Safer Drivers course and fee-free training for young people in OOHC

Free Safer Drivers Course for young people in OOHC

The Roads and Maritime Services Safer Driver Course is now available, free, to young people in OOHC and care leavers up to the age of 25.

Completion of the Safer Drivers Course will provide young people in care the opportunity to become safer drivers and earn 20 bonus hours of log book credit.

Learning to drive gives young people confidence and encourages independence by enabling access to education, job opportunities and social networks, especially for those in rural and regional communities.

Young people in OOHC and young people who have left OOHC who have obtained their learners driving permit and completed at least 50 hours of log book driving time are eligible to enrol in a Safer Drivers Course under the Roads and Maritime Services disadvantaged learner initiative for free (usually $140).

DCJ Safer drivers course factsheet (PDF, 115.3 KB) outlines the 5 steps for enrolment into the course.

Fee-free training for children and young people in out-of-home care

Children and young people aged 15 – 17 in out-of-home care (OOHC) and young people aged 18 – 30 who have previously been in OOHC are now eligible for Smart and Skilled Fee-Free Scholarships.

The scholarships will be in place for four years and people who meet the Smart and Skilled Fee-Free Scholarship eligibility criteria will be able to choose from more than 580 qualifications from Certificate I to Certificate IV, including apprenticeships and traineeships.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for a Fee-Free Scholarship, students must be:

• 15 years old or over, no longer at school, living or working in NSW
• aged between 15 and 30 years old when they start training
• an Australian citizen, Australian permanent resident, Australian permanent humanitarian visa holder or New Zealand citizen
• wanting to study a Smart and Skilled course listed on the NSW Skills List.

For further information

Fee-free training for children and young people in out-of-home care (DOCX, 208.7 KB).