As part of NAIDOC Week, Winslow Group staff at our Essendon Fields head office joined local community members in the Little Long Walk, which celebrated 20 years since AFL legend Michael Long walked 650km from Melbourne to Parliament House in Canberra.

The aim of the former Essendon champion’s walk was to make a stand for Indigenous communities. Two decades on, the Long Walk Foundation continue to Walk the Talk, raising money and awareness to support Indigenous education programs across the country.

The Little Long Walk around Essendon Fields was to strengthen our relationship to country, walking together in solidarity, and keeping the momentum going in the spirit of NAIDOC 2024, and to raise funds for The Long Walk Foundation.

Before the walk a Welcome to Country and smoking ceremony was held, as well traditional dancing from the Indigenous Outreach Projects dancers from Cairns, who braved a chilly 10C Melbourne day to perform.

Participants enjoyed a BBQ provided by local supermarket LaManna after the walk.

It is with great excitement that Winslow is sponsoring the inaugural Autism Cup this Saturday with Altona ‘Magic’ Soccer Club taking on Avondale Football Club.

The two clubs have developed a strong bond through a common goal of raising awareness of autism, and funds for Beyond the Boundary, an organisation focused on delivering soccer programs designed to create a supportive and enjoyable environment for children and families living with autism.

The Autism Cup was born from a casual conversation, based on personal experiences between club members, about the challenges surrounding children and families living with autism.

The Altona ‘Magic’ SC and Avondale FC soccer communities have dedicated the past two months to creating a showcase event, which promises a day of fun, activities and focus on raising awareness of autism and has encouraged likeminded people to achieve great things. 

The Autism Cup is not just a football match, it’s a celebration of community, inclusion and the extraordinary potential of every individual.

The day commences at 2:15pm with a kids’ carnival, 4:15pm President’s fundraising function and culminates with the Autism Cup match between Altona Magic Soccer Club and Avondale Football Club senior teams staring at 6:15pm.

Join us on Saturday July 6 at Paisley Park for The Autism Cup or be part of The Autism Cup fundraising for Beyond the Boundary by donating here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/theautismcup

Tickets to the President’s function can be purchased here: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/the-autism-cup-presidents-fundraising-function-tickets-921091739187

As part of National Reconciliation Week, the Winslow Group has launched its Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultural Appreciation training.

Reconciliation Week is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements, and to explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

As Australians, we can all be proud to be the home of one of the oldest continuous civilisations on Earth, extending back more than 65,000 years.

Our Cultural Appreciation training course aims to increase employees’ awareness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and their culture.

Cultural awareness is a first step towards Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultural competency, which refers to an ability to interact effectively with people of different cultures and socio-economic backgrounds.

The focus of our training is to provide background and context, and then to move into appropriate behaviour from Winslow employees.

Each person at Winslow is empowered to make good decisions to look after each other as family, be accountable to each other and be committed to operating safely.

It’s the Winslow Way.

Winslow collaborates with various groups to provide opportunities to different community groups, and we value using and passing on knowledge.

Chaya, a Winslow Constructors Site Engineer, has been mentoring university students studying for careers in the construction industry.

The Buddy Program is run by the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) Victoria Education Committee to help students navigate the transition from university to industry, and successfully integrate into the workforce.

The program is available for Engineering, Construction Management, Project Management and Architecture students of all genders.

Chaya is one of 33 ‘buddies’ who have volunteered to participate in the program to mentor one to two students.

“I wanted to participate as I had an interesting journey into the industry,” Chaya said.

“I also wanted to promote Winslow’s priority to employ people who show initiative and promise.”

For the second year in a row, Winslow Queensland has been a major sponsor of the Gold Coast Hospital Foundation Giving Day.

The Gold Coast Hospital Foundation held a record-breaking Giving Day this week with more than $213,000 raised to support the health service, patients and families.

Throughout the day, the donation phone lines were manned by 100 volunteers calling on friends, family, past supporters and the community.

Every donation was celebrated, every like and share on social media helped spread the awareness even further, and ultimately contributed to the final donation tally.

Winslow continues to support local families and the communities that we work and live in.

It’s the Winslow Way.

Throughout April, Winslow honoured the importance of the health and wellness of our male employees.

Men’s Health Month focused on the importance of good health and positive health practices.

Initiatives included four themes that aimed to improve the physical, emotional, and mental health knowledge of our male workers – Awareness, Education, Prevention, Family. 

We promoted safe, healthy lifestyle choices for our men, and reminded them of the health issues they face and what they can do to take charge of their health.

Men’s Health Month wasn’t just for men – we want women in their lives to learn more too.

We also encouraged our men to share their story about how they have made good choices in personal health practices, with many highlighting changes they had made to lose weight, eat better and improve their mental wellbeing.

We ended the month with Winslow Men’s Health Month physical ‘packs’ with information on common health problems, merchandise, vouchers, and personal skin self-checks. 

All men received special Winslow ‘Be Safe Today’ work socks, which are being proudly worn around our work sites and offices.

Winslow was proud to sponsor the Property Council of Australia’s regional Girls in Property program last week at the Cotton On Group head offices in Geelong with almost 50 students from three schools in attendance.

The program educates girls on the possibilities that are available across a huge range of career paths that exist within the property industry.

Winslow’s Gosia and Kelly-Marie attended the event to inspire greater female participation and creating a sustainable pipeline of talent for the growing industry.

Girls were split into groups hosted by young industry professionals to learn about different careers in property.

A group of Winslow Queensland men walked from Surfers Paradise to Coolangatta last weekend to raise funds and awareness for men's mental health.
Spoke to a Bloke is a charity focused on supporting men's mental health.
Walk for a Bloke is an event for men to come together and walk 25km to raise awareness and funds for mental health.
Our team raised $1710 for the charity. Well done, blokes!

Winslow aims to raise the awareness and career opportunities for women by building internal capability and by working alongside likeminded organisations and maintaining our strong relationships.

We are doing our part to ensure that females are armed with enough information to be best positioned to consider civil construction as an industry of choice for their career.

For Winslow Constructors apprentice labourer Maddison, a career in construction appealed to her thanks to her role model who really sold it.

“My dad (Mick) has worked in construction for many years and he inspired me to seek a career in construction,” she said.

“The close community and friendly workspaces I had heard about is what really appealed to me.”

Maddison had an early introduction to the industry by doing work experience at Winslow on the Latham’s Road Upgrade project in 2022.

She joined Winslow last year after leaving school after completing Year 10 to commence an apprenticeship while she studies a Certificate III in Civil Construction at National Skills Institute.

“Studying has helped with my job as the units I complete correspond with the tasks I am doing on site,” Maddison said.

“I have been on the 215 Beaconsfield job site, which has included road and pavement development, deep drainage, underground boring, landscape and footpath development.

“All my colleagues and leaders have a great deal of experience and mentor me, and I have learnt a lot of new things.

“My foreman Matt always ensures I completely understand a task before I start a job, and he is always happy to explain things multiple times or in different ways if he needs to.  

“And my dad has a lot of experience within this industry, and he is always sure to show me the most efficient and safe methods when completing a task, I have learnt allot of my knowledge from him.”

Matt said Madison is enthusiastic and has adapted well to her apprenticeship and is achieving high quality work.

“Madison’s peers on site say she is eager to learn and fits in well with the work force,” Matt said.

“Overall, she has been an asset to my project.”

Maddison said she would recommend other women entering a career in civil construction.

“I have had a great experience, and I believe I will keep having a great experience,” she said.

“Working in a male-dominated industry has been really normal for me and it has never bothered me because I was in a mostly male friendship group throughout my schooling.

“I can confidently say that Winslow has welcomed me and treated me no differently because I am a woman.”

Being a part of a project from the very beginning was always appealed to Caitlin.

The Winslow Queensland Project Engineer, who was recently promoted from a Site Engineer role, has been with the company for three years working on residential subdivision projects.

“I had some experience working on site during my time at uni, which I always really enjoyed,” Caitlin said.

“It was also important to me that I work in a role where there is variety between each of my days, and where I am able to be challenged.”

Winslow is determined to provide career opportunities in civil construction for women, and Caitlin recommends other women consider a career in the industry.

“I have found that the Winslow team is more than willing to offer support, guidance or advice when needed – whether that be related to technical or operational matters, or personal and career development,” she said.

“Working in civil construction has exposed me to a diverse range of experiences.

“I feel as though I have had the opportunity to learn a lot within a relatively short amount of time. 

“There is a strong culture of humour and comradery that I don’t think you would get in many other industries.”

She said working in a male dominated industry is a lot easier than you might think.

“It is not what I had anticipated when I first started,” Caitlin said.

“Being a woman in construction isn’t like how it is depicted in the movies. I have found that everyone I have worked with is very inclusive and makes you feel part of the team.

“I have never really noticed that I am often the only female on site - my experience has been very positive.”

Caitlin aims to become a Project Manager and said she values the positive role models who she works with.

Winslow is future focused on supporting our women and we believe that “you can’t be what you can’t see”.

Our Women of Winslow program highlights and celebrates positive role modelling of women in positions across our Group, by developing training opportunities, capability and diversity that engage and empower our women to pursue many career opportunities at Winslow confidently.

The Women of Winslow mentoring program is creating and developing female leaders, impacting the culture of Winslow.

As part of Women in Construction Week and International Women’s Day, we celebrate some of Winslow Group’s women thriving in the civil construction industry. 

Maxie joined Winslow Infrastructure as a Traffic Coordinator before becoming Winslow's first female Foreperson.

"Gender doesn't dictate roles or responsibilities within the team,” Maxie says.

“In my eyes, Winslow Infrastructure is a versatile team that encourages internal growth within the business for everyone.

"I have found the transition to my new role more rewarding than I expected and encourage everyone to give any new opportunity given to them a go!"

For Winslow Constructors apprentice labourer Maddison, a career in construction appealed to her thanks to her role model who really sold it.

She joined Winslow last year after completing Year 10 to commence an apprenticeship while she studies a Certificate III in Civil Construction at National Skills Institute.

“My dad (Mick) has worked in construction for many years, and he inspired me to seek a career in construction,” she says.

Winslow Queensland Project Engineer Caitlin says working in civil construction has exposed her to a diverse range of experiences.

“I feel as though I have had the opportunity to learn a lot within a relatively short amount of time,” Caitlin says.

“There is a strong culture of humour and comradery that I don’t think you would get in many other industries.”

It’s the Winslow Way.

Winslow is invested in developing our workforce to ensure strong skills in our teams.

By learning new skills ‘the Winslow Way’, we ensure quality in the workplace and provide greater opportunities to promote staff from within.

Our Emerging Leader Program was created to run alongside our Site Leadership Program to develop the skills our team needs to deliver outcomes our clients are looking for.

Our 2023 participants graduated in December after completing the 10-month program.

A special thank you to our partner Thinka for supporting Winslow’s future leaders.