24 October 2024
Member Update
Dear Families ACT members,
In this edition: register now for the next JCR on 13 November 2024, updates on Families ACT’s strategic planning, the results of ACT election and meet the dynamic duo – the new members of the Families ACT team!
Spring Summary
Since July, Families ACT has been meeting with members and stakeholders to gather insights on how best to serve our members and the wider community. A dominant theme continues to be concerns about the increasing childhood vulnerability and entrenched disadvantage in the ACT. This has led us to deepen our understanding and engagement on the issues of child vulnerability and poverty in the ACT, as well as supporting our members with commissioning and sector development activities.
This consultation process is a key initiative to develop a Strategic Plan and will guide our activities in the years ahead. We look forward to releasing our Strategic Plan in early 2025. This and other sector development, policy and research updates and activities will be regularly shared via our website and Facebook – we recommend following us here.
ACT Election Update
On 19 October, Canberrans voted in the ACT election, with ACT Labor winning a seventh term. However, the make-up of the ACT Legislative Assembly will look different in the next term with vote counting is still being finalised and a final seat in Brindabella to be confirmed (Mick Gentleman). We also farewell Greens members and cabinet ministers Emma Davidson and Rebecca Vassarotti, both losing their seat and replaced by two new independents, Fiona Carrick (Murrumbidgee) and Thomas Emerson (Kurrajong).
While the composition of the new Legislative Assembly is being finalised, Families ACT continues to engage in early policy discussions with elected officials to help inform and advise how they might shape priorities focused on children and families in the years ahead.
The final result will be called by the Australian Electoral Commission on 30 October. Caretaker is expected to end 6 November.
What can we expect this Parliament?
Labor announced 100 policies during its campaign for the 2024 election. Some of the policy announcements relevant to children and families include:
Housing: 5,000 new public and affordable rental dwellings by 2030, alongside an additional 30,000 new homes across the territory by the end of this decade, including build-to-rent properties.
Cost-of-living: $800 energy rebate to one in five households experiencing financial hardship.
Public transport: Increased weekday local bus services to run every 20 minutes, along with a 12-month trial for free public transport on Fridays.
Health: The commencement of work on the new $1 billion northside hospital, along with funding an extra 800 more healthcare workers and additional surgical specialists. In addition, the Women’s Health Service will receive extra funding, along with a new six-bed perinatal mental health residential unit and the expansion of mid-wife services including the midwifery-led continuity of care program. Several of Canberra’s medical walk-in centres are set to receive specialist mental health nurses, and $11 million has been announced to a fund encouraging more GPs to bulk bill.
Education and children: ACT Labor will invest $150 million in public schools to improve infrastructure and accessibility, including heating and air-conditioning system upgrades. An additional 15 schools will receive funding for breakfast and lunch services for students, three days a week. Free preschool hours for three-year-olds will be doubled to 600 hours per year, as well as supervised before and after school care at public four-year-old preschools. Finally, first-time parents will receive a package of baby supplies needed for the first few years of life.
ACT Labor is in negotiations with the ACT Greens and independents, which will further shape and inform policy priorities of this parliament. We will provide further updates on the outcome of the 2024 election via our website and Facebook.
Advocacy activity
The ACT election period presented an excellent opportunity for Families ACT to engage with candidates and support the community sector's efforts to address the needs of the Canberra community. This has seen Families ACT engaging on issues such as:
Cost-of-living pressures many Canberra families face, detailed by the 2024 ACT Cost of Living Report.
The Act for Community campaign, which called for candidates and political parties to address the urgent need for sustainable funding to the community sector. This campaign highlighted that increased population growth in the ACT has placed unprecedented demand on community services, with current funding levels not reflecting need.
Poverty reduction - Anti-Poverty Week (13 to 19 October), including the Anti-Poverty Community Forum as part of coinciding with the ACT election period. The keynote presentation was provided by Associate Professor Ben Phillips from the ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods, who shared insights about the nature of poverty and financial distress within the ACT and across Australia, along with potential implications for policymakers should there be a formal definition of poverty in Australia. The forum was also attended by ACT election candidates, who shared their policy platforms relating to poverty, cost-of-living pressures and the community sector’s concerns about funding and service delivery. Labor also confirmed their commitment to a ACT Poverty Forum.
Other important policy issues highlighted during the election period included:
housing affordability and suitable social housing stock across the ACT;
support for First Nations-led service delivery;
reducing the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in out-of-home care;
improving healthcare affordability;
eliminating domestic and family violence; and
increased investment in early learning services and out-of-hours school care.
Families ACT endorses these areas of reform, particularly those relating to children and their families. Finally, Families ACT congratulates everyone in the community sector for their hard work during this ACT election period!
Register now for our November Joint Case Review (JCR)
Our next Joint Case Review (JCR) on Wednesday 13 November from 9.30am to 11.30am at our office in O’Connor. Don’t miss out, register now to reserve your spot! Come and join us! You can register for free for the Nov session and for all remaining JCR via our Eventbrite account.
And please forward this email to interested staff and/or colleagues.
What is next for JCRs? In the new year, Families ACT will be evaluating the JCRs and explore how this program can further benefit services providing supports to children, young people and families in the ACT.
For more information about JCRs and our sector development opportunities visit our website. If you have any questions or want more information about JCRs, please email us at comms@familiesact.org.au
Meet the team!
Since the departure of Families ACT longstanding Executive Officer, Will Mollison, who retired in July 2024, Rebecca Zappelli joined as the new Executive Director. In late-July 2024, Joshua Wrest, joined the team as Research, Policy and Communications Officer. Both Rebecca and Joshua have diverse backgrounds, bringing new skills and vision to Families ACT. Learn more about them below!
Rebecca Zappelli
Rebecca brings over 17 years of experience to her role as Executive Director of Families ACT, working with governments, research and community organisations across Australia, the United Kingdom, and Canada. During this time, Rebecca has played a leading role in successful health policy reforms, programs and policy initiatives.
Before joining Families ACT, Rebecca was the Head of Stakeholder Engagement at the Australian National University College of Health and Medicine. She has also held leadership roles within Foundry British Columbia (BC), a province-wide network of integrated health and wellness services for young people, the City of Vancouver, leading their Healthy City Strategy and was the Director of the Community Action Initiative, a not-for-profit organisation supporting community-led projects focusing on mental health and substance use issues. She also brings extensive experience in working with applied research institutions, having worked for the Centre for Applied Research in Mental Health and Addiction (CARMHA) at Simon Fraser University.
Rebecca is committed to promoting equity and addressing the structural and systemic barriers that limit people’s ability to thrive. She keenly takes on the role of Executive Director, to work in partnership with the Board, Advisory, members, community, researchers and government to contribute to a Canberra where everyone can thrive!
Joshua Wrest
Joshua joins Families ACT with extensive experience working in the Federal Parliament. As a Senior Research Officer in the Australian Senate’s Committee Office, he has worked on a broad range of parliamentary committees, including: foreign affairs, legal and constitutional affairs, community affairs, anti-corruption, regional affairs, agriculture and transport. Prior to the Senate, Joshua worked in various project roles within the ANU’s Crawford School of Public Policy. He also runs a private therapy practice, offering breathwork and counselling/psychotherapy services.
Joshua joined Families ACT because it intersects with his research and writing experience, as well as his efforts to support cultural repair within our Canberra community. Outside of work, he’s often walking in any of Canberra’s beautiful nature reserves, or sitting by a river, in the sun, with a good book.
Joshua can be contacted at: joshua.wrest@familiesact.org.au
comms@familiesact.org.au
Policy | Media | Research
