5 December 2011 

On 1 July 2010 the new NSW Associations Incorporation Act 2009 came into force. Is your organisation an Incorporated Association under NSW legislation? If yes, find out what the changes mean for your Board and your organisation.

Presented by Council of Social Service of NSW (NCOSS), in partnership with the Public Interest Law Clearing House (PILCH), this Good Governance Seminar is for board members and managers of human services associations. Priority will be given to those Associations funded by ADHC and Health.

Registration is open for the Good Governance Seminar, scheduled for Monday, 5 December at NCOSS, 66 Albion St, Surry Hills 2010.

Due to heavy demand, registrations have now closed 

Download: Flyer

A community delegation will converge on Canberra today to support the Federal Government's positive pathway towards community-based alternatives to immigration detention.

Chaired by the Refugee Council of Australia and involving 17 organisations representing millions of Australians the delegation will brief parliamentarians on best-practice community-based models to process asylum seekers.

RCOA chief executive officer Paul Power said the delegation strongly supported the Government's decision to pursue onshore processing of all asylum applications and alternatives to detention to people arriving by boat without a visa. Mr Power said the delegation was reaching out to the Government to help develop successful long-term community models.

"Our message to the Government is clear - we are ready to work with Government to build community support for successful community processing models."

The delegation is also calling for a greater focus on regional development, which Mr Power said "will do more than any other set of measures to address the insecurity that forces refugees and asylum seekers to engage people-smugglers in their efforts to find greater safety."

In addition to those participating in this delegation, "hundreds of organisations support a more compassionate approach", according to ACOSS Chief Executive, Cassandra Goldie.

In September ACOSS gathered support for community based arrangements from over 260 leading organisations and leading charities.

"It is misguided to be looking at off-shore solutions when the most effective, economical and humane method for processing asylum seekers is right here on our doorstep" she said.

Organisations who are part of this delegation include: Amnesty International Australia, Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, Australian Council of Social Service, Australian Council of Trade Unions, Australian Federation of Islamic Councils, Catalyst Australia Inc, ChilOut, Edmund Rice Centre, Executive Council of Australian Jewry, Federation of Ethnic Communities' Council of Australia, John Menadue, National Council of Churches in Australia, Oxfam Australia, Refugee Advice and Casework Service, Refugee Council of Australia, Uniting Church in Australia Assembly, Welcome to Australia.

MEDIA CONTACT: Andrew Williams 0488 035 535

New research commissioned by Australians for Affordable Housing reveals that almost 300,000 NSW households are in housing stress. After paying for housing these households are at risk of financial hardship and poverty.

According to the research, some 180,000 renters in this state are in housing stress, representing 27% of renters. A further 112,000 home purchasers are in housing stress, representing 12% of home purchasers.

The report further strengthens the need for a clear plan, with numerical targets, to expand the supply of both social and affordable housing in NSW, as advocated by NCOSS.

Download:  Report Housing Costs Through the Roof: Australia's Housing Stress

The NSW Minister for Disability Services Andrew Constance officially launched the NSW Disability Network Forum on 20 September. NCOSS is providing secretariat support for the Forum which will be a strong coordinated voice for people with a disability, helping to shape government policy and guide improvements in the delivery of disability services. The Forum comprises peak non-government advocacy groups and will focus on people who use and rely on disability services - people with a disability, their families and carers.

Member organisations of the NSW Disability Network Forum

• Aboriginal Disability Network NSW
• Association of Blind Citizens of NSW
• Brain Injury Association NSW
• Citizen Advocacy Western Sydney
• Council of Social Service of NSW (NCOSS)
• DeafBlind Association NSW
• Deaf Society of NSW
• Institute For Family Advocacy
• Intellectual Disability Rights Service
• Multicultural Disability Advocacy Association of NSW
• NSW Consumer Advisory Group - Mental Health
• NSW Council for Intellectual Disability
• NSW Disability Advocacy Network
• Physical Disability Council of NSW
• People with Disability Australia
• Self Advocacy Sydney
• Positive Life NSW

More information:

• Minister Constance’s (ADHC) media release
• About the Forum

The NSW Disability Network Forum can be contacted through the NCOSS secretariat:

Christine Regan
email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
phone: 02 92112599 ext 117

Val Kors (Wed – Fri)
email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
phone: 02 92112599 ext 123

 Photo: NSW Minister for Disability Services Andrew Constance speaking at the launch of the NSW Disability Network Forum

People with disability and their representatives will share in $300,000 in Australian Government funding over three years to attend key international forums on human rights. The money was announced on 29 September 2011 by Senator Jan McLucas, the Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Carers, and Graeme Innes, Disability Discrimination Commissioner.

The funding, under the Commonwealth’s National Disability Strategy, will support delegations representing peak disability and advocacy organisations to better represent the needs of people with disability internationally.

Details on this new initiative including eligibility can be found on the Australian Human Rights Commission's website.

Download:

• Australian Human Rights Commission media release
• Media release from Senator McLucas

Photo
Representatives present at the announcement at the Australian Human Rights Commission (l-r): Therese Sands, Executive Director, People With Disability Australia; Graeme Innes, Disability Discrimination Commissioner; Senator Jan McLucas, Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Carers; Christine Regan, Senior Policy Officer, NCOSS; Ruth Robinson, Executive Officer, Physical Disability Council of NSW; Sam French Systemic Advocacy Manager, People With Disability Australia

NCOSS is pleased to hear that NSW has been allocated 4,700 extra houses under round four of the National Rental Affordability Scheme (NRAS). The allocation was announced by the Federal Government on 4th October.

NRAS is being delivered in partnership with state and territory governments and provides annual financial incentive payments to project sponsors to construct new dwellings to rent to eligible low and moderate income households at a rate that is at least 20 per cent below the prevailing market rents.

NCOSS has been concerned that NSW fared poorly under earlier NRAS funding rounds despite the fact that NSW households clearly experience the highest level of rental stress in the country.

We have been campaigning to ensure that NSW receives a fair share of all further NRAS funding rounds. Under round 4 NSW has received 28% of available incentives, a marked improvement on earlier rounds.

For further information: http://www.environment.gov.au/housing/nras/index.html

NSW Multicultural Health Communication Service (MHCS) is pleased to inform you of the availability of funds through the Anti-Tobacco Community Grants Program (Grants Program) for CALD communities.

There will be two types of funding available: small grants of up to $10,000 (GST inclusive) and large grants of over $10,000 and up to $50,000 (GST inclusive).

The Grants Program, funded by Cancer Institute NSW, aims to develop partnerships between health services (public) and various community based organisations. The program is aimed at addressing tobacco related harm in priority CALD communities with higher than state average smoking rates (Arabic, Chinese and Vietnamese and small and emerging communities). It is also aimed at building capacity in community-based organisations (NGOs) to undertake tobacco control activities within priority CALD communities.

MHCS has been commissioned to administer the Grants program. MHCS is a state-wide service funded to provide health information to CALD communities.

For more information, including an information package and application form, please visit www.mhcs.health.nsw.gov.au/mhcs/utility/Anti-TobaccocommunitgrantsforCALD.asp and download the relevant documents. Applications are now open. The deadline for applications is 4.00 pm, Friday 28 October, 2011.

Contact:

• Bevan Wilson, Project Officer, Multilingual Quitline Project, NSW Multicultural Health Communication Service
  Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
  Phone: 02 9816 030

You are invited to attend a public forum: Not In Bankstown, Not Anywhere! why we need a Moratorium on Government’s Income Management.

• When:  Thursday 6 October 2011, 11.30am–1pm
• Where: Life Church, Ground floor, 194 Stacey Street Bankstown

The campaign Say No to Government’s Income Management: Not In Bankstown Not Anywhere has gathered momentum locally and nationally and has gained support from a range of organisations and groups. The campaign coalition is now holding this forum for Bankstown residents, service providers and advocates to hear firsthand about the experience of the Income Management under the Northern Territory Intervention.

The Forum will also be an opportunity for you to learn more about the concerns of the welfare sector and to hear what long time advocates are saying about this policy. You will also learn more about the campaign, how you can be part of it and how you too can take action to protect the rights of people on social security. Please feel free to circulate this email widely and encourage residents, colleagues and others to attend.

Download:  Flyer

Applications are open for the Community Building Partnership program. The program provides funds for community groups and local councils to invest in community infrastructure throughout the NSW. Applicants need to demonstrate how their project will benefit their local community through the building or improvement of facilities to deliver positive social, recreational or environmental outcomes. Projects must be ready to commence by early 2012 and be completed before the end of March 2013.

Applications close on Monday 31 October 2011.

For further information see http://www.communitybuildingpartnership.nsw.gov.au/ .