![The LEADAg Plus attendees at the Bimerah shearing shed with manager Mick Campbell. Picture: Meg Bassingthwaighte The LEADAg Plus attendees at the Bimerah shearing shed with manager Mick Campbell. Picture: Meg Bassingthwaighte](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/88uitQDCBZnXA8enwGJ5Zd/a857f3b0-7658-499f-b920-65139c802c41.JPEG/r0_328_2048_1479_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The extension of LEADAg's youth programs to include people over the age of 18 had participants from as far away as Victoria and the Atherton Tableland at the new offering that took place in the Longreach region in mid-June.
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LEADAg, a program to attract the next generation of workers to the agricultural industry, was developed by CHRRUP, a community-owned, central Queensland-based profit-for-purpose organisation, and has been operating to bridge the gap in ag training left at the end of last decade.
Its youth programs in 2022 and 2023 received over 200 applications, and while the new LEADAg Plus program had only six participants, CHRRUP's agriculture workforce officer Meg Bassingthwaighte said they hadn't advertised widely because it had been a pilot.
She said the attendees ranged in age from 18 to 30, and included people who'd originally come to western Queensland from interstate and were already working locally, plus a young woman from Brisbane doing business management but looking for a change.
"One is on a gap year and flew up from Victoria and back again, looking to get involved in more ag-related work," Ms Bassingthwaighte said. "It's the same idea as the youth programs we've been running but with slightly different content because of the different age bracket."
![LEADAg Plus participants looking at pasture condition with Jenny Milson. Picture: Meg Bassingthwaighte LEADAg Plus participants looking at pasture condition with Jenny Milson. Picture: Meg Bassingthwaighte](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/88uitQDCBZnXA8enwGJ5Zd/5b70ee51-70fd-48b3-8c56-257d3f0315ae.JPEG/r0_191_2048_1342_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Getting on-property is LEADAg's model, visiting producers and getting first-hand experience from what they offer, and LEADAg Plus also had a heavy focus on linking students with producers and business owners in the region.
It's CHRRUP's belief that by getting participants onto working properties and into rural businesses they can not only learn from the best, but also make connections and be exposed to the reality of living and working in rural communities.
The six participants first travelled to the Counsell family's Barcaldine property Lyndon where they met with AWI trainers and tried their hand at shearing.
The following day at Bimerah, near Stonehenge, they stepped into a full-blown 9-stand shearing operation, which Ms Bassingthwaighte said "blew their minds".
"They had a go at pressing, at throwing fleeces - the Coopers and Elders reps were there to talk with, and they did a bit of backlining," she said.
![Learning about skirting fleeces at Bimerah, Stonehenge. Picture: Meg Bassingthwaighte Learning about skirting fleeces at Bimerah, Stonehenge. Picture: Meg Bassingthwaighte](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/88uitQDCBZnXA8enwGJ5Zd/6607e38c-6989-4405-9d84-bd5d64f9b7be.JPEG/r0_177_2048_1328_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
At Leander, west of Longreach, Georgia and Toby Whip exposed them to moving and drafting goats in yards, while Peter Whip at Royston, south of Longreach, got them branding calves and discussing cattle and goat management techniques.
Also included in the bootcamp were a biosecurity talk with DAF officers, an autopsy, a tour of the WQLX saleyards at Longreach, pasture management, breeding and genetics discussions with industry experts Jenny Milson and Desiree Jackson, and cattle body condition scoring at Rosebank, near Longreach.
They all stayed at the Longreach Station accommodation where they took part in a stakeholders dinner and a farmer's challenge.
A second week of block training will take place at Tambo in August, focusing more on AgForce training in rural and remote first aid, fencing, small motor maintenance and operation, workforce success and wellbeing, use of buggies, and chainsaw use.
Ms Bassingthwaighte said it would allow the cohort to meet different people and go to different places.
"Most of those doing it are in an age group that has jobs so it's not easy for them to get two weeks off in one go either," she said.
![Getting a birds-eye view of the cattle selling complex at WQLX, Longreach. Picture: Meg Bassingthwaighte Getting a birds-eye view of the cattle selling complex at WQLX, Longreach. Picture: Meg Bassingthwaighte](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/88uitQDCBZnXA8enwGJ5Zd/8ac05275-48a9-45b9-b186-e1d8ece270c9.JPEG/r0_250_2048_1401_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
The new program is being funded by RESQ+, the employment service provider for central west and south west Queensland, and CEO Chris Hamilton said LEADAg aligned with his organisation's goal to build more effective employment pathways in rural and remote Queensland.
"We believe the best way to build those pathways is to link up with other entities that already deliver great training programs and CHRRUP's LEADAg program is well known and offers terrific opportunities, so we are happy to come on board and help extend it," he said.
"This initiative will go a long way towards highlighting the benefits of agricultural training amongst the youth of central west and south west Queensland.
"The more we can help develop and enhance the training pathways, the better prepared our youth will be when they enter the workforce."
![Department of Agriculture officers Donna Weber and Anna Marie Moffat conducting the biosecurity session. Picture: Meg Bassingthwaighte Department of Agriculture officers Donna Weber and Anna Marie Moffat conducting the biosecurity session. Picture: Meg Bassingthwaighte](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/88uitQDCBZnXA8enwGJ5Zd/9efd0f51-a00f-4f59-bb8c-7ddb4ab3033b.JPEG/r0_191_2048_1342_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Ms Bassingthwaighte said they'd had really good feedback from the producers involved, who liked the hands-on method.
"It's targeting people who are interested but don't have a foot in the door," she said.
"This is exposing people to bush networks, because cold calling is hard for young people.
"They now feel a lot more confident about about ringing up and sending in their resume.
"And producers are happy to find them work, because they like that they've gone to the effort of being in the project."