Mining Family Matters roadshow to visit Pilbara communities
The families of mining industry workers are often overlooked when discussion arises regarding the pressures affecting their lifestyle and home life.
Pilbara families will be armed with practical strategies to overcome these pressures when Mining Family Matters presents two workshops in Port Hedland and Karratha.
The Mining Family Matters website www.miningfm.com.au was established in February 2010 to support Australian families linked to the mining and resources sector.
The free presentations, sponsored by Caltex, are aimed at celebrating families in mining, oil and gas, while also offering professional advice and simple tips for tackling fly-in/fly-out rosters and living in isolated mining communities.
The one-hour presentations on Mining: making it work for your family, will be presented by Mining Family Matters founder Alicia Ranford, on topics including:
Recognising that as a mining family, you do face pressures;
What partners find most challenging about life with a FIFO/DIDO miner;
How to communicate effectively to tackle relationship issues;
The importance of consistency in parenting and strong routines for children, whether parents are home or away; and
Strategies for raising healthy, resilient children in mining households.
Ranford is familiar with the lifestyle having spent five years as a FIFO mum and moving six times in the space of a decade with her mining husband.
She said her most important message is always to reassure mining couples that they’re not alone in doing it tough sometimes.
“Communication, spending precious time together and making sure the kids are OK – we’ve found these are some of the most common pressures raised by mining couples on the Mining Family Matters website,” Ranford said.
“The mining couples who cope well are those who tackle issues together as a team, instead of regularly banging heads about the same old issues.
“Many couples, for example, agree on a set number of social activities when the miner is home on days off. Some partners write lists of jobs that need doing around the house.”
Mining Family Matters has been planning for some time to visit key mining towns such as Port Hedland and Karratha to celebrate the role of families in mining, oil and gas, and also offer one-on-one support.
“We’re extremely grateful to the team at Caltex for their sponsorship of this Pilbara roadshow, and for their continued support of our website, which allows us to provide free professional support and advice to more than 11,000 families every month,” Randford explained.
Caltex business development manager – mining Amanda Keogh said the Pilbara roadshow is an important part of the company’s commitment to local mining communities.
“Caltex is committed to supporting communities in which we work and live,” Keogh said in support of the initiative.
Our sponsorship of the Mining Family Matters website and the Pilbara roadshow are key parts of that commitment.”
“We’re proud to lend our support to Mining Family Matters so that miners and their families can access information and support services when they need it.”
Details for the two presentations are:
Port Hedland: All Seasons Hotel, 10am Tuesday 11 September;
Karratha: Frank Butler Community Centre, 10am Thursday 13 September.
Morning tea will be provided after both presentations and all participants will receive a free copy of The Survival Guide for Mining Families, containing information and advice most commonly requested of the Mining Family Matters crew.
To register for the free presentations, please contact Lainie Anderson at lainie@miningfm.com.au