Helping the Sydney community with relationships, parenting, ageing, disability, pastoral services and mental wellbeing.
CatholicCare Sydney has featured on the Financial Review BOSS Most Innovative Companies list for the first time, ranked 3rd in the highly competitive Government, Education, Not-For-Profit category. This national competition acknowledges Australian businesses that are challenging the status quo, and we have been celebrated for the BariStars program run by our Disability Services team located in Belmore. Recognised by industry judges as a program that challenges norms and provides an environment in which people are supported to be their best, BariStars embodies the values of CatholicCare Sydney – empowerment, courage, compassion, inclusion, and collaboration.
The Most Innovative Companies 2023 attracted over 700 entries this year, from industry leaders including AGL, Orica, Ryco Filters, HESTA, The Smith Family, Blackmores, Novartis Pharmaceuticals, WWF, and Guide Dogs NSW/ACT.
CatholicCare Sydney launched BariStars in November 2022, the program was initiated by Disability Services participants wanting to explore greater opportunities in the workforce. In the past, NDIS Supported Employment offered as part of CatholicCare’s Disability Services focused on gardening and cleaning services, however, an intensive training program and the purchase of a mobile coffee trailer thanks to a donation from the Estate of Bishop Bede Heather has seen a group of incredibly motivated and enthusiastic participants join the ranks of Sydney baristas pouring caffeine wakeups for regular customers.
Bankstown Sports Club generously provided a mobile coffee cart, coffee machine, and grinder for training purposes, and Vittoria Coffee kindly gifted BariStars with two additional coffee machines and two grinders for the mobile trailer, along with a six-month supply of coffee beans, plus tea, cups, sugar, napkins, and syrups for both the mobile trailer and for training, ensuring the aspiring baristas are guaranteed to serve all customers only the finest coffee.
Every participant from the Supported Employment program receives full barista training and on-the-job support to learn the required hospitality skills to prepare and serve a variety of coffee orders, hot chocolates, and cold drinks along with an assortment of sweet treats and hot pies.
The Most Innovative Companies 2023 judges believe CatholicCare Sydney has a high level of innovation strategy and communicates this clearly to all staff. Importantly, CatholicCare Sydney scored above the national average for Not-For-Profits with regards to the percentage of staff who believe customers sit at the heart of decisions made, and it is this belief that motivates all within the organisation to develop better ways of working and to investigate new programs and innovations that will support individuals and families to sustain, regain and thrive.