FRSA members deliver services under the Department of Social Services ‘Families and Children (FaC) Activity’ and the Attorney-General’s Department Family Relationships Services Program (Family Law Services). These services support families to improve the wellbeing of children and young people and to enhance family and community functioning, as well as increasing the participation of vulnerable people in community life. The FRSA network offers services in the following sub-activities. Click on the service name to find out more.
Family Relationships Services Program (Attorney-General’s Department):
Family Law Services
- Family Relationship Centres (FRC)
- Family Law Counselling
- Family Relationship Advice Line (the Advice Line)
- Children’s Contact Services
- Family Dispute Resolution (FDR) (including regional FDR)
- Supporting Children after Separation Program
- Parenting Orders Program – Post Separation Co-operative Parenting Services
Families and Children Activity (Department of Social Services):
Family and Relationship Services (FaRS)
Specialised Family Violence Services (SFVS)
Family Mental Health Support Services
Communities for Children Facilitating Partner (CfC FP)
Children and Parenting Support (CaPS)
Home Interaction Program for Parents and Youngsters (HIPPY)
Children and Family Intensive Support
Find and Connect Support Services
Forced Adoption Support Services
Family Law Services
Family Law Services provide alternatives to formal legal processes for families who are separated, separating or in dispute, to improve their relationships and make arrangements in the best interests of their children. Family Law Services have a particular role to help families with complex needs, including those with family violence issues.
Family Law Services include:
FRCs play an important role in improving family relationships by providing information, support and referral services to all families, as well as family dispute resolution and access to some legal assistance for separating or separated families.
Family Law Counselling services help individuals and families to manage relationship issues arising from relationship changes, separation and divorce.
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Family Relationship Advice Line (the Advice Line) – 1800 050 321
The Advice Line is a confidential national telephone service to assist families affected by relationship or separation issues. The Advice Line provides:
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- information about services to help maintain safe and positive relationships
- advice on family separation issues
- guidance on developing workable parenting arrangements after family separation
- advice about the impact of conflict on children
- telephone and online family dispute resolution for people who need assistance
- information about the family law system
- simple legal advice and information for separating families with children
- referral to a range of other services to help with family relationship and separation issues.
Children’s Contact Services enable children of separated parents to have safe contact with the family they do not live with in circumstances where parties are unable to manage their own contact arrangements.
Children’s Contact Services provide a safe, neutral venue for the transfer of children between parties. Where there is a perceived or actual risk to the child, they provide supervised contact between a child and their parent or other family member. Parties may be ordered by a court to attend Children’s Contact Services to facilitate changeover or have supervised visits with their children.
FDR services assist families to reach agreement and to resolve their disputes related to family law issues about child and property related matters, outside of the court system. Clients may include grandparents and other extended family members affected by family separation.
Regional FDR
RFDR services provide FDR and family counselling services in regional areas of the country to assist families to reach agreement and to resolve their disputes related to family law issues, in particular child and property related matters, outside of the court system.
This program aims to support the wellbeing of children under the age of 18 from separated or separating families who are experiencing issues with difficult family relationships.
The services help children and young people deal with issues arising from the breakdown of their parents’ relationship and the circumstances in which they find themselves and provide opportunities for them to participate in decisions that impact them.
This service helps separated or divorced families who are in high conflict to manage their conflict, understand the effect their conflict is having on their children and to develop strategies to deal more constructively with each other and develop and manage parenting arrangements.
Family and Relationship Services (FaRS)
Family and Relationship Services aim to strengthen family relationships, and ensure the wellbeing and safety of adults and children through broad-based counselling and education. These early intervention and prevention services aim to support families when going through critical family transition points including formation, extension, and separation.
Services include information and referral, support, education and skills training, counselling, dispute resolution, outreach, community capacity building and development.
Mensline Australia
The MensLine Australia service is a free professional telephone and online counselling service funded under the Family and Relationship Services program. MensLine is for all men and all types of relationships. It is also for anyone who is worried about a male family member, partner or friend, and health professionals working with men.
MensLine Australia is available 24 hours, 7 days a week – 1300 78 99 78
Family Mental Health Support Services
Communities for Children Facilitating Partner (CfC FP)
Communities for Children Facilitating Partners (CfC FPs) supports children and families in disadvantaged communities across Australia. The program takes a whole-of community approach and focuses on providing services for early childhood development and wellbeing for children. This whole-of-community approach also has flow-on benefits to the broader community.
CfC FPs build on local strengths to meet the needs of individual communities, and to create capability within local service systems, using strong evidence of what works in early intervention and prevention.
Children and Parenting Support (CaPS)
Children and Parenting Support (CaPS) services provide early intervention and prevention support to children and their families across Australia.
The services provide support to children aged from birth to 12 years and their families. It may include children up to 18 if needed.
CaPS focuses on:
- early intervention and prevention services to improve children’s development and wellbeing
- adjunct care (where the parent or carer remains at the location) and early learning
- support for those in a parenting or carer role.
Home Interaction Program for Parents and Youngsters (HIPPY)
HIPPY is a parenting and early childhood program that builds the skills of parents and carers to better prepare their child for school. It also offers some parents and carers a path to work and local community leadership. Families enrol in the program when their child turns 3 years old. They participate for the 2 years leading up to full-time formal schooling.
The program is delivered by Brotherhood of St Laurence (BSL) in partnership with around 65 organisations across Australia.
Children and Family Intensive Support
Children and Family Intensive Support (CaFIS) program supports families living in selected communities in the Northern Territory (NT) and Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands in South Australia.
This program provides services that build on the strengths of families and communities. The services help people care for children within their own culture. It helps families get services they might need. It also helps improve the safety and wellbeing of children. It supports parents and family members to develop their confidence and capability to bring up strong children.
Find and Connect Support Services
The Find and Connect Support Services provide specialist trauma informed counselling, referral services, peer support, education and social support programs; help to locate and access records and reconnect with family members (where possible) for Forgotten Australians and Former Child Migrants.