Our vision is for all young Australians to reach their potential in the future world of work, regardless of socio-economic background.

The Australian Business and Community Network (ABCN) is a purpose-led, not-for-profit organisation that brings businesses and schools together to address educational disparity.

We connect volunteers from our member companies with students from low socio-economic backgrounds to provide fun, workplace-based mentoring programs that develop students’ confidence, skills and aspirations vital for thriving in the workplace of the future.

Discover how mentors can help change a young person’s life while developing their own skills.

There are two parts of our organisation – ABCN and the ABCN Foundation.

ABCN

Established in 2005, ABCN is a network of 50+ member companies from corporate Australia and almost 200 partner schools that, together, deliver mentoring programs to students. More than 200,000 students and 60,000 corporate volunteers have participated in our initiatives since inception.

Our high school mentoring programs are typically held in the offices of our member companies, providing students with exposure to the business world and corporate mentors. During COVID-19, we are using a safe mix of digital and face-to-face formats to keep students and mentors connected. The rapid transformation of our programs into digital versions means we can increase access for students living in regional and remote areas.

Our primary school mentoring programs are held at the schools, with corporate volunteers from our member companies visiting the students at our partner schools.

Our mentoring programs vary from one-off day events to regular sessions spread over several months. Read more about our suite of programs and what might suit your school or workplace here.

As well as our student mentoring programs, we support students and our schools through a range of school/business partnerships and other initiatives such as workplace tours, class-based industry talks, technology expos and principal/business leader co-mentoring programs.

ABCN and its programs are funded by our member companies.

ABCN Foundation

The ABCN Foundation was established in 2013. We award mentoring and financial scholarships to high-potential students whose disadvantage impacts their ability to complete school and pursue tertiary pathways. We have awarded 270 scholarships across Australia since inception.

Our scholarship program provides corporate mentoring and financial relief to scholars for three years, over Years 11, 12 and the first year of tertiary education, employment or training.

We tap into the ABCN network to connect with the students who need our help the most and provide them with access to corporate mentors and opportunities.

Read more about the ABCN Foundation and our scholarship program here.

The ABCN Foundation is a separate entity to ABCN and relies wholly on philanthropic support and donations.

Watch as ABCN welcomed our new foundation scholars in April 2022. We enjoyed celebrating the network’s success face-to-face after nearly three years.


 

Our team values

These are the values the ABCN team lives and works by:

  • Purpose – we get up each day to make a real difference.
  • Relationships are the life-blood of our success – students and mentors, schools and businesses, our network and us.
  • Professionalism is at the heart of how we work.
  • With passion and energy, we go above and beyond, always.
  • We have fun, work flexibly, rely on each other and kick goals as one team.

 

 

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Please contact us on 02 8988 6850 or by using the form below:

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