I write to you today from Melbourne where our Events Officer, Narelle Kay, and I had the pleasure and privilege of attending the Association Awards^TM 2025 Dinner last night. FRSA was nominated in the Association Event of the Year^TM category for the FRSA National Conference 2025. While we didn’t win the award, we were shortlisted and are proud of our achievement. The FRSA team love bringing this event to the sector each year and we appreciated the opportunity to celebrate along with a range of other associations bringing exciting events to their members and stakeholders. We were in a strongly contested competition and congratulate the Institute of Health and Safety on their win.

Last week, FRSA delivered another of our highlight events – the Strategic Leadership Forum. This member-only event brings together senior leaders in Canberra to discuss emerging issues and key sector priorities. It will likely come as no surprise that AI was top on the agenda. We also spent a day at Parliament House where members met with around 60 politicians from across the divide to share the important work of the sector in meeting the needs of children, families and communities across Australia. The team and I greatly enjoyed the opportunity to connect with members, and we appreciated the energy, enthusiasm and insights that our colleagues brought to discussions. You can read more about the Forum below.

Earlier this week, the Department of Social Services released its discussion paper on A new approach to programs for families and children. This follows Minister Plibersek’s announcement on 23 October that 5 programs under the Families and Children Activity would cease in January 2027 with a new single national program established in its place. The consultation focuses on that new national program. The timeline is tight with submissions due on 5 December. FRSA is developing a submission, and we’ll be consulting with members over the next 2 weeks (Members can find out more and register below).

It was recently National Children’s Week (18-26 October), and we share some of the ways FRSA Members celebrated below.

Kind regards,
Jackie Brady
FRSA Executive Director

Background

On 23 October 2025, the Minister for Social Services, the Hon Tanya Plibersek MP, announced proposed reforms to supports and services for families, children, and young people. Five programs under the Families and Children (FaC) Activity will cease at end January 2027 and be replaced by a single national program. The five programs are: Child and Parenting Support (CaPS), Communities for Children Facilitating Partners (CfC FP), Family Mental Health Support Services (FMHSS), Family and Relationship Services (FaRS) and Specialised Family Violence Services (SFVS).

Following the Minister’s announcement, on 3 November the Department of Social Services opened a consultation on the proposed reforms – a new approach to programs for families and children. Submission close 5 December 2025.

Member Forums (note: you must be an FRSA Member to attend)

Over the next 2 weeks, FRSA will hold the following member forums online:

• Reform announcement: general Member discussion – Thursday 13 November, 3.00pm-4.00pm (AEDT). For more information and click here to register.
• A new approach to programs for families and children: Member consultation:
  • Tuesday 18 November, 2.00pm-3.30pm (AEDT) – Register here
  • Thursday 20 November, 1.30pm-3.00pm (AEDT) – Register here

For more information and to register for one of the consultation discussions click the link above.

If you have any questions, please contact Robyn Clough, Manager Policy & Research – policy@frsa.org.au

FRSA has extended the Call for Abstracts deadline for the FRSA National Conference 2025 to 12 November 2025!

Don’t miss the opportunity to showcase your work at one of the largest gatherings of practitioners, academics and policy makers working to support children, families and communities. We welcome abstracts that speak to the conference theme – Showcasing: Practice, Evidence, Impact.

All abstracts must be submitted online by 11:59pm AEDT Wednesday 12 November 2025. For more information, or to submit your Abstract, please visit the Conference website here.

Register for the final webinar in our First Nations focus on Family and Relationship services series, Growing Up Strong from early childhood: Stories and other findings from Footprints in Time: The Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Children presented byAssociate Professor Stuart Ekberg & Tirritpa Ritchie, Flinders University & Professor Kristin Laurens, Queensland University of Technology on Tuesday, 25 November 2025.

Discover how the Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Children (LSIC) is being used to tell powerful stories—combining Indigenous knowledge, storying methods, and data—to understand what helps children thrive.In this webinar, researchers will share how they have adapted Indigenous storying methods to bring LSIC data to life, guided by a strengths-based approach and Indigenous conceptions of social and emotional wellbeing. Learn how culture, place, and strong families support wellbeing, and how these insights can shape better services and stronger communities.

Last week, CEOs and Senior Leaders in the FRSA Network gathered in Canberra – Ngunnawal Country – for FRSA’s annual Strategic Leadership Forum (SLF).

Day 1 kicked off with a thought-provoking session on preparing for the future led by Michael McQueen, followed by David Spriggs CEO at Infoxchange who explored the transformative potential of AI.

We then moved into a member-led discussion featuring Relationships Australia Canberra & Regions CEO, Stephanie Hodson CSC PSM and Anglicare WA’s GM Digital Solutions, Dr Russell Thom who shared their experiences with AI in leadership. This was followed by updates from the Department of Service Social Services and the Attorney-General’s Department and a presentation from the Department of Finance. The day wrapped up with a networking event providing members with the opportunity to connect and share ideas and priorities.

Day 2 started with a breakfast event at Parliament House, featuring guest speaker Senator Kerrynne Liddle, Shadow Minister for Social Services. Following the breakfast delegates took to Parliament House for the rest of day meeting with policymakers and parliamentarians to advocate for the sector and share insights from their communities. In total, members met with 58 of our nation’s leaders.

Check out some photos from the meetings between delegates and Politicians and our highlight video from day 2.

If you missed the fourth webinar in our First Nations focus on Family and Relationship services series, Better Together presented by Anne-Marie Mioche from CatholicCare Wilcannia-Forbes and Alister Ferguson from Maranguka, you can watch the recording now:

FRSA’s submission to the parliamentary inquiry into the Thriving Kids Initiative has been accepted by the committee and published on the Inquiry website. Our submission is also available on the FRSA website.

The Minister for Health and Ageing, the Hon Mark Butler MP, referred the inquiry to the House Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Disability on 2 September and submissions are now closed. The Thriving Kids Initiative will seek to deliver supports for children outside the NDIS focusing on identifying developmental delays and differences earlier.

FRSA’s submission focused on insights shared by providers of child and family services in our community of practice discussions, and noted that the ability of child and family services to support client complexity, including supporting families with children experiencing developmental delay, can be impacted by the poor availability of clinical and allied health services.

FRSA supports an early intervention, strengths-based approach to supporting children with mild to moderate developmental delay in a service system characterised by a progressive universalism approach. That is, an approach where all children benefit from stigma-free, good quality health, educational and social/community services, with additional specialised services/supports provided to those children that need them.

The Australian Government Department of Social Services has opened its consultation on A new approach to programs for families and children, which was foreshadowed in a Ministerial announcement on 23 October signalling reform to the department’s Families and Children Activity.

Five flagship programs are set to be replaced by a single national program from 2027. These five programs are:

• Child and Parenting Support (CaPS)
• Communities for Children – Facilitating Partners (CfC FP)
• Family Mental Health Support Services (FMHSS)
• Family and Relationship Services (FaRS)
• Specialised Family Violence Services (SFVS).

You can participate in the department’s consultation in a few different ways – participate in a townhall, respond to the Discussion Paper (submissions close 5 December) or answer a quick survey.

A range of resources have been developed to help you have your say:

• Discussion Paper
• A summary of the research and evidence which has informed the design of the proposal (Evidence Summary)
• A summary of how the changes respond to what the sector and families have told the government in previous consultation processes (Consultation Summary)
• Factsheet for families, parents and caregivers
• Easy Read Discussion Paper
• Easy Ready Factsheet for families, parents and caregivers

FRSA will be developing a submission and will consult directly with FRSA Members. We also encourage Members and stakeholders to put in their own responses.

More information about the consultation is available here.

One in three Australian households, or 3.5 million households, experienced food insecurity in the past 12 months, according to the Foodbank Hunger Report 2025, released earlier this week. The report paints a stark picture of widening food insecurity across the nation, debunking the myth that hunger only affects the unemployed or homeless.

The Foodbank Hunger Report 2025 reveals that cost-of-living pressures remain the number one concern for 91% of food-insecure households, followed by housing and the broader economy. Behind the data are the real stories of families forced to skip meals so children can eat, workers going hungry to pay rising rents, and people living with disability or illness struggling to put food on the table.

Key findings:

• One in two (48%) of all renting households have experienced food insecurity in the past year.
• Seven in ten (67%) of households that include someone with a disability or health issue have experienced food insecurity in the past 12 months, with three quarters of them in the severe category.
• Nearly 7 in 10 (68%) single-parent households are now food insecure
• One in five households earning $91,000 or more experienced food insecurity in the past 12 months.

Read the full report

On 30 October, the Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence 2025 Yearly Report was tabled in Parliament, providing critical advice to government to ensure the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032 (National Plan) delivers on its commitment to end gender-based violence within a generation by 2050.

The Commission’s second report comes three years into the 10-year National Plan and identifies clear priorities for action designed to accelerate implementation of the National Plan.

The report emphasises five critical insights that must shape the next Action Plan: prevention must begin in childhood; the most effective solutions come from those most affected; systems must stop working in silos; institutions must move from control to care; and safety must be a right, not a privilege.

The Commission has also advised government to:

• Establish a DFSV Youth Advisory Council
• Implement a national, coordinated approach to engaging men and young boys
• Embed shared decision making for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities
• Prioritise learning from the experience of people with a disability, older women and LGBTQI+ and multicultural communities
• Develop a road map for implementing Australian Law Reform Commission justice responses to sexual violence recommendations
• Establish a Commonwealth implementation and delivery mechanism to drive cross government delivery and coordination
• Undertake systematic mapping of recommendations across all reviews and inquiries, and alignment across all related national plans
• Develop a national funding mapping framework to increase visibility and improve planning
• Invest in workforce development.

The Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence 2025 Yearly Report can be found here.

Last month the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1) and (Division 2) announced the addition of Leo, a new court dog and facility dog, to the Brisbane registry and swore him in at an official ceremony as part of the Courts’ National Court Dog Program.

Three years ago, the courts launched the National Court Dog Program in Melbourne and Hobart. The Courts have since extended the program to Sydney, Parramatta, and Newcastle.

In the justice setting, Court Dogs are increasingly being utilised as a trauma-informed support for vulnerable litigants, witnesses and children, by reducing the stress of engaging with court processes.

Research indicates Court Dogs help reduce the effects of cortisol, the stress hormone that increases a human’s heart rate and blood pressure. Court Dogs also increase oxytocin, which reduces anxiety and improves a person’s clarity of thought and sense of calm.

Watch the video about of the National Court Dog Program.

The Joint Standing Committee on Implementation of the National Redress Scheme has launched an inquiry into the continuing operation of the Scheme and invites submissions to guide its findings.

With the Scheme scheduled to conclude on 30 June 2028, the inquiry will primarily examine the outstanding case management load, the availability and effectiveness of support services for applicants, and the transition arrangements as the Scheme approaches its end.

The Committee will also assess whether the Scheme is achieving its intended objectives and meeting the expectations of survivors and the broader community.

Submissions are encouraged from a wide range of stakeholders, including government, legal and support bodies, researchers, and survivors. The closing date is Friday 6 February 2026.

Full details of the inquiry, including the terms of reference, are available on the Committee’s website.

On 4 November 2025, the Senate resolved that the Select Committee on Productivity in Australia be established. The committee is to present a final report by 30 September 2026.

The Committee will inquire into and report on:

1. the history of productivity growth in Australia in both multifactor and labour terms
2. objectives for a multi-decade national settlement strategy to achieve a more balanced distribution of population between cities and regional Australia, with a view to enhancing economic resilience, productivity and social cohesion
3. the current position and opportunities to gain productivity growth
4. conflicts of interest and structural barriers to sustainable growth
5. the efficacy of federal competition law
6. opportunities for the states and territories to drive growth
7. the impact of regulatory tax burdens on productivity growth
8. the impact and opportunity of technology
9. priority opportunities in the market and non-market sectors for productivity growth
10. Australia’s competitiveness and benchmarking against similar nations
11. any other related matters.

The closing date for submissions is yet to be determined. You can keep up-to-date with the inquiry via the Committee’s website.

It was Children’s Week from 18 – 26 October 2025. The week is a national celebration of children’s rights. It highlights the rights of children to thrive, learn, play and be heard, as set out in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

See how FRSA Members celebrated the week:

• Uniting SA held a Children’s Week event for all ages in Port Adelaide.
• Kids First Australia partnered with local stakeholders and welcomed families to a free community event at the Old Cheese Factory in Berwick – a day filled with play activities, music, performances and conversations celebrating children and their rights. They also launched ‘Supporting Your Child Through Trauma’ — a new free video series designed to give parents confidence, tools and hope to keep children safe and supported, both online and offline.
• Anglicare SA’s Communities for Children Playford team celebrated at an event hosted by Playford Early Childhood Alliance.
• CatholicCare Sydney’s newly appointed Executive Director of Children and Family, and Disability Services, Kirsten Mead, shared the importance of Children’s Week.
• Mission Australia’s Parent Pathways team joined the fun at Frankston’s Children’s Week event, celebrating the magic of childhood.
• Mallee Family Care held a Discover Playgroup event in Mildura.
• FamilyCare visited the Kinder at the Seymour P-12 Kinder and gave them copies of the book I Have The Right and then read to the children.
• The Sexual Assault & Family Violence Centre, Meli, Barwon Area Integrated Family Violence and CatholicCare Victoria, presented the Unanswered Calls documentary by Safe Steps in Geelong – a film that highlighted the impact of family violence on children. Read more.
• Sora Community Services had a stall at Shopping World with painting, craft activities and letter writing.
• Communicare shared a video of their Communities for Children program and their partnership with Binar Futures to launch Binar Kaadidjiny, a culturally rich school-based initiative that empowers students to learn basketball, connect with culture and strengthen engagement with school. Watch the video below:

The Family Law Pathways Network held their annual FLPN Project Officer Conference in Sydney on 6-7 November 2025.

The event included presentations from FRSA’s Executive Director Jackie Brady, Attorney-General’s Department and the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia.

This is an annual event that moves around Australia.  It is an information sharing, networking and learning experience Conference.

The Child Family Community Australia (CFCA) Needs & Impact Survey for the child and family sector is now open!

If you use CFCA or Australian Institute of Family Studies research or resources in your work, they want to hear from you!

Your feedback will shape their upcoming resources so they can ensure they are relevant to you and easy to use.

This is also your opportunity to tell them your topics of interest and information gaps in your work, to help inform future resources.

This survey only takes 10-15 minutes to complete and closes 30 November 2025. Click here to complete the survey.

Infoxchange are launching the Australia and New Zealand 2025 Digital Technology in the Not-For-Profit Sector Report via a webinar on Tuesday, 11 November 2025.

It’s the tenth anniversary of the report, and it represents a significant moment for the sector, helping advocate for greater investment in digital capability resourcing across NFPs and community organisations, many of which are increasingly under-resourced and struggling to meet the demand on the frontlines of essential service delivery.

The webinar and report also helps to educate and inspire NFPs by showing how organisations are using digital technology like AI to advance their missions and strengthen outcomes for the communities they serve.

Launch details:
Date: Tuesday, 11 November 2025
Time: 10:00 am – 11:30 am AEDT 
Platform: Zoom (online event)

Click here to find out more and register.

If you have any events you’d like listed on the FRSA Events and Training Calendar or job vacancies you’d like listed on the FRSA Jobs Board, email Communications Officer, Vanessa Lam at communications@frsa.org.au. Please note that posting onto the FRSA website is reserved for FRSA Members only.

If you have an news item or event that you would like to be featured in a future eBulletin please submit your announcement via the form below or email communications@frsa.org.au with the subject “FRSA eBulletin submission”.

Please note FRSA members receive priority for items posted in the eBulletin. And to keep information current, relevant and useful, submissions will not be repeated from week to week.