Aotearoa Social Workers’ Day: Barnardos Whangārei social worker Carolyn Procter

Barnardos social worker Carolyn Procter. Photo / Michael Cunningham

Today is Aotearoa New Zealand Social Workers’ Day, and to celebrate the contribution social workers make in Northland, the Advocate spoke to Barnardos social worker Carolyn Procter to hear her story.

Former chef Carolyn Procter had always been cooking up the idea of swapping the cafe kitchen for a career in social work.

The 43-year-old Whangārei mum eventually decided to make the move and successfully graduated from NorthTec | Te Pūkenga with a Bachelor of Applied Social Work aged 40 and amid Covid lockdowns.

The mention of her age was to show people that it is never too late to pursue your passions. Procter is living proof, as the Barnardos social worker spearheads two unique programmes that help autistic children and their families thrive, as well as schoolchildren.

Procter had been working in the kitchen of what was formerly the Caffeine Espresso Cafe when she felt a pang for the career she had a taste of as a 16-year-old. While at high school, she had gained a social work certificate.

“I loved it. I wanted to get into social work and counselling, but there wasn’t anything in Whangārei,” Procter said.

Instead, she jumped from course to course as she tried to find a different calling in her hometown. She happened to land on becoming a chef.

Procter followed that career through until the birth of her three children saw her re-evaluate her pathway. What followed was a working at a craft market, then she had a go at cleaning houses, and finally she settled on obtaining a social work degree.

“I was very nervous,” she said. The world of theory and written assignments was far away from the hands-on experience of her qualification as a chef.

“I’m very, very thankful to my family for putting up with a lot of late nights and stress staying up until midnight to get assessments done.”

Procter currently runs the Incredible Years Autism programme, which is new to Whangārei. The 14-week programme works with parents of children aged 2 to 5 who are on the spectrum.

Additionally, she also designed and runs the eight-week Kia Tupu – Life Skills (KTLS) programme in partnership with local schools. KTLS equips children with important life skills, for example: anger management, cooking, communication skills and financial literacy, which plant the seeds for children to thrive.

Procter said both programmes are about empowering families and their children to understand and learn how to help themselves.

She has even been able to add some flair from her former career, as cooking is a key part of teaching value life skills in Kia Tupu. For example, they make hot chocolate and learn breathing exercises as they inhale the delicious scent.

“It’s more of a vocation than a job. It’s where I’m supposed to be,” Procter said. “It’s a job where you can get out and help others - it’s really awesome.”