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Group Manager, Nicole Schleicher, and Operation Managers from Family and Community Services (FACS), hosted delegates from the China Children's Teenage Fund (CCTF) at their Carlingford premises, who were in Australia on an educational tour. They wanted to learn more about how Care Services in Australia operate.

CCTF was created in 1981 as one of the first charitable foundations in China. Over the past 26 years, CCTF has been working for the education and welfare of Chinese children, especially those in rural and ethnic minority areas. Since 1989, CCTF has sponsored over 1.7 million girls in their education and careers.

The visit was arranged by one of Wesley’s key corporate partners DLA Phillips Fox Australia, who are associated with DLA Piper Beijing, and helped coordinate the delegates’ trip to Australia and New Zealand. The purpose of their trip is to connect with charities working with children and teenagers over here, to share knowledge, gain ideas and potentially explore possible avenues to work together if deemed to be appropriate.

The delegates included the Vice President, Cheng Shugin and the International Associate Director for the charity Ben Xu, plus several board members (including a few senior government officials). Ben Xu has been responsible for coordinating the corporate response to the earthquake in Sichuan. He visited Wenchuan in the weeks immediately following the quake and has been directly involved in the programme to fund the rebuilding of schools and children's villages.

It was great to hear about the work they do in China and they were very interested in the work that Wesley Mission does over here. An Australian afternoon tea was prepared for the guests – complete with lamingtons, iced vo vo's and Anzac cookies. This was a great opportunity for FACS Managers and CCTF to obtain an understanding of each others work.

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Left to Right: Ben Xu (Associate Director, CCTF) and Delegate

Left to Right: Ben Xu (Associate Director, CCTF), Delegate, Delegate, Cheng Shugin (Vice President, CCTF), Nicole Schleicher, Peter O'Brien, Ian Hanslow & David Allen