Inspire at Home Team Attends ResiROCKS 2024: Celebrating Residential Care and the Power of Education
On 10 October, members of the CatholicCare Tasmania Inspire at Home team attended ResiROCKS 2024, a flagship event hosted by The Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare (The Centre), the peak body representing child and family services across Victoria and, now, Tasmania.
Inspire at Home is CatholicCare Tasmania’s program for young people in out of home care, which provides therapeutic group-based residential accommodation and support to older children and young people who cannot safely live at home.
Held in Melbourne, this year’s ResiROCKS drew more than 500 attendees for a day dedicated to recognising the vital work of residential care workers and celebrating their impact on young lives. With the theme “Nurturing the Spark for Education,” the event emphasised how education can be transformative for young people in care, inspiring growth and opening new pathways for their futures.
ResiROCKS—which stands for “Recognising Our Carers’ Knowledge and Skills”—is an annual event that highlights the skills, commitment, and resilience of residential care workers. Beyond honouring their hard work, the gathering also promotes learning, collaboration, and a shared commitment to advancing residential care.
The event featured motivating talks by leaders such as The Hon. Lizzie Blandthorn, Victoria’s Minister for Children, and Isaiah Dawe, founder of ID. Know Yourself, who shared powerful messages about the importance of supporting youth in residential care. Attendees returned with fresh perspectives and a renewed commitment to empowering young people, bringing back valuable insights for our work in Tasmania.
For many, the highlight of the day was connecting with peers and building professional networks. Gabrielle, one of our team members, remarked, “It was a beautiful opportunity with lots of networking and reflection—I’ve never been in a space that celebrates youth workers and the hard work they do.” The chance to connect with others dedicated to child welfare added a special element of inspiration.
Jacqui, another team member, noted, “ResiROCKS was a fantastic experience. It was inspiring, motivating, and a great team-building experience that will have a flow-on effect”.
The event also marked a new chapter for The Centre, which recently expanded its role as the peak body for child and family services in Tasmania. This collaboration promises to strengthen service excellence and help us achieve even better outcomes for the young people in our care.
With renewed energy and a deepened sense of purpose, our team left ResiROCKS ready to implement these new insights and strengthen our commitment to empowering young people in Tasmania.