Vacap School Community Liaison Officer in Melbourne

Experience working with school communities, families and community organisations involving individuals of culturally and linguistic diverse backgrounds.

Excellent stakeholder management and relationship building skills including the ability to partner with and broker support from local community organisations.

Ability to build strong working relationships with parents and local community organisations to identify best practice and areas for improvement to support student and parent engagement.

Excellent time management and organisational skills.

Ability to work as part of a statewide team and embrace a community of practice approach.

The School Community Liaison Officer will be required to support school communities to focus on increasing school engagement, strengthening partnerships with families and community and facilitating activities to increase retention and school completion. The School Community Liaison Officer will be expected to work in collaboration with School Community Liaison Officers appointed to other schools across the North West, South West and South East Victorian regions through membership of an established community of practice. The School Community Liaison Officers will be supported by a centrally based program officer and provide regular reports to support the implementation, evaluation and ongoing monitoring of the project. There is an expectation that this role will require travel to other sites of delivery and to the DET Central Office in Melbourne CBD.

Responsibilities:

• Provide support to school communities they are working with to establish and maintain communication between young people, families and the local community.
• Work directly with groups of young people or individuals, planning interventions to ensure young people are connected to an education.
• Work directly with young people to provide platforms for student voice, facilitate leadership opportunities and facilitate activities that align with their needs.
• Facilitate information sessions for parents to support an increased understanding of the education system and platforms and increase engagement with parent teacher nights, information days and school celebrations.
• Facilitate professional learning for school staff on cultural responsiveness and safety; coordinate workshops and forums for the school and local community.
• Facilitate access to homework clubs and afterschool programs, to offer support and mentoring outside of the school.
• Support school leaders with the rollout of the cultural competency framework and other activities aimed at strengthening inclusivity for diverse communities.
• Participate in a statewide community of practices and statewide planning days with other School Community Liaison Officers.

Diversity and Inclusion:

The department is committed to diversity and inclusion and developing a workforce that is representative of the community we service. We value diversity and inclusion in all forms - culture, gender, religion, ethnicity, LGBTIQA+, disability and neurodiversity. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander candidates are strongly encouraged to apply for roles within the Department.

The Department recognises that the provision of safe, respectful and inclusive workplaces is essential to high performance and promotes flexible work and diversity across all schools and Department workplaces. It is our policy to provide reasonable adjustments for staff with disability.

Child Safe Standards:

Victorian government schools are child safe environments. Our schools actively promote the safety and wellbeing of all students, and all school staff are committed to protecting students from abuse or harm in the school environment, in accordance with their legal obligations including child safe standards.

Conditions of Employment:

All staff employed by the Department and schools have access to a broad range of employment conditions and working arrangements. Appointment of successful applicants will be made subject to a satisfactory pre-employment conditions check. A probationary period may apply during the first year of employment and induction and support programs provided.

Location Profile:

Fitzroy Primary School is a co-educational Victorian government school for students from Foundation to Year 6, located on George Street in Fitzroy, on the edge of Melbourne’s CBD. Established in 1855, the school celebrated 170 years in 2025. We have around 210 students and serve families from Fitzroy and the surrounding inner-northern suburbs. We see the diversity of our community as one of our greatest strengths. Fitzroy Primary School is a French Bilingual school. Every student from Foundation to Year 6 receives 10 hours of French instruction each week through a Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) approach with our French-speaking and English-speaking staff working closely together.