Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Sep 19:6:100431.
doi: 10.1016/j.puhip.2023.100431. eCollection 2023 Dec.

The OzHarvest Nourish Program: An evaluation of a hospitality-based program to support employment for young Australians

Lauren Ball  1   2 , Julie Marsh  1   2 , Breanna Lepre  1 , Belinda Woollett  3 , Dan Baynes  3 , Joy Parkinson  2   4
Affiliations

The OzHarvest Nourish Program: An evaluation of a hospitality-based program to support employment for young Australians

Lauren Ball et al. Public Health Pract (Oxf). .

Abstract

Objectives: The youth unemployment rate in Australia is more than double the national average. Policies and programs to address barriers and improve youth engagement in education and employment are essential to achieve many of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The aim of this mixed-methods study was to evaluate the OzHarvest Nourish Program, a free, hospitality-focused pathway to support employment and engagement for young people aged 16-25 years.

Study design: Mixed-methods study.

Methods: An online survey, workshop and semi-structured interviews with staff, volunteers, participants, and broader stakeholders were conducted using a qualitative, exploratory approach. Ethics approval was granted by the Griffith University Human Research Ethics Committee (#2022/492).

Results: Five key themes were identified from interview data and a logic model was developed. Participants described significant benefits of participation, including improved food security, self-efficacy, and communication skills, reduced social isolation, and greater hope for the future.

Conclusions: The Nourish Program is a transformative service that is improving wellbeing outcomes for program participants. Additional resourcing, including adequate funding, may be required to maximise program impact and support sustainability.

Keywords: Education; Employment; Health and wellbeing; Mixed-methods research; Program evaluation; Young people.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: OzHarvest staff (Nourish Program Manager Belinda Woollett and Nourish Projects Coordinator Dan Baynes) were involved in this research, though they did not influence the evaluation outcomes of this research.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Logic model of the OzHarvest Nourish program.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. The Smith Family . The Smith Family; Sydney NSW: 2016. Improving the Educational Outcomes of Disadvantaged Young Australians: the Learning for Life Program.
    1. Foundation for Young Australians . Foundation for Young Australians (FYA); 2015. How Are Young People Faring in the Transition from School to Work?
    1. Generation Stalled: Young, Underemployed and Living Precariously in Australia. Brotherhood of St Laurence; Fitzroy, VIC: 2017.
    1. Youth Action NSW. A NSW for Young People: beyond 2019. Youth Action NSW; Woolloomooloo NSW: 2019.
    1. Australian Bureau of Statistics . ABS; Canberra: 2022. Labour Force, Australia.https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/lab... [cited 2023 30 January]; Available from:

LinkOut - more resources