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Listen to this29 JULY
The U.S. Department of Education today released guidance to states and school districts on the new provisions in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) for supporting homeless youth. The new provisions address the needs of homeless individuals, and ensure educational rights and protections for homeless children and youth. The guidance released today will assist state and local partners in understanding and implementing the new law in order to better protect and serve homeless students and help schools in providing these students with much needed stability, safety, and support. The guidance was informed by the input of a diverse group of stakeholders to best address the needs of homeless youth.
“Homeless children and youth face a number of barriers to getting the education they deserve and the services they need to succeed in school and beyond,” said U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. “As a kid, home was a scary and unpredictable place for me and I moved around a lot after my parents passed away. I know from my own experience and from my conversations with homeless students that school can save lives. It is our hope that the guidance we are releasing today will serve as a tool to help states and districts better serve homeless children and youth – we can and we must do better.”
During the 2013-14 school year, more than 1.3 million homeless children and youth were enrolled in public schools. Research shows that these students experience significant academic, social, and socio-emotional challenges, and that being homeless is associated with lower school achievement and increased risk of dropping out of school. In addition, students who experience high mobility and attend many different schools over the course of their education often slip academically with each move. Recognizing these challenges, this guidance offers technical assistance on promising practices for helping homeless youth through the implementation of homeless education requirements at the State and local levels, focusing particular attention on changes under ESSA.
27 July 2016
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27 JULY
First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, is to bring forward Scotland’s first-ever child poverty bill, in a move that could allow the Scottish government to reintroduce the statutory child poverty targets abolished by the UK government earlier this year.
Campaigners welcomed the plan put forward by the first minister to enshrine Scotland’s child poverty strategy in law for the first time through the bill.
John Dickie, director of the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) in Scotland, said: “This is excellent news in the drive to eradicate child poverty, given the UK government’s abandonment of statutory child poverty commitments. With one in five of Scotland’s children still living in poverty it is vital that the new bill includes ambitious targets as well as duties to measure and report on progress and a strategic framework that will hold national and local government to account.”
Announcing that a consultation setting out proposals for the bill
would be published over the summer, Sturgeon said: “It is simply
unacceptable that children are growing up in poverty and we must do all
we can to tackle the inequality that still exists in 21st-century
Scotland.”
She continued: “By repealing large parts of the Child
Poverty Act 2010, including the income-based child poverty targets, the
UK government has signalled that it does not see child poverty and the
incomes of poor families as priorities. That is fundamentally wrong.
With the introduction of this new legislation, the Scottish government
is sending the message, in the strongest possible terms, that we
profoundly disagree.”
Sturgeon also announced the reappointment of Naomi Eisenstadt as the Scottish government’s independent poverty adviser. Eisenstadt, the well-respected social policy expert and first director of Labour’s Sure Start Unit, said in an interview last year that she felt far more optimistic about the Scottish government’s willingness to tackle poverty than that of the Westminster administration.
Describing the proposed bill as a “positive, practical and constructive step”, Eisenstadt said on Wednesday: “This legislation will maximise the chances that all people living in Scotland lead productive and healthy lives. We need to stop the cycle of poverty and prevent the next generation of young people being born into poverty.”
The Conservative government’s Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016 repealed elements of the Child Poverty Act 2010, which it also renamed the Life Chances Act, including the target of eradicating child poverty by 2020 and scrapping the duty on both the Scottish and UK governments to produce child poverty strategies and report on them annually.
The new legislation, which was passed in January, also attempted to make changes to the way that child poverty is measured, using broader measures of life chances rather than income. But these plans, which were opposed by child poverty campaigners, were blocked in the Lords and remain under discussion.
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25 JULY
USA
The teen birth rate dropped for another consecutive year, continuing a long-term decline in teen pregnancy, according to the most recent yearly report on the status of America's children and youth.
According to the 2016 edition of America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being, in 2014, the adolescent birth rate was 11 births per 1,000 girls ages 15 to 17 years, down from 12 per 1,000 in 2013. Racial and ethnic disparities in adolescent birth rates also have declined, although substantial differences persist.
The annual report is published by the Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, a working group of 23 federal agencies that collect, analyze and report data on conditions and trends related to child and family well-being. The report tracks 41 indicators of child well-being, using statistics from federal researchers and highlights these indicators by race and ethnicity.
This year's report is the 18th in an ongoing series and presents key indicators of children's well-being in seven domains: family and social environment, economic circumstances, health care, physical environment and safety, behavior, education and health.
In the behavior domain, the percentages of 10th- and 12th-graders in all racial and ethnic groups who binge drink – have five or more alcoholic beverages in a row on a single occasion –were the lowest in 2015 since the survey began tracking this statistic in 1980. Among 12th-graders, Hispanic and white non-Hispanic students reported binge drinking at twice the rate of black non-Hispanic students.
In the education domain, overall math scores declined slightly for fourth and eighth graders. However, some progress has been made in narrowing the achievement gap or the differences in average scores for different racial and ethnic groups. For example, the difference in math scores for white and black fourth graders has narrowed from 32 points in 1990 to 24 points in 2015.
http://www.childstats.gov/americaschildren/press_release.asp
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22 JULY
IRELAND
A PrimeTime Investigates programme aired last night highlights serious concerns for young people with disabilities who have been in State Care. One of the key issues identified in the report were the absence of care files for these vulnerable young people. Speaking following the publication of HIQA reports earlier this week and the airing of the PrimeTime programme last night, Director of EPIC, Jennifer Gargan made the following statement: “We at EPIC are gravely concerned about the vulnerabilities of young people with disabilities living in State Care particularly as they reach the age of 18. Young people in State Care have little or no familial supports and are more vulnerable to abuse because of their disabilities. These young people should be afforded the greatest protection by the State, who as Corporate Parent has a responsibility for their care and protection. Through EPIC’s National Advocacy Service, we have experience of young people falling through the cracks particularly upon transitioning into adulthood. There are an increasing number of referrals to our Advocacy Service, where there are no suitable follow-on placements for young people with disabilities upon leaving care at 18. In some of these cases, young people have only two options: access homeless services or return home, where in some circumstances, this may not be appropriate.” It is vital proper protocols are in place as young people transition into adult services. Clarity on roles and responsibilities between Tusla and HSE Disability Services is required in order to ensure that no young person falls between the gaps.
15 July 2016
http://www.epiconline.ie/topics/media/press-releases/
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20 JULY
The Natural Connections Demonstration project has published new evidence on the benefits of outdoor learning to pupils, teachers and schools.
Children from 125 schools across the South West of England are happier, healthier and more motivated to learn thanks to a new project commissioned by Natural England that has turned the outdoors into a classroom and helped schools transform ways of teaching.
The findings have been released today by the Natural Connections Demonstration project, a 4-year initiative to help school children – particularly those from disadvantaged areas – experience the benefits of the natural environment by empowering teachers to use the outdoors to support everyday learning.
The project, which is funded by Natural England, Defra and Historic England and delivered by Plymouth University , is the largest project of its kind in England and has already helped more than 40,000 primary and secondary school pupils get out of their classrooms and into the outdoors – whether that’s a maths lesson in a local park or drama out on the school field.
Environment Minister Rory Stewart said:
“We learn to love
nature as children, and our commitment to nature later in life –
respecting it, protecting it, restoring it, or simply enjoying it – is
built on that childhood foundation. That’s why it’s so important we give
all children the chance to experience the natural world. What’s clever
about this project is it listens to teachers, it works with the grain of
an individual school, and it works out how to get children into the
outdoors while improving their curriculum experience.”
Speaking at Wallscourt Farm Academy in Bristol at the launch of the
findings, Natural England’s Chairman, Andrew Sells, said:
“The
Natural Connections project has empowered teachers to make the most of
what’s right on their doorstep and helped children experience the joy of
the natural environment. It’s brought a real culture change into
schools, making learning in the outdoors a regular part of school life –
and it’s inspiring to see children more engaged with learning and
happier and healthier as a result.”
Sue Waite, Associate Professor in Outdoor Learning at Plymouth
University, said:
“The model for this project was built on
substantial evidence into both the benefits and challenges schools face
when embedding outdoor learning into core teaching. By working directly
with teachers we’ve helped to bring about a sustainable culture of
outdoor learning across schools that will continue long after the
project has ended and will leave behind a lasting legacy.”
For the first time, the Natural Connections project provides strong evidence that learning outdoors has multiple benefits for school children. 92 per cent of teachers surveyed said that pupils were more engaged with learning when outdoors and 85 per cent saw a positive impact on their behaviour.
The majority of children also thought they learned better and achieved more when learning outside. 92 per cent of pupils involved in the project said they enjoyed their lessons more when outdoors, with 90 per cent feeling happier and healthier as a result.
The project has found taking lessons outside can help motivate teachers, with 79 per cent of teachers reporting positive impacts on their teaching practice. Almost 70 per cent of teachers said that outdoor learning has had a positive impact on their job satisfaction and 72 per cent reported improved health and wellbeing.
The Natural Connections project focused mainly on areas of deprivation in Plymouth, Torbay, Bristol, Cornwall and Somerset, working in both urban and rural schools with varying school grounds and access to local green spaces. These areas are now developing innovative ways to continue supporting outdoor learning across the school networks they have established through the project.
Natural England is now working with partners to help share the
findings from this project to support and enhance the provision of
outdoor learning in schools across England.
A full copy of the
Natural Connections project report can be downloaded from Natural
England’s Access to Evidence publications catalogue.
‘Transforming Schools through Outdoor Learning’, a practical guide for practitioners, will be published at the start of the new school term to help equip teachers with the tools they need to bring innovative outdoor learning ideas to their own schools.
14 July 2016
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18 JULY
In a first for New Zealand, at-risk teenagers excluded from mainstream education are set to benefit from an innovative youth mentoring scheme.
Due to start in July 2017, around 25 young people enrolled in alternative education in West Auckland will receive 48 hours of mentoring over a 12-week period from student mentors, counsellors and social workers at the University of Auckland’s Faculty of Education and Social Work in Epsom. Each young person will then be supported to move into other social services, educational or employment opportunities.
Called Campus Connections Aotearoa, the scheme has recently received $455,000 from the Ministry for Social Development, the Vodafone New Zealand Foundation and the Fletcher Trust.
It will be led by Drs Pat Bullen and Kelsey Deane, who specialise in youth development and mentoring in the faculty. Spread over three years, the funding will allow them to set up a therapeutic programme involving third-year social work students mentoring teenagers who have fallen out of the system for a variety of reasons. The scheme uniquely combines intensive one-to-one mentoring with group-based activities and on-site therapy.
It was inspired by the Campus Connections initiative at Colorado State University in the United States, one of the places Dr Bullen was able to visit in 2014 after receiving a year-long $90,000 Vodafone World of Difference Fellowship to further her expertise in this area.
After seeing how successful it was, Drs Bullen and Deane were determined to introduce it here.
“Youth mentoring, if done well, can be life-changing,” says Dr Bullen.“Campus Connections Aotearoa will provide a wrap-around service that simultaneously addresses the social, emotional, and educational needs of vulnerable young people, in a safe, well-supported and welcoming environment.”
Dr Bullen says the NZ Youth Mentoring Network has identified a significant service provision gap for high-risk youth, particularly those involved in alternative education, and the new scheme will help to fill this gap.Drs Bullen and Deane are delighted with the continued support from the Vodafone NZ Foundation ($220,000), Fletcher Trust ($20,000) and $215,000 from Youth Minister Nikki Kaye, announced on Friday.
“We are incredibly grateful to receive this funding,” says Dr Bullen. "I’m also really humbled because Minister Kaye’s three-year commitment demonstrates her belief in the value of mentoring and in the University’s ability to successfully develop and deliver the programme.”
She says the money will allow her team to create a comprehensive programme adapted to the New Zealand context. It will also provide real opportunities for University of Auckland students studying counselling, social and youth work to experience authentic youth mentoring, case management and transition support.
12 July 2016
Press Release: University of Auckland
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/ED1607/S00049/life-changing-scheme-to-support-vulnerable-youth.htm
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15 JULY
Six hundred children from different communities and backgrounds in Durban and surrounding areas have made a three storey high butterfly sculpture to support the idea that the HIV/Aids pandemic can be stopped within a decade.
Denis Hurley Centre director Raymond Perrier says children from a wide range of backgrounds worked shoulder to shoulder. They decorated butterfly shapes cut from discarded plastic containers. The children also took part in workshops where they learnt about HIV/Aids.
Perrier says: "The idea of a butterfly was to focus not on the darkness, but on the light; not on images of death but images of life. And it seemed to us that a lot of these young people have grown up in a world in which Aids is always overshadowing them. So a little bit like a chrysalis, they're stuck in that darkness. And we want them to imagine a life where they emerge from the chrysalis as butterflies and fly free of HIV."
The butterfly sculpture was made with the help of the American consulate in Durban, using funds from their President's Emergency Fund for Aids Relief. Mark Carr from the consulate says delegates will be able to see the sculpture at the Denis Hurley Centre, as it is on the list of site visits. Carr says it is also a way of spreading the message to ordinary Durbanites not involved with the international conference.
Meanwhile Wednesday saw the commemoration of the five day countdown to the 21st International Aids conference in Pretoria on Wednesday. The conference will be held in Durban next week, under the theme, "Access Equity Rights – Now".
The country had a slow response to HIV and Aids between 1998 and 2004. It was a journey fraught with legal battles with the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC), dragging government to court for failing to provide ARV's. But things have changed, South Africa is doing everything in its power to end AIDS by 2030.
The countdown was done by forming a human chain to symbolize that it is in the people's hands to fight the HIV and AIDS virus.
14 July 2016
http://www.sabc.co.za/news/a/2efdad004d7c999381bbcf4b5facb1b5/Youth-highlight-HIVAids-pandemic-20160714
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13 JULY
Today at the United Nations children joined world leaders to launch a new partnership and fund to make ending violence a public priority and a collective responsibility. End Violence Against Children – The Global Partnership brings together governments, foundations, the UN, civil society, academia, the private sector and young people in driving action toward achieving the new global target to end abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence and torture against children.
"The Global Partnership to End Violence against Children is mobilizing the world,” said United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. “There could be no more meaningful way to help realize the vision of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development."
The world’s governments set ambitious targets to end violence by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Working through the Global Partnership, governments and organizations can pool their resources and expertise to make accelerated progress toward this critical goal.
“Every day, in every country and every community, children are victimized by violence – and far too often, this violence is accepted as normal, permissible, or a private matter,” said Susan Bissell, Director of the Global Partnership. “Violence against children is not inevitable – if we challenge the status quo that harms the lives and futures of so many children. Every child has the right to grow up free from violence – and we all need to work together to realize that vision.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has reported that in the past year as many as 1 billion children around the world have experienced physical, sexual, or psychological violence. Globally, one in four children suffer physical abuse. Nearly one in five girls is sexually abused at least once in her life. Every five minutes, a child dies as a result of violence.
"Violence against children is a problem shared by every society – so the solution must also be shared,” said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake, who serves as founding co-Chair of the Global Partnership Board. “When we protect children from violence we not only prevent individual tragedies and support children’s development and growth. In doing so, we also support the strength and stability of their societies.”
12 July 2016
http://www.unicef.org/media/media_91895.html
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11 JULY
The Government will invest around $430,000 over three years in a partnership that will support around 1500 mentoring opportunities for young people in Auckland and Waikato, Youth Minister Nikki Kaye announced today.
Lead partner The Vodafone Foundation will contribute $520,000 over three years, along with $354,000 in-kind funding from the University of Auckland, $230,000 from Charitable Trusts and $35,000 from secondary school partners.
“Under the new direction for youth development in New Zealand which I announced last November, the Government will invest in a partnership fund and will co-invest with philanthropic and business partners in youth development opportunities,” says Ms Kaye. “Today’s announcement represents the first partnership formed under this new approach, to support two innovative programmes that help young people become mentors and enable others to receive mentoring. Campus Connections, based at the University of Auckland, will receive Government funding of around $215,000 over three years and $220,000 over three years from the Vodafone Foundation, along with $354,000 in-kind funding from the University of Auckland.
“This will support an intensive, four-month programme of one-on-one and group-based mentoring for at-risk youth. Campus Connections aims to provide young people with a sense of self-purpose, leadership and self-management skills and enhanced citizenship, with the mentoring provided by trained university students. This partnership will support at least 200 young people to receive mentoring opportunities, and help springboard the Campus Connections initiative from a pilot to a fully-fledged programme.
“The MATES (Great Potentials Foundation) programme will receive around $216,000 of Government funding over three years and $300,000 from the Vodafone Foundation over three years, along with $230,000 from Charitable Trusts and $35,000 from secondary school partners.
“MATES is about supporting young people aged between 21 and 24 years to become mentors, and also supporting young people aged between 12 and 19 years from low decile schools to receive mentoring. The programme aims to help the school students develop positive connections, self-confidence and awareness of their potential, so they increase their engagement at school and active participation in their communities.
“The funding provided to MATES will enable up to 1300 young people to be involved in mentoring opportunities. This includes providing more mentoring opportunities in Auckland and also expanding into the Waikato region.
“Both MATES and Campus Connections are doing exceptional work to support young people. It’s great to enter into this partnership with lead partner Vodafone Foundation to support these organisations. By working together, we create a more cooperative and collaborative environment for youth development, which is what the new approach and the partnership fund are all about.
“I expect the new approach to increase the number of youth development opportunities from 50,000 to 70,000 annually, with the overall funds targeting disadvantaged youth increasing from 18 to 30 per cent.”
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1607/S00158/15m-package-for-1500-youth-mentoring-opportunities.htm
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8 JULY
Children’s answers to the question “what did you do today?” have
eluded parents across Canada for many years.
This week the
Canadian Child Care Federation
announced their endorsement and partnership with early learning tech
leader Storypark, makers of
online documentation and learning community tools for early child care
services. Storypark helps educators and families work together in
extending each child’s unique interests and strengths – providing
insights about a child’s activities and development both at home and in
early learning environments. .
The CCCF is committed to
excellence in early learning and child care, and will be encouraging the
use of Storypark’s innovative technology to improve learning outcomes
for children across Canada. The Canadian Child Care Federation’s CEO Don
Giesbrecht commented that Storypark’s core values of placing children at
the centre of everything they do aligned well with those of the CCCF.
“We’re excited about our partnership with Storypark and the learning and relationship outcomes that the software can create for Canada's early childhood practitioners, children and families.”
Storypark was developed under the guidance of international experts and practitioners from New Zealand, Australia and Canada, including Kim Hiscott, Executive Director at Andrew Fleck Child Care Services. Andrew Fleck uses Storypark across their services and Ms Hiscott has seen not only better outcomes for children, but operational improvements including streamlining reporting and documentation, cost savings, improving communication, time savings and strengthening day to day practice by educators.
“Storypark gives each child their own private community in which the
people who matter most in their lives (parents, families, specialists
and educators) can work together in supporting their individual
interests and strengths. We implemented Storypark in all of our licensed
group sites and in our Ontario Early Years Centre and it has delivered
even more than we’d hoped. New features continue to be added, for
example the the private educator portfolio section is very exciting and
practical.”
Storypark is also the preferred partner of Early
Childhood New Zealand and the Early Learning Association of Australia –
two world leading countries in the provision of early childhood
education.
Storypark’s CEO Peter Dixon says “we’re proud to be
making a difference in communities across Canada and our partnership
with the Canadian Child Care Federation will help us create even more
meaningful outcomes for children, families and educators.”
About Storypark: Storypark is an online service for early childhood
educators which helps teachers deepen relationships with family,
understand, plan for and extend children's unique interests and
abilities. More than 100,000 teachers and families in 23 countries are
using Storypark to improve learning outcomes for children by engaging
families in their learning.
7 July 2016
Press Release
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6 JULY
The Province and partners collectively will be investing more than $7.5 million to support youth who are at risk of substance-use and mental-health concerns with the launch of a new, Integrated Youth Services Initiative.
“When you’re young and facing challenges associated with mental health or substance use, it can be challenging to find and get the help you need,” said Health Minister Terry Lake. “We’ve seen success with this approach at the Granville Youth Health Centre, and our hope is that with the integrated and personal help that will be provided by additional centres, we’re empowering youth and families to get back on track.”
The initiative will work with five British Columbia communities – Kelowna, North Vancouver and West Vancouver, Campbell River, Prince George and Abbotsford – to develop service centres for youth. The centres are part of a provincial network of easily accessible youth mental-health, substance-use, primary-care and social-service centres hosted by local non-profit organizations. This model will allow for earlier therapeutic interventions, when mental-health problems are just emerging. Intervening early can help to prevent challenges with mental health from becoming more serious.
“Even one young person who’s struggling with mental-health or substance-use challenges is one too many,” said Minister of Children and Family Development Stephanie Cadieux. “Each of these five new youth health centres will make it easier for young people throughout B.C. to get the help they need to achieve wellness and reach their full potential.”
By offering easy access to core services including primary care, mental health and substance use, youth and family navigation supports, housing, supported employment, income assistance and education supports, the service centres will aim to improve health and social outcomes of young people aged 12 to 24 years. The centres are expected to be fully operational by March 2017, with the first centre expected to open in the fall of 2016.
“When your child needs help, you want to know what services are available and how to access them," said Minister of Social Development and Social Innovation Michelle Stilwell. “At these centres, youth and their families will be able to easily connect with service providers and health professionals, finding the supports they need as they move towards adulthood.”
“The funding from the Province and our partners will be a game-changer for communities in B.C. in serving young people,” said Dr. Steve Mathias, executive director, BC Integrated Youth Services Initiative. “It has helped bring together existing resources, build new partnerships and create a model of care that will transform systems and help ensure our young people can get the help they need, when they need it.”
Providing holistic care through teams made up of primary-care providers, social workers and counsellors means that the centres can address the multiple needs that a young person may have. This integrated approach will allow for earlier interventions and prevent the challenges that young people are experiencing from deteriorating into more serious health concerns. The centres are expected to serve between 1,200 and 2,500 youth each.
“The team at the Granville Youth Health Centre welcome you in, they treat you like a family member, and just like a family member they don’t give up on you – even when you give up on yourself,” said Tianna Waugh-Richards, a young adult who is a client at the Granville Youth Health Centre.
In addition to $3 million provided by the Ministry of Health to the InnerChange Foundation to help develop the centres, the centres are supported by additional partner funding. This includes a $1.5-million investment from the Graham Boeckh Foundation and commitments from InnerChange Foundation and St. Paul’s Foundation to each fundraise $1.5 million.
The Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research will be providing $800,000 toward the evaluation and research component. The Ministry of Children and Family Development has committed to providing in-kind resources in the form of child and youth mental-health clinicians and youth social-work services for each centre. The Ministry of Social Development and Social Innovation will have navigators available to help youth with developmental disabilities plan for their transition to adulthood as well as workers that can help youth access income and disability assistance benefits.
The new health and social-service centres will add to existing provincial supports to address the needs of youth living with substance use issues and/or mental illness. These services include:
•community-based children and youth mental-health
services, with help for anxiety through the school-based FRIENDS
program, which provides children with the tools they need to cope with
anxiety and stress;
•vulnerable youth getting help with health care,
shelter and social support through Vancouver’s Inner City Youth team;
and
•specialized mental-health beds at BC Children’s Hospital.
The Ministry of Health invests approximately $1.4 billion every year in mental-health and substance-use services.
To ensure the Province’s range of mental-health and substance-use programs work effectively together, the Province is developing an integrated, cross-government mental-health and substance-use strategy for British Columbia. This work includes a review of current child and youth mental-health and substance-use programs and services. The goal is to address key gaps in the current system and ensure individuals and families can access support services early, before they find themselves in a crisis.
17 June 2016
https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2016HLTH0053-001061
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4 JULY
Eradicating family violence came a step closer today as the merger between two of the country’s most prominent social service providers becomes effective 1 July.
Leading domestic abuse service provider Shine (Safer Homes in New Zealand Everyday) will become a division of Presbyterian Support Northern (PSN), while continuing to focus on preventing family violence and helping adult and child victims to become safe.
The ‘Better Together’ merger was celebrated at a launch event last night. Minister of Justice Amy Adams spoke at the event about the importance of New Zealand getting a handle on the issue of family violence, calling it ‘a national disgrace’. She commented, “I am reflecting on celebrating the coming together of two wonderful organisations, in the knowledge that working together is always better than going it alone.”
By becoming part of the same organisation, Shine services will be better coordinated with PSN’s Family Works Northern service division, a move which will have a significant impact on family violence in the most densely populated part of the country.
Dr Rod Watts, CEO of Presbyterian Support Northern, says Shine will become a distinct operating division of PSN, and continue their unwavering focus on preventing domestic abuse.
“Family Works already works closely with Shine. This merge formalises the relationship to achieve more in preventing family violence and supporting victims. It allows us to consolidate our services to ensure a seamless continuation of support for victims, and more robust programmes. The aim is for more family violence victims to become safe, to support their on-going wellbeing and enable them to remain violence-free,” says Dr Watts.
Shine’s current Executive Director Jane Drumm will become General Manager of Shine after the merge. Drumm says, “Domestic abuse affects far too many people in our society today. By improving our ability to intervene and support victims and their children, we’re looking to help establish safer and happier homes.”
Together, PSN and Shine will offer a range of services to adults, children and families experiencing (or perpetrating) domestic abuse. These include crisis advocacy for adults and children, refuge accommodation, client educative programmes, stopping violence programmes, social work, medium term counselling, budgeting and emergency food support.
A recent Productivity Commission Report highlighted difficulties for the Government in working with a high number of smaller organisations in the social services area, especially in domestic violence specialist services.
“By combining our resources and areas of expertise PSN will be in a better position to meet the needs of the most vulnerable,” Watts said.
Shine can now operate from Presbyterian Support Northern’s 11 Family Works service centres located around the upper North Island, allowing for more effective and cost-efficient service delivery.
1 July 2016
Press Release: Shine
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO1607/S00008/working-better-together-to-prevent-family-violence.htm
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1 JULY
The federal financial aid application process just got a bit simpler for unaccompanied homeless youth.
The Department of Education on Monday announced policy changes designed to make it easier for homeless youth to navigate the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.
The changes come as advocates have pushed for executive and legislative changes that reduce the barriers to college for homeless youth and other vulnerable groups, such as foster youth.
The department will revise the online FAFSA text that guides a youth through process of determining whether he or she is an independent student, beginning with the version of the form that will go online this fall.
In addition, in the following year, the department will make it easier for 22- and 23-year old applicants who are at-risk of or experiencing homelessness to indicate they are independent.
Education Secretary John B. King announced the changes in a letter to Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., ranking member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, who has championed FAFSA improvements for homeless youth.
“These are important actions to help more unaccompanied homeless students pursue a college degree and achieve their dreams, and I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues and the administration to ensure students of all walks of life have the chance to further their education and succeed,” said Murray in a news release.
http://youthtoday.org/2016/06/financial-aid-made-easier-for-unaccompanied-homeless-youth/
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