Presenter: Jase (Gary) Hodson Regional Manager of the City

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Presenter Jase (Gary) HodsonRegional Manager
of the City S.E.
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Relationships Australia (NSW) Sydney
Day Nursery

• Working together,
• creating better service

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Relationships Australia

• National Agency
• States individually managed
• Partnerships
• Basically always includes
• Counselling
• Education
• Mediation services

• In N.S.W.
• 7 x Centres
• 5 x F.R.C.
• 3 x CCS
• AIRS
• Family Services
• Youth Services
• POP
• RDRS
• Mediation Services
• Central Office

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S.D.N.Sydney Day Nursery

• Established provider of Day Care
• Also provide education sessions
• Also facilitate family support
• (Early Intervention Worker)
• Often delivering services through
  partnerships arrangements (240 groups in SDN
  Parenting Centres 60 in Child Care Centres)
• The City S.E. Region of R.A. NSW is in one of
  these partnership

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This Project

• Aim Early Intervention for families at risk
• Partners S.D.N. Brighter Futures
• R.A. NSW
• Clients Families from Brighter Futures,
  SDN, DOCS
• Method(s) Delivery of Educational Supportive
  Programs (in group settings)
• Session Contract 200708 300 sessions

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Positives for Services

• Reaching a population that would not normally
  access services
• Servicing an under resourced and unaware client
  group facilitating their accesses
• SDN provides arranges location, catering,
  transport (sometimes) childcare (usually)
• Flexibility of both organisations to meet client
  needs

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Positives for Services (cont)

• Being in a position to deal the needs of both
  organisations client aims
• Learning to offer Focus Groups for Mums
  tailored by feedback
• Using established Child Care Centres (parents
  feel safer)
• Professional Child Carers

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Positives for Clients

• Services provided in known locations
• Locations flexible adaptable
• Mixed audiences mean parents hearing both sides
  of a dispute
• Groups education sessions tailored to
  attendees needs
• Affordability of services
• Free child care provided

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Outcomes to Date

• Developed into a clear and effective Strengths
  Based Approach
• Clients have theirs strengths acknowledged and
  built upon
• Self assertiveness is improved in D.V. groups
  for women
• Practical help to facilitate clients
  functionality in their world environment
• So attendees are better resourced for life!

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Challenges

• Sporadic attendance by this client type
• Late cancellation of unfilled courses
• Courses offered but not reaching Brighter
  Futures Clients are not funded
• Clients often under skilled conversationally in
  group settings
• Client type is often severely affected by trauma,
  so are often very demanding
• Often takes significant work to containing
  clients

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Recommendations

• Do not de-construct clients world
• Always aim to hence their strengths
• Childcare needs to be provided
• However the provision of childcare has to be in
  such a manner that it does not disturb the
  womens processing in groups

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Concluding Questions Discussions

• Please
• Have a chat
• Hand outs available,
• help your self please.