Berry Street Web Docs Berry Street Annual Report 2011 | Page 8

Our new

Strategic
A focus on
service innovation

If we are to achieve our
Vision – that all children
have a good childhood,
growing up feeling safe,
nurtured and with hope
for the future – then we
have more work to do!
There are far too many indicators
– including increasing numbers of
children and young people damaged
by violence, abuse and neglect and
increasing concerns about threats to
childhood itself – that far too many
children are not having a good
childhood.
2027 was chosen because it will be our
150th year – but also because a child
born in 2010 will be 17 in 2027 – what
sort of childhood will he or she have
experienced?
Our Strategic Directions 2027
(available on our website –
www.berrystreet.org.au) sets out:

We have chosen five areas where we
want to pilot and evaluate new service
models, learn from others’ experience
and research, build strategic alliances,
advocate for change, promote
professional development and raise
community awareness. Marg Hamley,
Director Strategic Initiatives, moved across
in December to lead this area. After seven
years as Deputy CEO/Director of Services,
Marg wanted a change and we are so
grateful to have retained her enormous
knowledge, wisdom, creativity and
strategic ability in this new role.
Although it is early days, we are pleased
with the progress we have made.

1. Leaving Care
We are determined that each of the
approximately 440 young people who
leave care each year have somewhere
safe to live and are connected to
education and/or employment
and support.
Thanks to the generosity of the Peter and
Lyndy White Foundation, we now have a
nine room property in Footscray, where
we will pilot a new approach. A private
donor has committed to support this work
for three years and the Potter Foundation
provided a grant for us to scope what
is needed.

• The changes we want to make as
an organisation

We are determined that each
of the 440 young people who
leave care each year have
somewhere safe to live and are
connected to education and/or
employment and support.

• Improvements we want in the child
and family sector
• Changes required in economic and
social policies
It is ambitious, but we have never shirked
a challenge!

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