Youth Education Services

About

Sarah Benaud is a mother of three adult children, who originally started out in the Fashion industry, designing and manufacturing swimwear for her National Children's wear label. With strong ties to her industry and vocational education she ensured all her employees obtained National qualifications. She lead the implementation of the first school based traineeship in fashion. Sarah understood the importance of training youth and pursued a career in Education at Central Queensland University, Noosa campus where she gained honours in a Bachelor of Learning Management - Secondary Schooling and Vocational Education.

Sarah commenced her teaching career in Secondary Education at Tully State High School in North Queensland. She specialised in working with disengaged students, 20% of whom were Indigenous. She delivered the vocational subjects of Hospitality and Tourism. After cyclone Yasi in 2011, she was transferred to Cape York, Bamaga, a remote Indigenous community of 5000 teaching at Northern Peninsula Area College, where they had introduced direct teaching. She built a repertoire of skills and strategies to work with high needs and 'at risk' students. Her commitment to the students and the community ensured the highest number of certificate completion rates.

After Cape York, DETE promoted Sarah to Charters Towers where she was responsible for the project management of the building of the Dalrymple Trade Training Centre in collaboration with four high schools. She managed all contractors, builder FK Gardner, and DETE Administration teams that specialised in Queensland Government Vocational teams. She successfully saw this through to the completion of the building. During this time, Sarah managed and recruited local industry and community to form a vocational industry reference group.

In 2015 she taught in London and Surrey High Schools in the UK. Whilst teaching there her behaviour management skills were noticed and she was asked to instruct other relief teachers on behaviour management strategies. Later that year she returned to the Sunshine Coast whereupon Education Queensland requested her to help at Kawana Waters State College who were about to receive a AQSA vocational Registered Training Organisation audit. As Head of Department - Technology and Registered Training Organisation Manager Sarah was responsible for vocational compliance. Her work with vocational education often led to talking to students who couldn’t adapt to school or who needed assistance with alternative pathways. These disengaged students displayed behavioural issues which presented in a number of areas that Sarah learnt to address and are included in this program.

She worked with new teachers, families and schools implementing her behavioural management strategies for nine years with a broad cross-section of society. She grew to understand how every child is unique and families today lack the support that extended families provided in the past. This led to parents and children feeling overwhelmed and isolated, helping Sarah to develop further strategies addressing these problems. Sarah has proven her ability to assist students, families, teachers and schools to provide safe and positive learning environments. Her successes have provided her with the wealth of knowledge needed to allow her to know present this website with the confidence it will be of assistance to other families and teachers.