What's New
National E-security Awareness Week
Families Australia is proud to partner with the Australian Government for National E-security Awareness Week, on June 6-13. We share a commitment to helping you be secure online so that you can get the most out of what the internet has to offer.
You don’t need to be a computer genius to keep yourself, your family or your business secure when you’re on the internet. It’s simple—there are some things you need to have on your computer, like security software. Then there are some things you need to do, like setting strong passwords and being cautious online.
The online environment is constantly changing so make sure you’re keeping up to date—with your software, your passwords and the latest risks. Follow these simple steps:
1. install, update and use your security software
2. use strong passwords and change them regularly
3. use common sense when sharing personal information online
4. think before you click—if it looks too good to be true it probably is!
5. be smart and stay informed.
Visit www.staysmartonline.gov.au for more information and sign up for the new Stay Smart Online Alert Service. You’ll be sent regular emails that will alert you to the latest e-security risks, and provide useful advice for how to manage them.
Combining work and caring
The Taskforce on Care Costs, in conjunction with Families Australia, issued a major report on 16 November 2007 entitled “The hidden face of care: combining work and caring responsibilities for the aged and people with a disability”. The report found that carers currently feel undervalued, and that their experiences are often misunderstood by employers and co-workers. This is reflected in the minimal level of service provision, as well as financial and workplace supports. 34% of carers surveyed said that their job/career had suffered because of the competing demands of their caring responsibilities.The report gives employers insights as to what to do to create more inclusive workplaces, as well governments on creating the supportive infrastructure. Read the report
Toward a National Child Protection Strategy (Draft)
The National Child Protection Forum was held in Melbourne in June 2006 in response to the second report on the Senate inquiry into children in institutional or out-of-home care, the so-called ‘Protecting vulnerable children: a national challenge’ report. The Forum was funded by the Australian Government and was attended by around 100 representatives from a wide range of community, government (State/Territory and Federal) and research organisations with the aim of sharing innovative practice in child protection and discussing what a National Approach to Child Protection might incorporate. At the conclusion of the Forum, participants agreed that a Working Group would be convened to draft a paper on main elements for a National Child Protection Strategy based on the vision, principles and six key priority areas agreed at the Forum. The key priority areas are: primary services (universal services available to all children and families); secondary services (intervening early to prevent child abuse and neglect); tertiary services (responding to children who have been harmed or are at risk of harm); Indigenous issues (addressing the over-representation of Indigenous children in the child protection system); national standards; and research, evaluation, dissemination and service data.
The Draft paper, entitled ‘Toward a National Child Protection Strategy’ is available for comment. Please provide any comment by Wednesday 5 September by email. After comments are received, one possible course of action is the formation of a broadly-based consortium of organisations which could finalise the strategy and present it to governments and other key stakeholders.
Family Wellbeing Symposium
The National Family Wellbeing Symposium was held in Canberra on 20-21 June 2007.
The Symposium was an initiative of Families Australia, in conjunction with the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health at The Australian National University College of Medicine and Health Sciences.
The gathering was being held at a time of growing government, community and academic interest in personal and national wellbeing. However, there is an absence of a widely accepted framework and no forum for specific discussion on family wellbeing to guide research, policy, resource allocation, and evaluation.
The Symposium addressed these gaps, explored the meaning of family wellbeing and built understandings on the main elements of a family wellbeing framework.
The Symposium involved 130 people from a wide range of community, political, government and academic backgrounds.
Presentations from the Symposium and links to further information are available here.
Grandparenting
Families Australia's consultations in late 2006 and 2007 found that many grandparents, especially those with primary caring responsibilities for grandchildren, would benefit from additional financial, social and emotional support, and from better targeted information about how to get help. Families Australia makes 29 recommendations to better support grandparents. read the report and presentations
White Ribbon Day
Families Australia is a proud supporter of White Ribbon Day - the day set aside on 25 November each year in Australia and internationally to highlight the need to eliminate violence against women and children. On White Ribbon Day everyone is encouraged to wear a White Ribbon as a visible sign that the wearer does not support or condone the use of violence against women and children.
White Ribbon Day was created by a group of Canadian men in 1991 on the second anniversary of one man's massacre of 14 women in Montreal. They began a campaign to urge men to speak out about violence against women. In 1999, the UN General Assembly declared November 25 the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (IDEVAW) and the White Ribbon has become the symbol for the day.
Among the many facets of activity for White Ribbon Day, over 230 men have been appointed as White Ribbon Day Ambassadors representing major political parties, the entertainment industry, business, military, police, and the government and community sectors. Families Australia CEO Brian Babington is a White Ribbon Day Ambassador and a member of the White Ribbon Day National Leadership Group. For more information about White Ribbon Day, visit www.whiteribbonday.org.au