LAST week more than 50 employees at Crosslinks Disability Services celebrated gaining their formal qualifications at an inaugural graduation ceremony at Midland Town Hall.

  Disability Services Minister Don Punch was in attendance, addressing the graduates with heartfelt thanks and words of encouragement.

“Thank you to Crosslinks for driving this valuable training initiative for their workforce and congratulations to this year’s graduates,” Mr Punch said.

“During this period of change in the disability landscape, it is more critical than ever that we work together in WA to achieve better outcomes for people with disability, their families and carers.”

Crosslinks, a Midland based not-for-profit organisation, has been making waves with its award-winning training program – the fast tracking a skilled workforce initiative.

Thanks to a grant from the Department of Communities distributed through the National Disability Services, Crosslinks combined forces with four other organisations to design and deliver a program to support employees to fast track their way to a certificate III, certificate IV or diploma for free.

“Achieving a formal qualification is no small feat.

“It demands a delicate balance between professional responsibilities and personal commitments,” Crosslinks chief executive officer Dawn McAleenan said.

“We’re incredibly proud of each and every one of our graduates. It’s a huge achievement and the impact this has extends beyond Crosslinks into the wider care sector.”

The initiative recently gained Crosslinks local and state-wide acknowledgment, winning the Swan Chamber of Commerce Customer Service Award and the Australian Institute of Management’s Customer Service Excellence Award.