With close to four decades of experience across Family, Child and Youth work, Jo’s career and approach highlights a deep commitment to creating sustainable change in the lives of children, young people and families. The combination of her qualifications, including her background in Youth Work and Family Therapy, along with her practical experience, demonstrates a willingness to address the intersection of individual challenges and systemic issues.

Jo has focused on empowering individuals, having young people and families understand their own strengths, confidence and their own potential by fostering self-efficacy, belief and skills needed to overcome adversity. Advocating for the needs of vulnerable children, young people and families is essential and through this work, Jo has amplified the voices of those struggling to be heard, pushing for systemic change and having individuals understand and utilise their own strengths.

In addition to supporting clients, Jo has had particular interest in mentoring staff who work with children, young people and families with complex needs and has found this to be another key aspect to her role as Meli’s Housing Services Manager. Utilising empathy, patience, problem-solving, mentoring, coaching and the ability to guide others through challenging situations, has provided Jo with some of the most rewarding moments of her career.