Lessons Learned as a Lead Tenant

The past three years have been quite a busy time in my life. I left my parent’s home and made the move back down to Victoria from Queensland. I’ve worked in a few different roles across multiple organisations, and I like to think that over that time I have become an experienced professional. I’ve found my life partner and we’ve worked to set up our life together. So many amazing experiences and achievements I’ve been blessed with!

Something that I don’t mention too often is the fact that over the past three years I have also been volunteering full time as a Lead Tenant (more on what that is in a moment). I’ve always believed in volunteering as something really valuable, and an activity I always would like to be associated with in some capacity. It’s great for the community, it’s great for you, and, of course, it’s great for those whose lives you can make just a little bit better.

The Lead Tenant program is a Victorian Government initiative in which young people between 16 and 18 are placed in a home with one or more adults (known as Lead Tenants), giving them the opportunity to develop their independent living skills prior to transitioning into adulthood and all the complexities that come along with that. The role of the Lead Tenant is to support them through the change from ‘being cared for’ to ‘caring for yourself’. Young people that are leaving care have enough stress with the tradition itself, so it’s great for them to be able to build those skills so that it’s one less thing for them to worry about when the time comes.

Over my time as a Lead Tenant, I’ve come across a few key points again and again, and I want to share some of those in the hope you can glean something from my experience.

Be kind - everyone has a story

Working with young people in care, and just getting a little bit of exposure to the number of difficulties that so many young people have had to face so early in life, was sometimes confronting and often shocking. The things many of them, and I would argue all of them, have had to face are things that no one should ever have to go through, and it really makes me stop and think. There are so many people we interact with through our lives- at work, at the shops, and when we’re out and about in all manner of circumstances. It’s something that seems so obvious, and yet something I find so easy to take for granted- each one of these people has their own story, and each one of them has their own background and experiences that we may well know nothing about. Do I act accordingly? Am I always kind and polite, with an aim to leave other people’s day looking a little better than before they talked to me? Are you? It can be really hard to keep this in mind, and it can be difficult to implement, as we each have our own struggles as well, and being nice can often be easier said than done. It is, however, something that I try to keep in mind, and something I am trying to implement into my approach to life in general. Be kind- you never know what they might be working through, or where they’ve come from.

Systems and policy aren't always perfect, but the people working with them are generally genuine and trying to make a difference

Victoria’s out of home care system isn’t perfect- there’s no doubt about it. Building a system that caters to young people who aren’t able to live with parental influence is extremely complex, so this isn’t a knock on the system itself, but just an observation of reality. Most of us have imperfect, sometimes incredibly frustrating and even broken systems, processes, and policies we work with, so I’m sure you can relate to this in some way. I have found myself at different times feeling as though the current system can, in some ways, almost set young people up to fail. I have, however, come to find something else as well, something that is a real positive for these young people- the people that work in the system overwhelmingly care for and want the best for the young people. In short, these colleagues, both paid and unpaid, want the best outcomes they can achieve with the tools they have to achieve them. I’ve built some really great relationships with the team at Uniting, and I know that the young people benefit from their support in a huge way. It is really great to see people who don't let issues outside their control weigh them down and/or demotivate them, but rather do their best to build young people up and give them their best chance for success once they’re out of care. I’ve also been able to apply this to my workplace- there’s always room to improve process and policy, and that’s important- but it definitely starts with a team of people motivated and ready to do their best with the tools available to them at any given time.

Sometimes it's the small things we do, or even the things we don't do, that have the most impact

As a part of my Lead Tenant role, it was my responsibility to ensure that the property I lived in was safe, and in particular that the young people I was living with were safe. That wasn’t always easy, with their definition of safety at times differing quite substantially from that of the average person. This made for some late nights, some tough conversations, getting to know my local police station fairly well, and, rarely, even being slightly concerned for my own safety. I definitely wasn’t always perfect when it came to handling this behaviour (it can be quite difficult), but there were times when I was able to work through it with them and reach a positive and relationship building outcome with the young people involved. I really like to think, however, that it’s the small things that may have stayed with them- like the times I was with them at the hospital, or the times I picked them up from the station. Even just things that happened unconsciously, like modelling good behaviour, not treating them in the way that people might have treated them in the past, picking your battles, and letting them live independently as much as possible- all of that makes a difference. I've received positive feedback from the case worker for a particular young person I supported- they let me know that the young person remembered me fondly after leaving care. I also had another particular young person I supported for quite a while, who was something of a contrarian when living with me. Several months after they left, however, they gave me a call and apologised for their negative behaviours while at the property. I really appreciated that and I hope that some of my actions have stayed with them and helped them to make better choices in their adult life.

Looking back on my experience

Overall, volunteering in the Lead Tenant program has been a great experience, despite the occasional challenges that arise in the role. I’d highly recommend it to someone who is looking to make a direct impact in the lives of young people, and is willing and able to commit some time and some energy to that end- but who still wants to live their life the way they want to. It gives you an opportunity to not only do good, but also to build and strengthen a skillset that you can apply in other areas of life!

If you’d like to learn more about the Lead Tenant program feel free to reach out to me at any time, or you can get in touch with the team at Uniting here or here.