As soon as OPSO was launched, its members put together a series of training sessions.
The first was the Brisbane Arm which was done in 1993 and is continuing today. These are courses on working with the media, on making effective complaints to business, public servants, local government, and state and commonwealth government members.
These courses are open to individuals and all groups and organisations.
These courses were then taken to the Gold Coast, and then regularly throughout the years to outback and regional Queensland.
These courses were extremely successful, as the Mayor of Longreach testified on our second trip to Longreach.
He joked, “I can’t guarantee that it’s safe for you to go into the business centre. Your course last year on making effective complaints was so effective, the trades people might be a bit concerned about letting you in,” he laughed.
These trips around Queensland, continued every year so that all regions were covered. When the International Year for Older Persons was evaluated nationally, Queensland media coverage was far ahead of any other state.
The two courses, media training and making effective complaints, are two huge tools that have a tremendous effect on empowering older people.
OPSO has always been quite happy to extend these courses to all other states. OPSO has always produced either a video or a text book to accompany its classes.
Think Big, Think Clever was a training video that came out of the Friday’s Nightclub Project, together with the book Getting Your Message Across. This book covers all aspects of communication and has been very popular with both organisations and individuals.
Fun for the Frail and Frisky, was produced at the request of nursing homes and retirement villages and is a book of activities for those looking for fun.
Courses
For organisations
Courses can be specially designed to meet organisation needs. Phone OPSO on (07) 3219 2572 to negotiate a time and price.
For individuals
If you wish to take any of the courses listed below, send us an email, including your name address, phone number and the name of the course(s) you wish to take.
Alternatively you can print this page and fax or post the form to OPSO at the address above.
Getting your message across
Writing for profit – articles, profiles, columns for newspapers and magazines
Creative writing – short stories, poetry
Public speaking
Obtaining sponsorship
Lobbying
Making complaints
Driving awareness (in conjunction with the RACQ)
For information on any of these courses, please email OPSO with your name, organisation (if applicable), contact address and phone number. Please also indicate the course/s you are interested in
OPSO Seniors Driving Program
The RACQ Years Ahead Program is conducted throughout the year by OPSO in towns across Queensland. This is a simple, enjoyable and non-threatening way to update your driving skills in your own clubroom surrounded by friends and other local people.
Depending on the request, he presentation takes about half an hour to an hour, with the audience invited to ask any questions. This is followed by a short Speakout at which the audience is given the opportunity to speak out about local transport, road and road safety issues. These will be added to OPSO’s grass roots research and taken to the appropriate government departments.
Any groups interested in having this presentation please contact OPSO on (07) 3219 2572 or just email us.