to get better at. Sometimes that is practical: public transport, money, cooking, a licence. Sometimes it is confidence: walking into a place alone, talking to someone new, asking for what you need.
The mentor is a support worker matched for fit (often someone younger, with interests in common) and the same person every time. Trust is the whole mechanism here, and trust needs the same face.
It is funded through your NDIS plan as capacity building or community access, depending on how it is set up. We help you work out which.
How it usually runs
- Ages
- Roughly 12 to 25
- Format
- One to one, weekly or fortnightly
- Mentor
- Matched for fit, the same person each time
- In your plan
- Capacity Building or Core, depending on goals
What mentoring works on
Set by the young person, with family and school involved as much as they choose.
Getting around
Public transport, learning to drive, finding your way somewhere new.
Money
Budgeting, banking, and the difference between wanting something and affording it.
Confidence
Doing things alone that used to need someone there, one step at a time.
Friends
Making them, keeping them, and handling it when it goes wrong.
School and after
Homework routines, the transition out of school, first jobs and study.
Home skills
Cooking, laundry, keeping a space liveable. The stuff that makes moving out possible one day.
Where we work
Across the Sunshine Coast and Moreton Bay
The same team and the same approach wherever you are. If you are just outside these areas, ask us. We will say yes or no.
The relationship
The same mentor, for as long as it is useful.
A mentor is not a rotating roster. We match carefully, introduce first, and keep the same person.
- Meet the mentor before anything is agreed
- Goals set by the young person, not for them
- Family and school involved at the level you choose
- Regular check-ins on whether it is working
Questions about youth mentoring
How is this different from a support worker?
The person is a support worker, but the work is different: it is aimed at building skills and confidence over time, not getting through a day. Sessions have a direction.
Can my parent or coordinator set it up?
Yes, but the young person has to want it. We will talk to them directly about what they would want to work on.
Does the NDIS fund mentoring?
There is no line item called mentoring; it is funded as capacity building or community access depending on the goals. We help you work out which fits your plan.
What ages?
Roughly 12 to 25, though it depends on the person. Older than that and our adult supports are usually the better fit.
What would you want to get better at?
Start there. We will find the right person.