This fortnight I write to you from Adelaide and with the FRSA National Conference coming up in this beautiful city in May, it is certainly exciting to be here. In the middle of a very busy week I’ve even managed to drop by and tour the conference venue. It is all starting to feel very real!

I’m in the middle of an intensive and demanding course on governance here in Adelaide – the Australian Institute of Company Director’s ‘Company Directors’ course. At FRSA we take the practice of good governance very seriously and I know this is shared across the charities sector. Good governance systems, processes and practices mean, amongst other things, that we use government grants, fundraising revenue and donations strictly for their intended purpose. We seek to maximise the value of our income through strategic and careful use. We are transparent and accountable in how our funds are directed and the outcomes that are achieved.

The charities sector plays an important role in the good governance of Australia. We do this by contributing to policy development, by sharing with government the expertise and experiences of frontline services and by representing the interests and needs of vulnerable and marginalised Australian’s whose voices may otherwise be lost. We help governments to spend public funds fairly and wisely – we help them to govern well.

As I reflect on what good governance means across different sectors and across governments, I am deeply disappointed to look back over the past few years and see that while the charities sector has been stretched time and time again by fires, floods and the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Government has been actively seeking to whittle away the important advocacy role of the sector. Now, more than ever, we need to be able to connect the experiences and needs of communities with our political leaders, who have been entrusted to make decisions in the best interests on their behalf. To this end, I express my gratitude to the Hands Off Our Charities Alliance who have worked tirelessly over this period to challenge the introduction of harsh regulatory measures by “Advocating for those who Advocate for Australia”.

This week was marked by Harmony Day on 21 March and a whole week of celebrations to acknowledge cultural diversity and promote inclusiveness, respect and a sense of belonging for everyone. I’m delighted to see so many FRSA members holding celebratory Harmony Week events around the country.

Next Tuesday 29 March the Federal Government will hand down its Budget for 2022-23. We will be following closely and will provide members with our annual preliminary Budget analysis.

Kind regards,
Jackie Brady
FRSA Executive Director

The Attorney-General’s Department announced that applications to establish new Children’s Contact Services (CCS) are now open.

Funding to establish 20 new CCS centres was announced in the May 2021 Federal Budget. The Attorney-General’s Department subsequently undertook a consultation on proposed site methodology to determine the 20 regions in which the new CCS’ would be established. The 20 areas are listed below.

Applications close at 9:00 pm AEST on 12 April 2022. For more information and to apply visit GrantConnect.

Applications for funding to establish a new service are sought from the following regions:

• Wide Bay
• Queensland – Outback
• Sydney – South West
• Hunter Valley excluding Newcastle
• Northern Territory – Outback
• Western Australia – Outback (North)
• New England and North West
• Melbourne – North West
• Melbourne – Outer East
• Adelaide – North
• North West
• Gold Coast
• Far West and Orana
• Perth – North East
• Hume
• Barossa – Yorke – Mid North
• Latrobe – Gippsland
• Cairns
• Sydney – North Sydney and Hornsby
• Riverina

The Department of Social Services has announced in its FaC Activity newsletter (see above) that as part of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap, the department is aiming to increase the involvement of Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs) in the child and family sector. This includes an immediate focus on potential opportunities in the Communities for Children Facilitating Partners (CfC FP) program. In 2022, the department intends to fund an organisation to work with ACCOs and a small number of CfC FPs to explore potential opportunities for collaboration. The department will approach select organisations for this opportunity.

The Department of Social Services (DSS) has just published the fourth issue of its Families and Children (FaC) Activity Newsletter.

The FaC Activity newsletter highlights important news and information for service providers delivering grant activities under the FaC Activity. The primary focus of the newsletter is helping providers understand and meet the requirements of their grant agreements. DSS will issue FaC Activity newsletters several times per year, as necessary.

You can see past issues of the newsletter on the FaC Activity webpage. If you would like to receive the newsletter directly, send a request to families@dss.gov.au

FRSA is thrilled to welcome Keynote speakers for Day 1 and Day 2 of the FRSA National Conference:

• Senator the Hon Anne Ruston, Minister for Families and Social Services and Minister for Women’s Safety
• Anne Hollonds, National Children’s Commissioner
• April Lawrie, Commissioner for Aboriginal Children & Young People, South Australia
• The Honourable Deputy Chief Justice Robert McClelland, Chair of the Family Law Council

The FRSA National Conference 2022 will be one of the first major opportunities for practitioners to come together as a network and swap stories in person. The three day event aims to deliver the knowledge, insights and the unique learnings and adaption brought from the COVID-19 pandemic experience over the last two years.

Stay up to date on Conference news by subscribing to our Conference and Forum Updates.

FRSA is excited to welcome on board our Partners and Sponsors for this year’s National Conference:

Partners:

• Attorney-General’s Department
• Department of Social Services

Sponsors:

• Apricot, Penelope and Eto as our Diamond and Water Bottle Sponsor
• Relationships Australia as Ochre Sponsor
• Uniting as Gold Sponsor
• Anglicare Australia as the Mobile Office Sponsor
• Save the Children as Coffee Cup Sponsor
• Mallee Family Care as the Conference App Sponsor
• CSnet as the Lanyard Sponsor and Exhibitor
• Drummond Street Services as an Exhibitor
• OurFamilyWizard as an Exhibitor
• Interrelate as an Exhibitor
• FamilyProperty as an Exhibitor
• Emerging Minds as an Exhibitor
• Parenting Research Centre as an Exhibitor
• Australian Institute of Family Studies as Reciprocal Sponsor

There are many sponsorship options for the Conference still available, designed to allow for maximum visibility to showcase the work and activity of your organisation/business. Sponsorship will enable you to engage, discuss challenges and present solutions to FRSA Conference delegates.

We welcome your support of the Conference and hope that you will take advantage of the opportunities available to you in joining with FRSA as a Conference 2022 sponsor.

If you are interested in a more bespoke package for your organisation, outside what is outlined in our Sponsorship Prospectus, do not hesitate to get in touch with the FRSA team at admin@frsa.org.au or on (02) 6162 1811.

Consultation is now open for the review of the Social Services and Other Legislative Amendment (Simplifying Income Reporting and Other Measures) Act.

The review is being undertaken by KPMG. KPMG and DSS want to hear from anyone who receives a payment from Centrelink and is required to report their (or their partner’s) income and individuals and organisations or groups who represent or advocate on behalf of people receiving a social security payment. They are also interested in hearing from, experts in social security law and persons who have expertise in any other area of public policy.

You can take part in a short survey or lodge a written submission. The consultation closes on 22 April 2022.

Find out more or make your submission via engage.dss,gov.au.

The Attorney-General’s Department consultation on new family dispute resolution services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families has been extended to 8 April 2022.

As well as inviting written submissions, the Department has run a series of virtual meetings over the past few weeks to encourage input and discussion on shaping this important new service.

The Government’s first Implementation Plan under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap included an announcement for funding of $8.3 million over 3 years to establish culturally safe and appropriate family dispute resolution for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families. The funding will support selected Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs) to train and/or employ Family Dispute Resolution practitioners.

You can make a submission to the consultation via this link, or by emailing FamilyLawServices@ag.gov.au.

Following this consultation process, a grant round is anticipated to open to eligible service providers in mid-2022 and for grant agreements to be in place with service providers by January 2023.

Information about the consultation, including a discussion paper are on the Department’s website.

The Morrison Government will hand down the 2022‑23 Budget on Tuesday 29 March 2022. Budget documents will be available on the Budget website from 7.30 pm on the night.

As always, FRSA will be working hard on Budget night analysing Budget papers and speaking with social services sector colleagues to produce a Budget brief for FRSA members.

FRSA’s Pre-Budget submission is available on our website.

This week is Harmony Week. The week is celebrated to ​include the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (21 March) and is a time to celebrate Australian multiculturalism.

Harmony Week is about inclusiveness, respect and belonging for all Australians, regardless of cultural or linguistic background, united by a set of core Australian values.

See how FRSA Member celebrated the week below:

• Anglicare Southern Queensland hosted a Harmony Day service at St John’s Cathedral in Brisbane, which included a range of speakers, musical performers and dancers.
• Anglicare SA made a video asking staff ‘What is Harmony Week?’, watch the video below.
• Anglicare Tasmania’s residents at Eveline House celebrated Harmony week with an afternoon tea.
• Bundaberg & District Neighbourhood Centre held a multicultural food sharing event “Culture Bites”.
• CatholicCare Hunter-Manning partnered with Catholic Schools of Maitland-Newcastle to establish the CatholicCare Student Refugee Fund, which will help refugee students who are attending, or would like to attend, Catholic schools in their region.
• Centacare Catholic Family Services shared Danica Davidson’s story of searching for her cultural identity.
• Centacare FNQ hosted a Harmony Day event at The Cairns Villa and Leisure Park including a smoking ceremony, music and performances.
• Centacare North Queensland staff shared some of their favourite recipes.
• Comm Unity Plus Services celebrated the multicultural backgrounds of their staff with a lunch featuring different cuisines.
• Key Assets partnered with renowned author, poet and educator, Tess Rowley for the production of their book, Odd Socks. They launched the book on Monday 21 March. Visit keyassets.org.au/oddsocks for more information.
• PRONIA’s staff took a stroll in the local gardens during lunchtime to celebrate Harmony Day.
• Relationships Australia NSW created a list of ideas on how to get involved and celebrate our country’s diversity.

Congratulations to FRSA Member, Southern Youth and Family Services’ CEO, Narelle Clay on being named a winner at this year’s Pro Bono’s Impact 25 Awards 2022.

Since 2014, the awards have recognised individuals who are working to solve today’s greatest challenges through integrity, foresight, initiative and collaboration.

Read more about Narelle’s great work.

Wanslea’s Chief Executive Officer Tricia Murray has confirmed her retirement date in July this year, and has commenced leave until this time.

Wanslea’s Chief Financial Officer Liane Papaelias has been appointed as Interim Chief Executive Officer while they begin the formal process to find a new CEO.

Liane has been Wanslea’s CFO for four years and has over 25 years of experience in senior roles in the not for profit sector, including 12 years as the CFO, Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (Western Operations). She holds a Bachelor of Business from Edith Cowan University, is a Fellow Certified Practising Accountant and a Graduate Member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.

The Valuing Children Initiative (VCI) has launched a national call to action to ensure every Australian child is valued, prioritised and heard.

The new campaign titled ‘Every Child is Valuable’, has been designed to bring awareness to the horrifying statistics around children’s wellbeing in Australia.

The campaign promotes children as important, contributing members of society. It also highlights the need for greater consideration to be given to children at a political level.

Australians can pledge their support by signing a VCI led petition advocating for the introduction of mandatory Child Impact Assessments.

VCI has also drafted an email that supporters can send politicians calling for a Child and Youth Wellbeing Strategy and Minister for Children’s Interests in every Australian state, territory and federally.

Find out how else you can get involved via their website.

AMP’s Tomorrow Fund is now open! The fund offers $1 million in grants for amazing Australians doing great things in the community.

Australian citizens and permanent residents of all ages, interests and walks of life can apply for grants of between $5,000 and $100,000.

Funds can be used for a range of activities and expenses, including equipment, study, research, salaries, and promotion – whatever it takes to make a positive impact.

Applications are open until 4pm (AEST) Monday 4 April. Find out more or apply via their website.

Neighbour Day is on this weekend on Sunday 27 March 2022. This year’s theme is ‘Connecting Communities for 20 years’.

Relationships Australia is inviting everyone to celebrate and continue to build ongoing community connections across Australia to span the next 20 years.

There are many different ways to participate in Neighbour Day, whether it’s big or small – it all contributes to building respectful relationships, sustainable connections and reducing loneliness in our communities.

There are a number of free resources, including ideas to help you create sustainable connections with your neighbours and your community, find out more on the Neighbour Day website.

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.