October 2021
Hinkler has highest disadvantage ranking of any electorate in Australia
20 October 2021 Communities living in the regional Queensland electorate of Hinkler suffer the highest levels of disadvantage of any electorate in Australia, according to major research undertaken by Catholic Social Services Australia. Hinkler is located in coastal Queensland and takes in the towns of Bundaberg, Hervey Bay, Childers, Gayndah and Monto. The research undertaken in 2020...
Suicide of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children a national disgrace
15 October 2021 The Catholic Church’s peak social services group, Catholic Social Services Australia, has described findings in a recent ABS report detailing suicide deaths in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children as a national disgrace. The report, Causes of Death, Australia, released late last month found that during the period 2016-2020 suicide was the leading...
Demand for homelessness assistance doubles over the past 10 years
12 October 2021 Increases in income support, more social housing and a boost to mental health funding are necessary to address the ‘out of control’ demand for homelessness assistance according to the Catholic Church’s peak social services group, Catholic Social Services Australia. According to data released this week by Homelessness Australia the number of Australians with...
Rural Disability and Indigenous groups at higher risk of COVID 19 infection as NSW opens up
8 October 2021 The Catholic Church’s peak social services group, Catholic Social Services Australia, has warned that as NSW prepares to loosen COVID 19 restrictions regional disability and Indigenous community members may be at greater risk of infection. Francis Sullivan, Chair of CSSA, said today that some regional communities are well behind in their vaccination rates,...
Catholic Church policy summit needs to deliver reform
1 October 2021 The first major review of Catholic Church policy and governance, which starts on Sunday (3 October 2021), must deliver major reforms and allow lay Catholics greater participation in the governance of the Church according to one of Australia’s most prominent church reformers. Francis Sullivan, Chair of Catholic Social Services Australia, said today that...
September 2021
Federal Government announces plans to roll back COVID financial support a blow to struggling families
29 September 2021 The Morrison government announcement today that it will withdraw emergency COVID 19 financial support to the states and territories a fortnight after they reach an 80 per cent double vaccination rate is a blow to struggling families and could worsen the nation’s mental health pandemic. Francis Sullivan, Chair of Catholic Social Services Australia,...
Disability Royal Commission recommends delaying opening up until people living with disabilities vaccinated
27 September 2021 The Disability Royal Commission has described the Federal Government's vaccine rollout to the disability community as "seriously deficient" and lacking in transparency. In a draft report released today, the Commission acknowledges that while the Australian Government Department of Health confronted major challenges in framing the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out strategy it failed to meet...
Federal funding for domestic violence needs to flow
24 September 2021 A federal government commitment made to boost funding for domestic violence more than fourmonths ago is still yet to make its way to service providers. The funding, announced in May this year as part of the 2020 Covid response, is earmarked to meetthe growing demand for domestic and family violence services during the...
