LCSA Birthday | Vale Amir Bodenstein

22 August 2024

Today I share some incredibly sad news. Amir Bodenstein, our friend and founding member of our Lived Experience Advocacy Panel, passed away. Amir was a former soldier and a social justice warrior till the end. He contributed his knowledge of homelessness to many organisations working on this issue. His work advocating for policy change and funding reform over many years improved the lives of others. We will be forever grateful for the contribution he made. We extend our deepest condolences to Amir’s friends and family, and all who worked with him in the sector.

You can read our full statement here.

What is the role of the Social Service Sector in Disaster Management?

There is a NSW Parliamentary Joint Select Committee currently reviewing the Reconstruction Act. NCOSS provided a submission to this review and I provided evidence to the committee through a public hearing. We are advocating for the legislation to:

Explicitly require the Reconstruction Authority to consider equity and prioritise those members of the community who are most vulnerable to disaster impacts.
Formally recognise the role of the social service sector in disaster management
Include community and social service sector representatives, and their voices, in disaster management governance and leadership

Happy birthday LCSA

This week LCSA hosted the "Connecting Communities Conference“ and celebrated their 50th anniversary. The event brought together community sector members and partners from all over New South Wales. Born from NCOSS, LCSA has grown to be a strong and powerful peak body, and it was great fun to celebrate their achievements and longevity with current and former staff and friends.

Student placements at NCOSS

We are excited to welcome four university students who are undertaking a placement as part of their studies at the University of Technology Sydney. Penelope, Isabella, Hesta and Katelyn will be contributing to NCOSS' research work and applying their knowledge of social and political science. This is the first time in over seven years that we have welcomed students to our policy team. We look forward to supporting these students in their journey to building a career in the social service sector and advocacy.

NCOSS CEO Cara Varian was interviewed about rising food insecurity in NSW.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported: 'NSW Council of Social Service chief executive Cara Varian said its member organisations, which provide food and shelter to those in need, were reporting an increase in people seeking services.

“Our members have also reported a significant shift in the clients they are seeing,” she added.

“Most notably, they are seeing new families on dual incomes who have previously made ends meet, but are now struggling to get by.”'

Read the Sydney Morning Herald article here.

We are excited to share that we are supporting the Outstanding Work with First Nations Young People Award and NSW Youth Worker of the Year Award as part of the NSW Youth Work Awards 2024.

The NSW Youth Work Awards is an annual event that Youth Action established 11 years ago to recognise the importance and hard work of youth services and youth workers across NSW.

This year, the NSW Youth Work Awards Dinner and Presentation will be held on Wiradjuri Country at Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo on October 31.

You can join us to celebrate and highlight the outstanding achievements of the youth sector and young people by joining us for the Awards night. You can learn more about the awards here.

If you're a young First Nations person living in NSW, you can enter the NCOSS art competition.

The winning design will be featured on the front cover of our annual report this year. Plus, the winning artist will be paid $2500 for the use of their work.

As we reflect on the results from last year's referendum on the Voice to Parliament, we're thinking about what comes next. We'd like you to reflect on the theme: 'Towards Self Determination".

The competition closes on Friday, 13 September, 2024. For all of the details, please visit the NCOSS website.

Uniting has launched its new flagship Uniting Families Report. Its aim is to examine the reality of family life in Australia, foster a deeper understanding and appreciation of diversity within our communities and explore what it means to raise children and young people.

Some of the report findings include:

Failing to honor the diversity of family structures means we fail to understand and support families.
The cost-of-living pressure is felt more strongly by those that are not in couple parent families.
Some family types are more likely to be affected by the current rental crisis and lack of affordable housing supply than others. The experience of having insecure housing is more familiar to sole parent and step and/or blended families.

Read the full report here.

The Office of the Advocate for Children and Young People together with the NSW Children’s Week Council is inviting entries for the NSW Children’s Week 2024 Art competition.

Children’s Week runs from 19 October – 27 October. The Children’s Week National Theme for 2024 is based on the UNCRC Article 24: Children have the right to a clean and safe environment.

Participating in the competition is an opportunity for children and young people to think about parts of the environment that are important to them and the ways they connect and love the environment.

Find out more information here.

Sector Conversation: Gambling Harm, Children and Young People
FAMS
3 September, online
Free | Register here

This year's theme for Child Protection Week 2024 is 'Every Conversation Matters'.

So, we've planned a Sector Conversation with special guests to shine a light on gambling harm, the importance of awareness for the sector, practical resources and people you can connect with for further support.

We will be joined by Kate Da Costa, who leads Wesley Mission's gambling reform campaign.

Students and Centrelink
Welfare Rights Centre
10 September, online

Free | Register here

This session outlines key issues determining access to Centrelink payments while studying, with a focus on JobSeeker, Youth Allowance, ABSTUDY, Austudy and Youth Disability Supplement.

Speakers will cover the concepts of dependence/independence for people aged 21 or younger; study requirements including approved courses, approved education providers, and study load; and the way work rules and income from work can affect payments.

Past, Present and Future
Domestic Violence NSW
18 & 19 September, Surry Hills
$254 - $1128 | Register here

'Past, present and future’ will be an amazing two days of sharing, learning and networking that brings the sector together in a common purpose of connecting and discovering.

With a great line up of subject matter experts, speakers, panelists, and people with lived expertise, we will lean into our history with stories from the front lines. We'll look at the issues we're facing today and look forward to what the future could hold.

Navigating Boundaries and Difficult Conversations
LEAD
30 October, Rooty Hill Novotel
$55 - $90 | Register here

In community services, where the lines between professional and personal lives often intersect, it’s easy for boundaries to become blurred. The very qualities that make you a compassionate and nurturing service provider can also leave you susceptible to blurring, especially when coupled with fatigue. Establishing and maintaining healthy boundaries is crucial for the safety and respect of both you and your clients.

Sisters of Charity Community Grant
Closing Date: 30 August 2024

If your organisation provides compassion, hope and practical assistance to those in need, then you may be eligible for financial support from the Sisters of Charity Foundation.

Each year we provide grants of up to $15,000 for community projects and programs within Australia. These grants are aimed at helping groups who make a huge difference to those in need, but struggle to find funding through other avenues.

For more information, please visit the grant information page.

Some of the latest from our Jobs Board:

Bicultural Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Project Officer (Nepean Blue Mountains) - NSW STARTTS - VIEW JOB

Gambling Community Engagement Officer (Western Sydney) - University of Sydney - VIEW JOB

Speak Out Dual Diagnosis Program Caseworker/Counsellor (South Sydney) - WEAVE - VIEW JOB

Family Case Worker (South East Sydney) - St George Family Support Services - VIEW JOB

Residential Care Worker (Inner West Sydney) - Foundation House - VIEW JOB

People & Culture Officer (Sydney CBD) - ACON - VIEW JOB

Specialist Case Worker (Forster) - Great Lakes Womens Shelter - VIEW JOB

Health Promotion (Western Sydney) - Cumberland Women’s Health Centre - VIEW JOB

NCOSS gives its members the opportunity to share their stories, research, resources, events and more through NCOSS eNews. If you have something to share with the sector, send through a short blurb (50-70 words), image (250 x 250px) and relevant links to info@ncoss.org.au.

We will endeavour to add it to an edition of NCOSS e-News (goes out every fortnight on Thursday morning). Deadline for content is 5:00pm on Monday, the week of publication. The next deadline is Monday, 2 September 2024.