Anglicare Australia has welcomed the news that some 200,000 outstanding Robodebt cases will be scrapped. In supporting the Government's move, Anglicare Australia Executive Director Kasy Chambers said: "This move is a show of compassion to those remaining people still caught up in the previous Government's Robodebt debacle." Click here to read more.

The September edition of the 2022 Close the Gap Quarterly Newsletter has been released. It includes information about the Deadly Physios Podcast show; words from the Close the Gap Campaign Co-Chair Commissioner June Oscar AO; and upcoming events. Click here to access.

Australian Parents for Climate Action released The Real Cost of Living report this week, which surveyed 1,000+ parents and found that families are struggling to keep up with rising living costs, with many having to cut back on basics like food and travel. Lower income households are the worst hit, with almost 10% of respondents reporting they are accumulating debt to manage rising energy bills. Click here to read the report.

A new research partnership between the University of Sydney and People with Disability Australia (PWDA) has found people with mental health diagnoses (psychosocial disability) living in institutional settings face "significant barriers" to accessing the NDIS. Commissioned as part of PWDA's Engage-In project, the study examined the experiences of people with psychosocial disability living in institutions such as prisons, psychiatric facilities and boarding houses, and the systemic challenges they face when attempting to access the NDIS. 

The St Vincent de Paul Society in Australia welcomes the passing of legislation overnight to abolish the Cashless Debit Card and to make income management voluntary. The Society has been a leading voice calling for the abolition of the Cashless Debit Card, which has had significant unintended consequences across communities, including social exclusion and stigmatisation, increased financial hardship, and the erosion of autonomy and human dignity. 

The National Council of Single Mothers and Their Children are conducting a Separated Women's Financial Safety Survey, which looks at single mothers’ post-separation finances, including how money might be used by their ex-partner to control or abuse. The survey results will help to identify experiences of financial safety and how government policies and programs help or hinder financial safety. Click here to learn more and share.

The Public Health Association of Australia (PHAA) has backed growing calls for the Albanese Government to drop the planned tax cuts. PHAA is encouraging those who would benefit most from the tax cuts (according to the Australia Institute, the average income for a full-time worker in Australia is $92,000) to tell the Albanese Government that they want it to break its tax cut promise. Click here to learn more.

Poverty affects far too many Australian children and families, diminishing their lives now and in the future.  As one of the wealthiest countries in the world, it’s just not right that 1 in 6 of our children grow up in poverty.

Not having enough money to cover the necessities restricts daily life and crushes hope for the future.

Let’s make sure that all Australian children and families can cover the basics and have a secure roof over their heads.  Children can thrive and be healthy when they have what they need to develop well.

This Anti-Poverty Week call on Parliamentarians to commit to halve child poverty by 2030, meeting international commitments to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and UN Global Goals (Sustainable Development Goals).

As a non-Indigenous organisation, Social Ventures Australia has leaned on existing First Nations led and developed guides to improve service delivery, designing a set of First Nations Practice Principles striving to create positive impact for First Nations organisations and communities.

The intent of the Principles is to enable SVA to act as a genuine ally, and work alongside First Nations partners towards better outcomes for First Nations people and communities. 

There are three key purposes that have driven SVA to develop and adopt the Principles:

1. To provide SVA staff with a conceptual basis as well as practical, actionable guidance in how to appropriately engage with First Nations communities and organisations
   
2. To embed a high standard of practice into the work that SVA does with First Nations people, and to ensure responsibility and accountability to that practice and push non-Indigenous clients and partners to do more impactful work
   
3. To create a tool to help communicate approach and values to clients and partners, in particular First Nations and government clients

From finding a dream job to keeping connected with loved ones - it is important that everyone in Australia has the skills and affordable access they need to get online. Yet, 1 in 4 Australians are considered ‘digitally excluded’ and risk missing out.

From 17-23 October, Australia’s largest community-led digital inclusion campaign, Get Online Week, will inspire thousands of Australians to improve their confidence online and ‘Try One Thing’. Good Things Foundation Australia is mobilising more than 600 community organisations nationwide to run free and fun digital skills events, from learning how to spot a scam to joining an online cooking class.

• Join the National Ethnic Disability Alliance for a webinar on Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CaLD) communities and the Disability Royal Commission (DRC). In this webinar, the experienced panellists will cover a range of topics such as how to make a submission to the DRC, what to expect at the upcoming DRC Public Hearing and what supports are available to you - 18 October 2022 - Click here to register

• Join hundreds of people around the country for the prestigious Kep Enderby Memorial Lecture. Delivered by The Hon Mark Dreyfus KC MP, the Attorney-General of Australia, this year’s event is one of the first public opportunities to hear the new Government’s agenda for human rights policy implementation and reform - 3 November 2022 - Click here to register

• National Carers Week 2022 is on from 16 – 22 October. The theme ‘Millions of Reasons to Care’ aims to broaden the awareness of the 2.65 million Australians caring for family members, friends and people in the community, by highlighting the data that defines carers and the caring role. Click here to access resources and get involved #NationalCarersWeek

• SBS has launched its Mind Your Health online content portal featuring articles, podcasts and videos in multiple languages, aimed at sharing the rich diversity of cultural knowledge and experiences across communities and showing pathways to support improving the mental and physical wellbeing of all Australians

Foodbank featured

Everybody's Home campaign featured

NACCHO featured

There is no safe way to use spit hoods. We are calling for their use to be banned - in all settings, for all people.

TAKE ACTION NOW & EMAIL YOUR MP: https://t.co/XIW6p2MX5G pic.twitter.com/K5sHlJWXSF

— Change the Record (@Change_Record) October 7, 2022