Australia Fair

Dear All,

The media response to the launch of the Australia Fair report, A fair go for all Australians: International Comparisons 2007 has been extensive. The Prime Minister, Leader of the Opposition, Treasurer and Minister Brough have all had to respond to the findings of the report in the media today.

There has been coverage in most major papers across the country and radio and television interviews. The online coverage includes: The Australian, The Age, SMH, Herald Sun, Daily Telegraph, Western Australian, News.com.au and Bigpond. The News Limited sites (Herald Sun, Daily Telegraph and news.com.au) all had at least one link to a Sky News video which is a 2 minute story on the report and poverty in Australia.

Here is the link to the news.com.au article: http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22332336-5007133,00.html which has the story and a great video clip to the report.

Today would be a good day to email your networks and get them signed onto the Australia Fair – to that end I set out below the text that has been sent to the existing Australia Fair supporters.

New Australia Fair report shows Australia is slipping behind

If 1 in 10 Australians are living below the poverty line, is Australia Fair?

You may have seen reports of the new Australia Fair report in the news today, which you can read on www.australiafair.org.au. The report tracks poverty between 1994 and 2004 and finds that the number of Australians living below the poverty line has grown over that time.

The report also looks at how Australia’s performance compares with other rich countries.

It’s not fair that Australians are struggling with essentials such as high housing and dental care costs.

Have you sent the email on dental funding yet? It’s not too late to send it now.

Take a few steps to help make Australia fair for all.
Step 1: Log onto www.australiafair.org.au to have your say.
Step 2: Get your friends to get onto Australia Fair’s website.
Step 3: You can tell decision makers and the media about a fair go for all Australians.

Many thanks to those of you who assisted in the report.

Cheers
Andrew Johnson
Executive Director
Australian Council of Social ServiceTel: 02 9310 4844
Fax: 02 9310 4822

Policy on line news

NEW REPORTS

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Not fair, no choice: the impact of WorkChoices on twenty South Australian workers and their households Jude Elton and Barbara Pocock / Centre for Work + LifeThere have always been harsh bosses in Australia: this is not new. However, the accounts assembled here suggest that WorkChoices has created a climate where some employers feel licensed to act with unilateral disdain for workers and their rights in many cases. Posted 01-08-2007
Re-imagining Science Education: Engaging students in science for Australia’s future Russell Tytler / Australian Council for Educational ResearchThe failure of school science to respond to the changing needs of students and the changing nature of science itself has created a crisis in Australian science education that shows no sign of abating according to a new review of research. Russell Tytler calls for major curriculum reform, arguing that the time has passed for tinkering around the edges of a science curriculum that belongs to the past. Posted 01-08-2007
AWAs, collective agreements and earnings: beneath the aggregate data David Peetz and Alison Preston / Victoria Department of Innovation, Industry & Regional DevelopmentIn introducing the 'WorkChoices' reforms, the federal government argued that they would encourage increased wages, particularly through Australian Workplace Agreements (AWAs). Using unpublished data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Employee Earnings and Hours (EEH) Survey for May 2006 this report studies the effects of these reforms. Posted 01-08-2007
Juvenile arson intervention programs in Australia Damon A Muller and Ashley Stebbins / Australian Institute of CriminologyAn important strategy for preventing deliberate firesetting is intervention with young people who show an unhealthy interest in fire and fire services. All Australian jurisdictions conduct juvenile arson intervention programs for such young people. This report examines the models for programs and calls for their evaluation. Posted 01-08-2007
The relationship between emotional state and other variables influencing successful reintegration of ex-prisoners: report to the Criminology Research Council Joe Graffam and Alison Shinkfield / Australian Institute of CriminologyCommunity reintegration of ex-prisoners is an important issue in efforts to reduce recidivism. This study examined the multiple interactive variables influencing successful reintegration of ex-prisoners, with a specific focus on the role of emotional state in the reintegration process. Posted 01-08-2007
Living dangerously with the constitution Greg Craven / Council for the Humanities, Arts and Social SciencesCan the Commonwealth take over our universities? The key point is not 'can', but 'when' argues Greg Craven in this address to the National Press Club for CHASS. Posted 01-08-2007
Costs of children Paul Henman, Richard Percival and Ann Harding, Matthew Gray / Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous AffairsThis is a collection of three reports on the costs of children in Australian families: 'The estimated costs of children in Australian families in 2005–06'; 'Updated costs of children using Australian budget standards; and 'Costs of children and equivalence scales: a review of methodological issues and Australian estimates'. Posted 31-07-2007
Intergenerational reliance on income support: psychosocial factors and their measurement Helen Berry, Emma George, Peter Butterworth, Bryan Rodgers and Tanya Caldwell / Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous AffairsThis paper identifies nine psychosocial factors that explain reliance on income support from one generation to the next. It concludes by drawing together the connections between the factors in five core themes, followed by an examination of policy and program development implications. Posted 31-07-2007
Australian social policy 2006 Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous AffairsThe latest edition of this annual departmental includes articles on trends in wealth among aged pensioners; potential risk factors, pathways and processes associated with childhood injury; men's and women's fertility; and psychosocial factors and intergenerational transmission of welfare dependency. Posted 31-07-2007
Future harvest: the way ahead for Australian agriculture and food Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and ForestryThis report outlines the Australian government’s broad policy directions for the agriculture, fisheries, forestry and food industries. It identifies key influences on future prosperity, including research and development, training and eduction, biosecurity, trade reform, consumer expectations, drought management, climate change and water, land and vegetation management. Posted 31-07-2007
Drink and food spiking Standing Committee of Attorneys-GeneralThis report concludes that there appears to be no gap in the criminal law as it applies to very serious offences involving drink-spiking. But the committee determined that there should be a particular drink and food spiking offence to fill a gap in the operation of the criminal law at the lower end of the criminal law spectrum. Posted 31-07-2007
Financial performance of government trading enterprises 2004-05 to 2005-06 Productivity CommissionThis research paper assesses the financial performance of 85 federal, state and territory government trading enterprises. It forms part of the commission's research into the performance of Australian industries and the progress of microeconomic reform. Posted 31-07-2007
Fostering friendships amongst a group of first-year university students: the use of online learning software Karen Farquharson / Australian Journal of Emerging Technologies and SocietyThis study looks at whether students who participated in online tutorial discussions, in addition to face-to-face tutorial meetings, made more friends through the class than students who did not. Posted 31-07-2007
OECD health data 2007 OECDThis report shows that the number of doctors in OECD countries has increased by 35 per cent over the past fifteen years to 2.8 million. In most countries, this growth was driven largely by rising numbers of specialists – up nearly 50 per cent between 1990 and 2005 - compared with the 20 per cent increase in general practitioners. Posted 31-07-2007
Excessive internet use: the role of personality, loneliness and social support networks in internet addiction Elizabeth Hardie and Ming Yi Tee / Australian Journal of Emerging Technologies and SocietyAn online survey of 96 adults showed that, based on Young's (1998) criteria for the Internet Addiction Test, 40% of the sample could be classified as average internet users, 52% as problem over-users and 8% as pathologically addicted to the internet. Posted 31-07-2007
Rising to the humanitarian challenge in Iraq Oxfam / The NGO Coordination Committee in IraqArmed violence is the greatest threat facing Iraqis, but the population is also experiencing another kind of crisis of an alarming scale and severity, according to this report. Eight million people are in urgent need of emergency aid; that figure includes over two million who are displaced within the country, and more than two million refugees. Posted 31-07-2007
The journey so far in the senior phase of learning Bobby Harreveld and Michael Singh / Queensland Department of Education, Training and the Arts.The Queensland government's senior phase education and training reforms were part of a larger change that also encompassed the early years of learning and the middle schooling years. This commissioned report, written by two education academics, provides a history of the reform process from 2003 to the end of 2005. Posted 30-07-2007
Pre-court diversion in the Northern Territory : impact on juvenile reoffending Teresa Cunningham / Australian Institute of CriminologyA juvenile pre-court diversion scheme was introduced in the Northern Territory in 2000. Administered by police, it uses warnings and conferences to divert selected juveniles from the court process. This paper reports on an analysis of Northern Territory police records on 3,597 apprehended juveniles over a 5 year period. Posted 30-07-2007
Public understanding of carbon sequestration in Australia: socio-demographic predictors of knowledge, engagement and trust Evonne Miller, Lorraine Bell, Laurie Buys / The Australian Journal of Emerging Technologies and Society This article explores the extent to which socio-demographic characteristics influence knowledge, trust, risk perception and acceptance of an emerging scientific technology, geosequestration or carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) in geological formations, which is positioned as a possible response to the build-up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Posted 27-07-2007
Approaches to evaluation of affordable housing initiatives in Australia Vivienne Milligan, Peter Phibbs, Nicole Gurran, Kate Fagan / Australian Housing and Urban Research InstituteThe release of the Framework for National Action on Affordable Housing (the Framework) in 2005 has provided an opportunity to consider how evaluation could be built from the outset into a major future initiative in the housing field. In response, this report first provides an overview of ideas and developments in evaluation theory and methods, drawing mainly on a recent proposal by two sociologists, Ray Pawson and Nick Tilley (1997). Posted 27-07-2007
An audit and review of Australian Indigenous housing research Stephen Long, Paul Memmott and Tim Seelig / Australian Housing and Urban Research InstituteThis report presents the outcomes of a research project conducted by the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) Queensland Research Centre (UQ) on the characteristics and themes of the Australian Indigenous housing literature. The report examines the Indigenous housing literature from the 1970s through to the 2000s. Posted 27-07-2007
Sentinel events in public hospitals 2004-05 Australian Institute of Health and WelfareThe first joint publication of the Australian Commission for Safety and Quality in Health Care and the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, this report presents data on the number and nature of sentinel events occurring in Australian hospitals over the period 1 July 2004 to 30 June 2005 and the factors that contributed to these serious adverse events. Posted 27-07-2007
Patient-based substudies from BEACH: abstracts and research tools 1999-2006 Helena Britt, Graeme C Miller, Joan Henderson, Clare Bayram / Australian Institute of Health and WelfareBEACH (Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health) is a continuous national study of general practice activity. Since 1998 over 9,000 GPs have recorded details regarding approximately 900,000 GP-patient encounters on structured paper forms. The report is designed to assist GPs and other researchers by providing them with a wide range of tools that have demonstrated acceptability and utility, that are useable in the confines of general practice patient consultations, and which have already been approved by recognised ethics committees. Posted 27-07-2007
Alcohol and other drug treatment services in Australia 2005-06: findings from the National Minimum Data Set Department of Health and AgeingThis report presents data on publicly funded alcohol and other drug treatment services and their clients, including information about the types of drugs for which treatment is sought and the types of treatment provided. The data contained in this bulletin are derived from the comprehensive AODTS-NMDS 2005-06 annual report. Posted 27-07-2007
Design faults: the Asia Pacific's regional architecture, policy brief Allan Gyngell / Lowy InstituteThe Asia Pacific region has too many regional organisations, yet they are still unable to do all the things required of them. This matters at a time when the rising power of China and India presents new challenges. There is a need for a new framework for regional institutions, including the establishment of a more effective security organisation and a heads of government meeting separate from APEC. Posted 27-07-2007
Three perspectives on China Antony Funnell / The Media Report, ABC Radio NationalThree very different perspectives on China and the media... from the changing nature of propaganda to the globalisation of the Chinese cinema and television industry. Posted 26-07-2007
Public broadcasting in Canada and Australia Antony Funnell / The Media Report, ABC Radio NationalA look at issues relating to public broadcasting in both Australia and Canada, including an interview with the out-going Editor-in-Chief of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's News Division, Tony Burman. Posted 26-07-2007
Homicide in Australia: 2005-06 national homicide monitoring program annual report Megan Davies and Jenny Mouzos / Australian Institute of CriminologyDuring 2005-06, there were 283 incidents of homicide, resulting in 301 victims, committed by 336 offenders. This is 34 more incidents than in 2004-05, an increase of 14 percent. Posted 26-07-2007Policy on Line

Homelessness

Homelessness in NSW – some facts and figures
• In the middle of a cold and wet winter, across New South Wales, around 27,0001 people are homeless. They sleep in parks, under bridges, with friends or strangers, in vulnerable situations. Across NSW about only 15% of homeless people are lucky enough to get a place in a crisis refuge.
• In NSW, the percentages of where homeless people are sleeping are: - 45% with friends and relatives - 29% in boarding houses - 15% in SAAP accommodation - 11% in improvised dwellings and tents
• Of the almost 27,000 experiencing homelessness, 39% are women. These can be single women as well as women and children escaping domestic violence.
• 46% of those who are homeless are under 25 and almost 10,000 are under 12. Young people experiencing homelessness are often running away from families characterized by poverty, violence and drug and alcohol abuse.
• Indigenous people are more likely to experience homelessness than other Australians. Two percent of the population identified as Indigenous at the 2001 census, but 16% of clients in homeless assistance services were Aboriginal in 2001-022.
• Contrary to popular belief there are homeless people in regional areas:
- 39 people in every 10,000 are homeless in Sydney.
- 47 people in every 10,000 are homeless in NSW Regional areas.
• The Demand for SAAP Accommodation by homeless people 2004-053 report shows that NSW has the highest turn-away numbers of any State and Territory, with 58 potential clients and 33 accompanying children with valid requests for immediate accommodation being turned away each day.
• Across Australia more people with valid requests for immediate accommodation were turned away than were accommodated by a crisis refuge. Only one in two people with a valid request for accommodation received it, and three out of five accompanying children were turned away4.
1 Chamberlain, Chris. Counting the Homeless 2001: Australia
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2001), SAAP National Data Collection Annual Report 2001-02, Canberra: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Cat. No. HOU 61 2
3
4 Australian Institute of Health & Welfare 2004. Demand for SAAP assistance by homeless people 2002-03: a report from the SAAP National Data Collection. AIHW cat no. HOU 110. Canberra: AIHW (SAAP NDCA report. Series 8).
• Across Australia family groups were turned away in high proportions from crisis refuges. This was highest for couples with children and couples without children, where only one in five requesting groups were accommodated (81% were turned away). Sixty-four per cent of single people with children requesting accommodation were turned away.
• Despite recording the highest number of homeless people in the 2001 Census, NSW has not developed a homelessness strategy5. HomelessnessNSW.ACT is calling for the NSW Government to develop a Homelessness Strategy to ensure a better coordinated response to homelessness. Being homeless is a complex issue, created by the failure of a variety of service systems. Homeless people and those at risk of becoming homeless are affected by common themes that include social exclusion, an ineffective service system, lack of access to housing that is affordable to people on low incomes and a lack of support and supported accommodation services.
5 Chamberlain, C and MacKenzie, D, Australian Census Analytic Program, Counting the Homeless 2001, Australian Bureau of Statistics, ABS Catalogue No. 2050.0

Visit

Do you work in a Community Service organisation?
You are invited to attend a special forum on
The NSW Ombudsman’s current work
in child and family & disability services
Thursday August 23,
Catholic Club, 61A West High Street, Coffs Harbour
Steve Kinmond,
NSW Community & Disability Services Commissioner/Deputy Ombudsman, will speak about the role and current work of the NSW Ombudsman in relation to child and family and disability services in NSW and how it impacts consumers and services.
Do you know that we:
· Inquire into & report on major community sector issues
· Monitor the child protection system
· Review deaths of certain children & people with a disability in care
· Monitor and review standards in community services · Deal with complaints about community services · Educate & inform service providers & consumers about rights & responsibilities
We are also keen to hear about sector issues specific to your area.
There will be plenty of opportunity for input & feedback.
· Session 1 Child & Family Services - Child protection Issues
10.00am -11.30am Morning tea will be provided
· Session 2 Disability and other Community Services
1.30pm -3.00pm Afternoon tea will be provided
Each session is free of charge but numbers are needed for catering
To REGISTER email tarestides@ombo.nsw.gov.au
by Tuesday August 21
For ENQUIRIES please call Tracylee on 02 9265 0440 or toll free 1800 451 524
A COPY OF THIS INFORMATION IS ATTACHED IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO PASS IT ON TO STAFF OR OTHER COMMUNITY SECTOR WORKERS IN THE AREA. THANK YOU!