Berry Street Web Docs Annual Report 2013

BERRY STREET ANNUAL REPORT 2013 SERVICES Therapeutic All of the 873 children and young people referred to Take Two by Child Protection in 2012/13 have suffered profound trauma. We know the damage this causes on the child’s developing brain and the lifelong impact it can have if the child doesn’t get the opportunity to recover. Peter’s Story Peter moved into one of our residen tial care homes when his violent home environment became intolerable. He was angry – with his mother who didn’t protect him, her abusive partner and with the school which had excluded him. Despite everybody’s extensive efforts, Peter refused all attempts to plan what he would do when he turned 18 and left Berry Street. In the first two months, Peter moved five times, including on one occasion being offered a swag to sleep on the street or going to an adult male refuge. Finally, he asked for our help. With the support of his case manager, Peter agreed to enroll in TAFE and see a counsellor. He then moved into the White House, a supported living arrangement with seven other young people, which was made possible through the generosity of the Peter and Lyndy White Foundation. Peter now acknowledges that he needs support, and is reassured that we will be there for him over the next three years. As well as the direct work our skilled clinicians do with the children, we also work with the carers and system around the child to create the optimal environment for the child. We are pleased to also partner with other community service organisations through therapeutic residential and foster care and Stronger Families. We see the benefits of this additional investment in the better outcomes for children and young people. As part of the Government’s 5 Year Out of Home Care Plan, we have advocated for all Out of Home Care to have a therapeutic approach. Some of the highlights included: JJ Providing support and counselling to 170 young people through our ‘Tune In’ Bushfire Youth Counselling program JJ Winning the tender to establish a pilot therapeutic unit in Youth Justice JJ Extending therapeutic care through additional residential, foster care and family services programs throughout Victoria JJ Receiving a Positive Partnership Community Award from the Salvation Army Westcare for the With Care training We know that to help these young people on the journey of recovery, we must gain their trust and stick with them through their ups and downs. As part of our quality assurance, one of the questions we ask the children and carers/parents is “what has been most helpful?”. These are some of the responses: Boy (11) – “Helping me discover my life so I can handle it and not only that but what’s in it properly” Girl (9) – “I think they helped me not feel sad anymore” Youth Services At Berry Street, we see adolescence as a ‘window of opportunity’ to hopefully address some of the trauma of the young person’s childhood, connect or stay connected to school and develop positive role models. It’s also a time when we can nurture their resilience and help the young people develop goals for themselves. Wherever possible, we work hard to connect these young people to parents or often family members who can be there for them as they mature. However, too often these young people have been rejected by their families and have no one to be there during the inevitable stumbles of adolescence. Our work with young people occurs in many different ways. Our staff are their case workers, counsellors and mentors. We support them in housing and we advocate to get them back to school or further education. We are also mindful of the importance of positive memories and the value of outdoor education activities, in particular, to build self-esteem. This is why we invest Berry Street funds in our Gippsland Wilderness Program and the Berry Big Adventure. WHAT THE BERRY BIG ADVENTURE MEANS TO YOUNG PEOPLE “ I’ve learnt how to trust and who to trust” “I have made so many new friends and I hope I don’t lose them. I have grown so much and I will always remember this trip as the best trip of my life” “This adventure has taught me a lot about myself in ways that make me stronger” “The most important lesson I learnt was to cherish every moment you’ve got” A new recruit! Some of the highlights included: JJ Working with 202 of the State’s most vulnerable young people through our four Intensive Case Management Services JJ Supporting 243 young people who are living in lead tenant or youth housing JJ Working with 112 young people in Ballarat to avoid homelessness JJ Supporting 71 at risk young people who have a disability JJ Running eight Wilderness Camps for 56 young people in Gippsland JJ Providing a ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity for 16 young people, through our Berry Big Adventure, to go to Ningaloo Reef in WA JJ Training and supporting 33 mentors to provide positive adult role models for 68 young people in Gippsland, 60% of whom were Aboriginal JJ Through the L2P and other learner driver programs in Gippsland and Hume, 103 mentors helped 182 young people get the required practice for a driver’s license JJ Strengthening and expanding the support we can provide to 190 young people leaving care Many of us will remember the joy and companionship we had through a pet. In Gippsland, we started our first ‘animal assisted therapy’ when Koda joined the Gippsland team. Watching her connect with a distressed child or adolescent may be the first step in their learning to trust again. 18 19

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