Berry Street Web Docs Annual Report 2008 | Page 17

Why aren’t all kids having a good childhood - what are we doing doing about it?

A: By contributing to a fairer
and more inclusive community
On every indicator of health and safety, Aboriginal children,
young people and families are significantly behind
non-Indigenous Australians. The number of Aboriginal
children in Victoria subject to Child Protection intervention
is 10 times higher and the number of children in Out of
Home Care is 12 times higher than non-Indigenous children
and young people.

Although a relatively small part of our budget, we:

Our commitment is to work in partnership with our Aboriginal
colleagues and to ensure that we are, as far as possible,
a culturally competent organisation.

• Trained 102 people to deliver the MoneyMinded
financial literacy program.

Key initiatives include:
• The Board’s commitment to develop an Aboriginal Plan.
• Together with MacKillop Family Services, funding the
Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency (VACCA) to
develop an organisational tool to assess and improve
cultural competence.
• 137 staff undertook cultural competence training.
• VACCA became a formal partner in Take Two.
• In conjunction with five local Aboriginal agencies and the
ANZ Bank, developing a tailored financial literacy program
(My Moola) in Shepparton.

Financial Inclusion
An essential ingredient of a fairer and more inclusive society
is that all people have sufficient income to meet the basic
needs of food, shelter, clothing and access to healthcare and
education. Increased costs of living and the lack of affordable
housing, means that far too many families are living in poverty.
In a wealthy country like Australia, 11.6% of our children
living in poverty (UNICEF 2007) is inexcusable.

• Helped 629 people with emergency relief.
• Provided financial counselling for 478 people.
• Supported 566 people in the ANZ/Brotherhood
of St Laurence matched savings program, Saver Plus.

• Delivered MoneyMinded training to 1,523 people, with
two specifically designed programs for Indigenous and Iraqi
people in Shepparton.
It was gratifying to be part of the Prime Minister’s Award for
“Multi-State Large Business Partnership”, together with the
ANZ Bank, Benevolent Society, Brotherhood of St Laurence
and the Smith Family.

Community Building
Thanks to the generous support of a private foundation, our
Connect for Kids program in Alexandra continued to thrive.
Working with the community, our staff develop new responses
to help people feel connected to their community. Some of
these initiatives, like the ELF (Early Learning is Fun) program,
can be taken up by other communities.
Some of the achievements of the last year include:- the
Pledge by students, teachers, parents and business that no
young person will leave school in Alexandra and Yea without
a pathway to education or employment; the Cathedral Youth
Arts project, which engages young people and their parents
through the arts; increased volunteer participation; the Safe
and Caring Community project, which promotes whole of
community action to reduce all forms of violence; and
community art works in Yea.

Berry Street Annual Report 2008

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