NewsA Community of Communities

Catholic Social Services Australia CEO Dr Jerry Nockles, accompanied by CSSA Director of Policy and Advocacy Ms Carmel Sefian and CSSV Executive Director Josh Lourensz, met with senior advisers from the Victorian Premier’s Office at Parliament House in Melbourne. The discussion focussed on youth justice, housing and homelessness, the Thriving Kids initiative, and sustainable funding for essential social services amid fiscal pressures facing the state.

Dr Jerry Nockles, CEO of CSSA, emphasises:

• “We had a productive and frank conversation with the Premier’s advisers about the challenges facing Victoria and the critical role social services play in supporting vulnerable Victorians.”
• “CSSA fully understands the imperative for fiscal discipline and responsible budget management. However, we urged the Victorian Government to ensure that Victoria’s most vulnerable are not the shock absorbers of budget savings.”
• “Any reduction in funding for social services equates to cost-shifting for taxpayers and government to other systems – the primary healthcare system, emergency departments, the justice system. The false economy of cutting prevention and early intervention only stores up greater costs down the track.”
• “Our members – CatholicCare Victoria, MacKillop Family Services, and Jesuit Social Services – bring decades of experience, deep community connections and proven models that deliver real value for every taxpayer dollar invested.”

Ms Carmel Sefian, Director of Policy and Advocacy at CSSA, adds:

• “Thriving Kids is a welcome initiative emphasising supports in mainstream settings where many of our member services are already embedded.”
• “However, it must be complemented by targeted approaches to reach the most vulnerable children and families – those least likely to engage in mainstream settings – including those disproportionately represented in child protection and out-of-home care systems.”

Josh Lourensz, Executive Director of CSSV, states:

• “Catholic social services work to support young people, children and their families — often as they navigate really difficult times in their lives. This work is crucial on both a personal and community level if we desire community safety and a hope-filled future.”
• “We need our political leadership to continually recognise that all children and young people in Victoria are both our present and our future — and have a clear focus on the evidence of what works to turn lives around and correcting systemic failures, rather than celebrating and spending on a much more costly and ineffective prison system.”