Ballarat's young parents bringing their babies back into the classroom

The mother-of-two juggles her school work with the needs of her 18-month-old daughter Neveah and two-month-old on Jaxon, bringing them into the classroom with her at Ballarat's only school dedicated to young parents.

So keen was she to continue her studies, she was back in the classroom within weeks of Jaxon's birth.

Aimeelia is one of 15 young parents studying at Yuille Park Community College's Young Parents Program which now runs from the school's Yuille campus in Wendouree.

"I want to finish school so I can be employable," Aimeelia said.

The flexibility, the ability to bring her children to school with her, and the wraparound support from staff enable young mums to balance the needs of their children and their own education.

The program itself has evolved from a stand-alone house in Delacombe to now be part of the school's revamped Yuille campus, which caters for year seven to 12 students running a modified program as an alternative to mainstream schooling.

Young parents aged 15 to 21 study the VCE Vocational Major, preparing them for the workforce once they leave school.

Those that attend classes are already beating the odds - statistics released at the recent Australian Young Parenting Network Symposium show just four per cent of young parents under the age of 21 are engaged in education.

On those numbers alone, campus principal Beau Guest and Young Parents Program coordinator Ange Bentley know there must be many more young mums across Ballarat who may not be aware the Young Parents Program exists.

"As the only specific education provider for young parents in Ballarat I believe that there must be more than 15 young parents in our region who would benefit greatly from the support and education our program provides," Mr Guest said.

They are working with hospitals, maternal and child health nurses, City of Ballarat's Parent Place and other organisations to help raise awareness of the Young Parent Program so they can help more young families.

"As a college we are really investing in the future of this program moving forward and as of this year have created a new space for the parents on site at the Yuille Campus where they can be supported by a large team of staff to complete the VCE Vocational Major," Mr Guest said.

The mums can bring their babies and toddlers to school with them up to the age of 18 months, after which the school supports them to find a suitable childcare or occasional care place. From the age of three they can be enrolled in the kindergarten program that runs from the school's main Wendouree campus.

Adjoining the classroom, which has couches as well as desks, and toys as well as computers, there is a small room with a cot, change table and comfy chair for feeding in private.

"We find this to be the middle ground between the comforts of home, and a learning space," Ms Bentley said. "It's a fine balance between education and supporting their needs."

Those needs can extend beyond education to parenting, mental health support and other practical needs a young mum might have.

Unlike the regular VCE - VM which is undertaken over two years, participants in the Young Parents Program can complete their studies over a longer period if they need.

"We don't try to overload with all of the subjects. We make sure the load is suitable for their needs considering they have little people," Mr Guest said.

In addition to the VCE-VM the students are about to start a Certificate III in Individual Support through BGT and most have also completed barista courses, food handling courses and a first aid course is booked too.

The young mums, and other senior students from the campus, are about to start running a cafe at Ballarat Community Health in Lucas one day a fortnight to further build their skills. It is a relationship between the two organisations that has been running on and off for many years.

"We are trying to skill them up for work ... getting their resumes really well sorted so they can become employable," Ms Bentley said.

"With little people it's hard to attend all the time and even if they don't complete their full VM they have the Certificate III in Individual Support and all the other things."

Ms Bentley said most are motivated to attend to in turn give their children greater opportunity.

Students come in when they are able, some most days of the week, others just a handful but staff are always on hand to support them and check in when things might be difficult.

Ms Bentley said the young mums were "inspiring" in their ability to balance their education and parenthood.