7. Promote

Promote your hub and its activities

The saying ‘build it and they will come’ is not an approach you can rely on when trying to connect with hard-to-reach migrant and refugee families.

This is where all the local knowledge and relationships you’ve been developing can be put to good use.

What works – insights from the Logan hub team

Word of mouth

Enlist the help of ‘parent champions’ from the school to draw other parents into hub programs.
Get to know local leaders from the main cultural groups attending your school and ask them to help spread the word about the hub.
Remember: the more you can encourage friendships to develop through the hub, the more successful it will be.

Promotional material

Submit regular articles to the school newsletter. Provide updates about programs, special events, success stories, and introduce new hub faces.
Display posters, flyers and timetables of hub activities in the main reception area and the prep classrooms.
Be sure to highlight if an activity is free and/or if there will be food or another incentive offered to everyone who attends.
Give timetables to all classroom teachers and families you meet at the school gate.
Drop flyers and timetables into local houses, apartment buildings, shops, cafes and restaurants, medical centres and maternal health centres.
Ask your support agency to distribute timetables and promotional material to service providers in the local community, with a focus on settlement agencies and caseworkers.
Make a short video that highlights your hub’s activities, to show at school assemblies and other forums.

Be the voice of your hub

Provide regular updates to your school principal and senior leaders about upcoming programs and events.
Present at school staff meetings and assemblies.
Speak at service network meetings, community events and partner meetings.

Referrals

Keep your hub support coordinator and other hub leaders in the loop about new programs and events on your calendar.
Develop an email address list of the people working in local support services who are happy to receive updates about hub programs and events.

Special activities and events

Hold activities where hub parents are encouraged to bring along a friend or family member who’s never been to the hub.
Attend festivals and events in the local community and have a community hub stall.
Host an open day or a cultural performance.
Invite local news media to cover special events and other newsworthy activities (only with prior permission of your school principal and hub support coordinator)
Organising a colouring competition can be a simple and effective way to get children from the school to visit the hub, with parents in tow.
Get students from the school to put on a show and invite parents to watch and tour the hub after the event.

Social media

If there’s a Facebook page for the community hubs in your local government area, use it to share news and photos about your hub and promote the page among your families and school community.
Send requests to other family-oriented or multicultural community Facebook pages to share your information. This can be effective in reaching new families and raising awareness.
If you’re not a social media whiz, find someone in your hub community who is and enlist their help.

Lina

“A couple of weeks ago, I used a small break I had at my computer to email teachers about the bullying program that is running this afternoon. From this one email, I had seven referrals. Teachers can help, but you have to give them plenty of notice as they are very busy and don’t have much time.”