By Leah Bromfield and Prue Holzer, National Child Protection Clearinghouse

The purpose of the National Approach for Child Protection Project is to provide high-level descriptions of key processes and approaches to the delivery of child protection services across Australia.

by Rivkah Nissim, Victorian Council of Social Service.

Universal housing is housing designed to be used by all people to the greatest extent possible. Homes designed to a universal standard are liveable for the majority of the population and accommodate whatever comes along in life easily and inexpensively.  This discussion paper is about the provision of appropriate, whole-of-life housing that is accessible to and meets the future needs of all Victorians.

Download it from http://tinyurl.com/6n7noj.

Source: Australian Policy Online

These three reports by the Commission for Children and Young People and Child Guardian, Queensland document the views of children and young people in alternative care in Queensland. Although the majority in foster care and residential care feel that they are better off since coming into care, data also highlighted a range of system issues that can impact negatively on the care experience.

Source: Australian Policy Online

Outreach or Street work with young people is often referred to  as 'Mobile Youth Work' (especially overseas).

This article Two articles from the International Society for Mobile Youth Work define Mobile youth work and outline the contexts in which it may be useful.  You can read

• a relatively brief article (What is Mobile Youth Work?) at http://tinyurl.com/6xoyep; or
• A more detailed explanation of the concept in "The Concept of Mobile Youth Work" at http://www.ismo-online.de/ismo_download/myw.pdf (PDF document).

Interested in some overseas PD?  The International Society for Mobile Youth Work (ISMO) hosts its 9th symposium on international level from September 15 to 18, 2008.  The conference theme is Reaching the Unreachable in a changing global context! – Social Work with street children and youth at-risk.

Want to live, work and make a difference overseas?

Come along to the Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development Information Session and find out how you can get that much-needed overseas experience.

When: 19^th August 2008, 6:30pm - 8:00pm
Where: Australian Institute of Management, Corner Boundary & Rosa Streets, Spring Hill

August 4-10 is National Homeless Person's Week.

The theme of this year's week is Homelessness - It's not who you think.  Homelessness Australia has received details of a number of events being held around Australia during this important week and you can find all the details in this Calendar (MS Word) at http://tinyurl.com/5s5ycj.

The Brisbane International Feminist Conference is being held on on the 3rd,4th and 5th of September at the Greek Convention Centre, South Brisbane.

For further details visit www.brisfeministconference08.org.au where you can find the full program.

This workshop delivered by Lighthouse Resources will introduce participants to strengths and solution-focused ways of working with young people around their learning and development.

When: 26,27 August 2008 - $286 including GST.

Coming up in the next 2 weeks...

• Meeting with YANQ's members in the Moreton Bay region regarding holding a Re-engagement Forum.
• Visit youth services in Townsville to discuss the Re-engagement project and run an Advocacy Workshop.
• Finalise the plan for the Youth Sector Workforce Development project.
• Meet with Southern Cross University in relation to research into use of ADHD medication amongst young people in juvenile justice system.
• Attend the quarterly meeting of the Qld Studies Authority's Equity Committee.
• Attend the reference group meeting of the SE Queensland Intercultural Cities Forum.
• Welcome a new part-time staff member to assist with the Re-engagement Forum.

If any member of YANQ would like YANQ staff to raise particular issues at any of the meetings/activities above, please let us know by using this form (must be logged into the website) or phone us on 07 3844 7713 or 1800 177 899.

What happened in the Last 2 Weeks...

• Attended the NAIDOC Family Fun Day.
• Revised the Youth Sector Workforce Development Plan.
• Met with Youth advisor to the Premier.
• Participated in a teleconference with the National Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network.
• Attended the launch of MDS's Indigenous Strategy by Federal Race Discrimination Commissioner Mr Tom Calma.
• Teleconference with Youth peak bodies from other States and territories.
• Attended the launch of the campaign for a new SACS Award.
• Met with Incorrection Network about the Building People not Prisons campaign.
• Held a network meeting with a number of disability advocacy organisations.

This is the title of the 2008 Mater Child & Youth Mental Health Service's Conference.  Highlighting the need to be creative in our response, this conference will include the formal “Creative Therapies” eg Art Therapy, Music Therapy, Dance etc. but will not be limited to them.  It will also attempt to highlight any creative response to those who are, or who should be, our responsibility.

When: 11th and 12th August 2008.
Where: Mater Community Services Building, Annerley Road South Brisbane.

For more information download the Conference 2008 Brochure and Registration Form from http://tinyurl.com/6n6rbh.

It is estimated that about 187,900 people who are homeless, or at risk of becoming homeless, received some form of assistance from the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP) during 2006-07, according to a report released recently by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).

The Department of Communities has up to $250,000 per annum available to engage an organisation or consortium of organisations to provide capacity building services to Queensland’s non-government organisation sector.  The grant is to support the management of the Community Door website. Management of the website will require the promotion, maintenance and development of website resources, information and tools.

Media Release from the Human Rights & Equal Opportunity Commission , 29 July 2008

Federal Human Rights Commissioner, Graeme Innes, today welcomed the Government’s announcement of a major shift in immigration detention policy to a model where detention in Immigration Detention Centres is only to be used as a last resort and for the shortest practicable time.

The ERACISM (erasing racism) advisory committee met in early July and the project is progressing well, with the release of a call for abstracts/papers and a youth multimedia competition (more information about which can be found on YANQ's website www.yanq.org.au. The project maintains last year's theme of ‘racism in public space' and continues the preliminary work done in 2007, which included the mini forum held in November.

Phone YANQ for more information on 3844 7713.

This paper examines parenting styles and family functioning; factors influencing parents' feelings and perceptions about the way they parent their children; the roles and contributions of parents who do not live with their children; feelings of stress and sources of social support for parents; and the relationship of parenting practices to child outcomes.

Click here for more information and the full report.

Source: Australian Policy Online

The results of an independent and comprehensive review into all relevant issues involved in drug detection and screening in schools are presented in this report.  Overall, the body of evidence examined indicates a strong case to be made against drug detection and screening strategies being utilized in the school setting.

Australian Social Trends 2008 is the 15th edition of an annual series (published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics) that presents information on contemporary social issues and areas of public policy concern, and describes aspects of Australian society, and how these are changing over time.

Click here for more information and the full report - http://tinyurl.com/5wqccj.

Source: Australian Policy Online

Media Release from the United Nations Youth Association. 

The Federal Government has spent $55 million on World Youth Day in Sydney but refuses to invest in youth events for young Australians.  "This $55 million, in addition to the NSW Government's $40 million contribution, dwarfs the amount that any Australian government spends on programmes and organisations that are actually run by Australian young people for Australian young people," said President of the United Nations Youth Association (UNYA), Alex Rafalowicz.

This report, published by the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs sets the context for suicide prevention activity, summarising current research, evidence and statistics relating to suicide and suicide prevention in Australia. It includes material on suicide risk and protective factors for suicide, suicide trends and comparisons, evidence of what works in suicide prevention and a discussion of the Living Is For Everyone (LIFE) suicide prevention model.

Read the full report at http://tinyurl.com/6p3jvu.

Source: Australian Policy Online

Optus is encouraging Not for Profit organisations and Optus employees nationally to apply for grants of up to $5,000 to reduce social isolation for those in need and reconnect disengaged youth in the community through the Optus Connecting Communities Grants Program.

This report by Kate Barnett and John Spoehr explores the role that the vocational education and training (VET) system can play in assisting people relying on social security income to move into the workforce.

This report was produced by the National Centre for Education and Training on Addiction (NCETA) at Flinders University. It comprises a comprehensive literature review addressing a wide range of social and cultural factors that potentially impact on young Australians aged 14- 24 in relation to their use and non-use of alcohol.

CREATE's latest report card, Transitioning from Care, was launched in June this year at the Brisbane Square Library. The Report Card was written by Dr. Joseph McDowell and provides an exceptional opportunity to listen to the voices of children and young people in care, and take action from these voices.

Underage drinking has received a great deal of publicity lately.  The topic is often framed as a ‘youth binge-drinking crisis’ or ‘epidemic’.  This article by Clarissa Hughes in the July edition of Of Substance briefly outlines the social norms approach to supporting young people to make healthy choices about alcohol - by affirming the fact that most young people are already making healthy choices about alcohol.

Each edition of the Youth Studies Australia journal is accompanied by an online 'Education Extra'  supplement: a two-page summary of that edition of the journal's education-related content.  'Education Extra' allows those in the education sector to stay current with the latest education-related news as seen from a youth studies perspective.  Read more by visiting the website at: http://www.acys.info/journal/education_extra.

Youth Studies Australia is a peer-reviewed journal providing interdisciplinary, research-based information and analysis on issues affecting Australians from early adolescence to young adulthood.

The Key Centre for Women's Health in Society has released a report entitled Making it Real:  Sexual Health Communication for Young People Living with Disadvantage.

The report is based on research that gathered evidence on how young people access, interpret and implement sexual health messages, and which evaluated of a range of current interventions.

The NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research has recently released a report - Does circle sentencing reduce Aboriginal offending?

• View Media release
• View PDF version of report "Does circle sentencing reduce Aboriginal offending?" (pdf 312Kb).

Entries are closing soon for the Your Eyes Only competition for young Australians aged 12 to 15 years old. To enter you need to submit a creative piece of work that shows the positive things about your community through your eyes.

Your Eyes Only is an opportunity to win a donation for a community group of your choice, of up $3,000.

Recognising that great Youth Workers play a key role in achieving great client outcomes, Red Cross and University of Queensland have partnered to undertake an innovative research project. This study focuses on Youth Workers' experiences of and attitudes to their professional role including the factors which influence their decisions to stay with an employer or move to another employer or career.

If you are interested in participating in this research please read on for more details. 

By Rob Moodie
First Posted Wednesday, 9 July 2008 at On Line Opinion

"Child abuse and neglect is not just a family problem and something to be solved by social workers, police and the courts. It is a whole-of-nation problem. Although we do not have a national study to show its prevalence, we know reported cases are on the rise and that our "treatment systems" are straining to cope."

If you or your youth service has recently assisted independent young people from New Zealand (arrived after February 26, 2001) to access social security payments then YANQ and the Welfare Rights Centre QLD would like to hear from you.

Australian teens aged 10-18 years with a chronic illness or disability can use the new Livewire website to make new friends, catch the chat events and guests in the chat room, contribute to forums and check out the latest music, movies, TV and sport news, plus interviews and games.

Homelessness Australia's submission to the Commonwealth Government's Green Paper on Homelessness can now be downloaded.  The Homelessness Australia website (http://www.homelessnessaustralia.org.au) also include links to submissions made by other organisations - for example the National Youth Coalition for Housing's submission.

Changemakers Australia and Leslie Falkiner-Rose (2007) note that many grantmakers shy away from funding advocacy for fear of losing their charitable tax status and advise that it’s important to distinguish between organisations and projects with a political purpose, which definitely cannot be funded, and those undertaking advocacy activities to support a charitable purpose, which are permissible in many circumstances.  This article helps to clarify the difference.

Funding advocacy for social change: clarifying the rules for grantmakers (296k PDF) - download from http://tinyurl.com/58rf56.

This interview with Priscilla Brice-Weller, online campaigner for Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation (ANTaR). includes tips on building relationships and support for campaigns through a strategic approach to social networking platforms.

To read the full interview visit http://www.solidariti.com/article/InterviewbyMaxineofWebDirections.

Source: The Change Agency E-News.

By Ruth McCausland.
First Posted Monday, 30 June 2008 at On Line Opinion.

On the first anniversary of the Northern Territory intervention, Indigenous Affairs Minister Jenny Macklin announced a $17.6 million trial aimed at improving school attendance by making parents' welfare payments conditional on their children's adequate school attendance. Starting next year, parents in Hermannsburg, Katherine, the Katherine town camps, Wallace Rockhole, Wadeye and the Tiwi Islands whose children are not enrolled in or do not regularly attend school may have their welfare payments suspended until they do so.

A new publication release from the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission has been released: Federal Discrimination Law.

Federal Discrimination Law is produced by HREOC’s Legal Section and examines the significant issues that have arisen in federal unlawful discrimination cases. It provides a comprehensive coverage of decisions in the jurisdiction as well as highlighting a range of relevant issues of practice and procedure. FDL Online provides an updated version of Federal Discrimination Law, with the date of currency reflected on the title page - http://www.humanrights.gov.au/legal/FDL/index.html.

Unpaid family Carers in Australia are under the age of 25. Do you know how to identify and support this group of Young people?  Carers Queensland is running workshops across Queensland that will help you to:

• Identify Young Carers within your service.
• know about the affects of Young Caring on your client group.
• know how to better support Young Carers within your service.

The University of Western Sydney has created a DVD that will assist young Sudanese migrants and refugees  as they begin the journey from high school to vocational training, higher education or employment in Australia.

The Youth Substance Misuse Network - FNQ was recently launched in Carins.

Youth Substance Misuse Network - FNQ is formed to enhance the provision of services to young people who misuse or are at risk of misusing substances.  The Network aims to provide a leading voice, using a collaborative, cooperative, supportive approach; for those services throughout the community from the Cape to Innisfail.

Source: 2008 GP & PHC Research Conference

The Youth Health Research Interest Group workshop of the Australian National GP and PHC Research Conference, meeting in Hobart this fourth day of June in the year two thousand and eight (2008), expressing the need for urgent action by the Australian Federal Government and all State Governments, all health workers and the Australian community to protect and promote the health of all Australian young people, hereby makes the following declaration.

Our children, our future: achieving improved primary and secondary education outcomes for Indigenous students (PDF) outlines eight interventions aimed at improving the educational outcomes of Indigenous children and young people. It covers current educational challenges and provides a framework for making philanthropic investments that will produce sustainable outcomes.

'Injury among young Australians' is a report issued by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) in June 2008. It shows that, in 2005, injury as a whole was responsible for two-thirds of all deaths of young people aged 12 to 24 years, and for one in six hospitalisations. Transport accidents and suicide are the two leading causes of injury death among young people.

The Queensland Commission for Children and Young People and Child Guardian recently published two reports concerning the views of children in care:

• Views of Children and Young People in Foster Care (PDF 7.3Mb); and
• Views of Young People in Residential Care (PDF 4.7Mb).

Campaigners are often passionate and action-orientated, and frequently under-resourced.  For many, assessment, monitoring and evaluation may seem like an unaffordable or an unwelcome mechanism of control. But simple and effective monitoring and evaluation can, if implemented well, become a powerful tool for social and political change.

By Suzi Quixley (1998, Revised 2008)

This paper explores ways of helping people consider possibilities outside their experience, in the context of a power with approach to helping.  Extending Frame of Reference: A Key Tool in Enabling Growth & Change (10 pages) looks in detail at strategies and skills for constructive, ethical challenge and confrontation, designed to achieve client-owned change.

Download from http://www.suziqconsulting.com.au/free_articles.htm#Helping%20Skills.

15th National Unemployment Conference, December 4-5, 2008

Theme: Labour underutilisation, skill shortages, and social inclusion. Three sides of the same coin.

the Youth Action & Policy Association in NSW has release two new sexual assault factsheets for young people:

• If you have been sexually assaulted
• If someone you know has been sexually assaulted