Julie Collins MP - Federal Member for Franklin

In my role as Parliamentary Secretary for Community Services I am constantly seeing the Australian spirit in action. The desire to help out your mate and give your fellow Aussie a helping hand when they have fallen on tough times and are stretched to their limits. This spirit drives Australia’s strong community services sector, made up of over 600,000 notfor- profit organisations. They are out there on the front line, helping to put food on tables, helping out in times  of natural disaster, improving people’s financial skills, and improving health and wellbeing. While they may vary in their scope and services, they all share one  common trait, their  unwavering support for Australian familis and individuals in times of need. Well over half of those 600,000 organisations are supported by volunteers – remarkable people who selflessly give up their time for the benefit of others. I know how important service providers are in realising the Gillard Government’s vision for a socially inclusive Australia, and the Government is committed to supporting the sector to continue to help the most disadvantaged in our community.

Immediate support

We know that families and individuals seek support from community services sector for all sorts of reasons. Community organisations not only provide immediate and  practical support but also offer reassurance that help is available during tough times. People often turn to emergency relief providers when they first hit crisis point, for help with essentials such as food and clothing, pharmacy, transport vouchers, accommodation and utility bills. The Gillard Government recognises the importance of these services, and is providing $181.2 million over the next three years to enable emergency relief organisations to continue to support vulnerable families and individuals. This includes $3 million for Foodbank Australia to deliver food and groceries to not-for-profit organisations that help families and individuals struggling to put food on the table. In 2009-10 Foodbank provided 19 million tonnes of food and groceries to community organisations, enabling them to provide the equivalent of  25 million meals to Australians in need from the Foodbank pantry.

Support for financial counselling and financial products

We all know that to get people back on their feet for the long term, we need to do more to fix their most immediate problems. We need to use the capacity and reach of emergency relief providers to connect them with other services. We are helping build people’s ongoing financial capability and resilience so their current crisis doesn’t  become entrenched. The Gillard Government is investing a further $43.4 million over three years in financial counselling services to help vulnerable Australians improve their financial literacy. This includes $24.3 million to ensure the 77 full-time Commonwealth financial counselling positions established during the global financial crisis can continue to deliver free, confidential financial advice to people who have lost their jobs or who are struggling to keep a roof over their heads. They will equip people with skills to manage their current financial situations and help to ensure their financial security into the future. The Government is also investing $2.2 million in telephone financial counselling services through enhancements to the national financial counselling hotline. The 1800 number provides immediate access to a financial counsellor, and helps ensure people who cannot access to face-to-face services can still receive assistance with their financial queries.

Another way we are supporting people to build their financial security is a $43.2 million investment over three years for innovative projects, such as no and low interest loan and matched savings schemes, and financial literacy projects. These help people on low incomes meet unexpected household expenses, develop long-term  savings habits and build their understanding of financial products. Among these projects is Saver Plus – a matched savings and financial education program from the Brotherhood of St Lawrence and ANZ. Saver Plus helps people on low incomes save for educational expenses, such as vocational training or their children’s schooling. When participants reach their goal, ANZ matches their savings, dollar for dollar, up to $500. The No Interest Loan Scheme and StepUp projects, run by Good Shepherd Youth and Family Services in partnership with NAB, will also be supported to help local families and individuals in financial hardship to access  no-interest and reduced rate loans for large items such as fridges, washing machines and used cars. MoneyMob talkabout, a mobile outreach service which provides financial education to Indigenous Australians in remote Indigenous communities, will also share in the funding. These innovative projects will assist approximately 24,000 people each year.

Natural disasters

The community services sector also plays a vital role in supporting families and individuals impacted by natural disasters, such as recent flooding in Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales, and Cyclone Yasi. These services need additional and ongoing support to support families and individuals who suddenly find themselves in crisis. As part of helping these communities recover, the Australian Government is investing an additional $15.7 million in emergency relief and financial counselling services across disaster-affected areas in Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales until 31 December 2012. It will ensure that community service organisations have the resources they need to help communities throughout the recovery phase and families and individuals receive the sustained support  they require to move forward financially and emotionally from the devastation. I have seen first-hand how valuable these services are. In February I had the opportunity to visit community   organisations in Brisbane, Iswich and Toowoomba to announce $1.03 million in emergency relief funding to community and charitable organisations to help Queenslanders in flood-affected areas. Emergency relief providers worked tirelessly to deliver services to people who had their lives turned upside down by the floods and were left with nothing. I heard how staff and volunteers continued to support people in need, despite experiencing devastating loss and destruction themselves.

Another way we are supporting flood and cyclone affected communities is providing $420,000 to Playgroup Queensland. This will fund two dedicated staff to run playgroups in these communities and purchase new toys and equipment that were lost in the floods. These playgroups play an important part in a child’s development, allowing them to renew friendships and have fun. Playgroups are also an opportunity for families build a support network to meet and work together to overcome with the past and face the future. A further $120,000 will help Centacare Toowoomba deliver specialised flood counselling services to the people of Chinchilla, Dalby and Toowoomba. Centacare already provides wonderful support across south west Queensland, such as family and relationship, loss and grief, and refugee and migrant support services. This funding will allow Centacare Toowoomba to address the significant demand for counselling services following the floods and help people in need across Chinchilla, Dalby and Toowoomba communities. An additional $120,000 will be provided to Lifeline Darling Downs to deliver additional counselling services in Toowoomba, Grantham, Warwick and Stranthorpe. Lifeline Darling Downs, which have seen a 40 per cent increase in people seeking trauma counselling since the floods.

Health and wellbeing

Another role for the Government and the community sector is helping break down some of the barriers people face to self reliance and participation. Mental health and disability can be among those barriers. To ensure Australians with mental illness and their carers have access to much-needed support the Gillard Government is delivering a $269.3 million funding boost for community mental health services. This includes more mental health respite services that will help about 1,100 families of people with mental illness have greater access to flexible respite and support services over the next fi ve years. Forty new Family Mental Health Support Services will operate alongside family relationship services and provide a path for families to get help for their children who are showing early signs of problems, or at risk of mental illness, outside of the clinical mental health system. This also includes $154 million for community organisations to employ 425 additional personal helpers and mentors to work one-on-one with an additional 3,400 people with mental illness. The Personal Helpers and Mentors program is designed to help people with severe mental illness reconnect with the wider community and live more independent and satisfying lives. It helps them set and achieve personal goals, such as fi nding suitable housing,  using public transport or improving relationships with family and friends. By building their confidence and increasing their connections within the community, personal helpers and mentors help participants overcome the social isolation that can be so crippling for someone with a mental illness. This expansion of the Personal Helpers and Mentors program is funding for intensive support to assist jobseekers with mental illness to look for work, or participate in education or training.

To help give children with disability the best possible start in life, the Gillard Government is investing $147 million to provide better access to intervention services. Eligible children up to seven years of age who have been diagnosed with cerebral palsy, Down syndrome, Fragile X syndrome, and sight or hearing impairments will have access to up to $12,000 to access services such as speech pathology, audiology, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, and psychology. The Government has also introduced changes to the Family Tax Benefit Part A where families will be required to ensure their four-year-old child gets a health assessment prior to starting school to receive their payment. This will ensure that any physical health issues such as hearing or sight impairment, as well as developmental conditions and delays can be identified and addressed before the child starts school.

In a fair society, we can all get help to work our way through disadvantage. We know that community organisations are at the frontline of delivering much-needed support, and we are supporting them in their role. Organisations funded under the Gillard Government’s Community Investment Program are having their contracts extended for three years. The move to three year funding contracts reflects consultation between the Government and community organisations is a great outcome for community organisations who can concentrate on supporting Australian families with the reassurance of ongoing funding.

We are also continuing to support our volunteers with $16 million worth of grants in Volunteer Grants 2011. This grants scheme allows eligible not-for-profi t  organisations purchase equipment such as computers, fi rst aid kits, sunshades and contribute to volunteers’ fuel costs, training courses and background checks. To support Australians most in need, preference is being given to organisations with volunteers that assist disadvantaged individuals, families and communities, organisations located in regional and rural areas and organisations affected by recent natural disasters. Last year more than 6,000 organisations received Volunteer Grants funding, which helped support more than 250,000 volunteers. Petrol reimbursements alone assisted more than 29,000 volunteers, saving them over $2.8 million at the bowser.

The Gillard Government is working closely with community organisations across the country to ensure vulnerable and disadvantaged Australians are given a helping hand. We will continue to work with the sector, so that people have someone to turn to even in these toughest of times.