Yarn’n  Up8    E-­‐Newsletter.  

                     

       

Happy Christmas to you

and your family

     Contents: The Launch of Impact Anaysis Report P2-12 Newspaper Article on Cooktown Grads P13 The Bouverie Centre’s Collaborative Family Therapy Model P14 Healing Aboriginal Families P15-16 Things of Interest P17 Cultural Safety Training P18 SNAICC Conference P19 - 20

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 The  Launch  of  

The  Bouverie  Centre’s    Aboriginal  Family  Therapy  Training  Program.  

Impact  Analysis  Report.    

Evidence  Brief  August  2015    

Researched  by  Alison  Elliot.  Prepared  for  the  Lowitja  Institute  

Authored  by:  Alison  Elliot  

Fiona  McIlwaine  Nick  Stone  

Dr.  Kerry  Proctor    

A  wonderful  celebration  was  held  at  the  Bouverie  Centre  to  the  launch  of  this  innovative  and  comprehensive  Impact  Analysis  Report.  

 Aunty  Di  Kerr  provided  a  warm  welcome  to  Country.  Trudy  Newman  delivered  a  wonderful  speech  about  her  experience  of  undertaking  the  Post  Graduate  

Degree  in  Family  Therapy.  Andrew  Jackomos  delivered  a    

stimulating  speech  to  launch  the  report.  The  event  was  wonderfully  MC-­‐ed  by  Dr.  Jeff  Young.  

     

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Trudie  Newman’s  Speech  at  the  launch  of  the  report.  Firstly  I  would  like  to  acknowledge  the  traditional  owners  of  the  land  that  we  are  gathered  on  today  and  pay  my  respect  to  elders  past  and  present  and  to  all  Aboriginal  people  here  today.    My  name  is  Trudie  Newman  and  I  am  a  proud  Barundjii  -­‐  Baakindjii  women    I  have  recently  completed  my  post  graduate  certificate  in  Family  Therapy  through  La  Trobe  University  and  the  Bouverie  Center  with  the  support  of  Rumbalara  Aboriginal  Cooperative    And  to  my  great  honor  I  have  been  asked  to  speak  with  you  today  about  my  experiences  during  the  completion  of  this  course,  the  effects  it  has  had  on  me  personally  and  in  my  work,  Culture  safety,  course  content  and  delivery  and  any  reflection  of  the  Black  and  

white  model  including  having  Aboriginal  and  non  Aboriginal  students  and  an  Aboriginal  and  non  Aboriginal  facilitators.    However  I  don’t  want  to  spend  a  great  deal  of  time  talking  about  this  and  would  rather  speak  to  you  about  my  hopes  for  the  future,  I  will  say  though  I  believe  that  I  was  very  lucky  to  be  involved  in  such  a  great  course,  with  a  fantastic  group  of  people  in  a  safe  and  picturesque  environment,  that  during  this  time  I  didn't  see  black  or  white  with  the  students  of  the  facilitators,  I  only  saw  a  group  of  people  wanting  to  make  a  change  and  I  acknowledge  the  fact  that,  this  is  not  something  that  happens  every  day  and  one  of  my  hopes  is  that  future  participants  of  the  course  are  as  lucky  as  we  were.    As  a  proud  and  culturally  aware  Aboriginal  women,  I  am  a  advocate  for  equality  and  opportunity  and  for  'closing  the  gap'  As  such,  I  remain  deeply  concerned  with  the  disproportionate  over-­‐representation  of  my  people  in  the  justice  system  and  out  of  home  care  sector  to  name  two.    I  believe  that  this  course  has  the  opportunity  to  help  and  support  Aboriginal  communities  everywhere,  and  I  can't  think  of  very  many  better  ways  to  achieve  this  than  giving    Aboriginal  people  the  opportunity  to  complete  their  own  post  graduate  certificate  in  family  therapy.      

Trudie Newman.

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 I  also  hope  that  this  will  cause  a  positive  ripple  effect  in  Aboriginal  communities  including  my  own,  to  help  empower  the  service  users  who  have  suffered  long  enough  with  trans-­‐generational  trauma,  dispossession  of  the  land,  poverty,  mental  health  issues  and  drugs  and  alcohol  issues.  For  these  community  members  will  be  able  to  access  a  service  provider  who  understands  not  just  their  immediate  needs  but  their  culture  needs  as  well.        I  cannot  emphasis  enough  the  importance  of  Breaking  the  cycle  of  despair  and  I  want  to  see  more  Aboriginal  community  members  being  able  to  access  courses  like  this  one.    I  think  that  this  will  be  a  great  way  for  us  to  be  able  to  move  forward.    and  for  that,  I  am  exceedingly  great  full.        I  would  like  to  finish  by  saying  "Only  when  we  truly  see  and  only  when  we  truly  hear,  can  we  change  and  truly  create  change      Thank  you    

Aunty Di Kerr providing a wonderful Welcome to Country.

6 Mr Andrew Jackamon launching the Impact Analysis Report.

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Kerry Proctor thanking Aunty Di Kerr for her Welcome to Country.

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SPEECH by Andrew Jackomos Commissioner for Aboriginal Children and Young People

Launch of the Impact Analysis Report of the Bouverie Family Therapy Training Program for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Workers

Thursday September 3rd 2015

The Bouverie Centre, 8 Gardiner Street BRUNSWICK

Thank you Aunty Diane Kerr for your warm Welcome to Country; thank you to Trudie Lappin from

Rumbalara Aboriginal Cooperative for enlightening us on how the Bouverie Centre Family Therapy

Training is positively impacting in community and to Jeff Young, Director - Bouverie Street for your

kind introduction.

Thank you also to the Bouverie Centre for inviting me here today to launch the Aboriginal Family

Therapy Training Program - Impact Analysis Report, which reflects the importance of supporting our

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families and Communities in culturally and trauma informed

ways. It speaks to the need for programs that impart specialised knowledge, skills and motivation in

culturally meaningful ways, acknowledging Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ unique

place, history and rights to self-determination are key to understanding and healing our families and

communities.

I am a Yorta Yorta man of the lands that lay either side of the great Dunghala, otherwise known as

the Murray River. The totem of my people is the long-neck turtle and these connections are through

my maternal grandfather. I also have direct blood connections through my maternal grandmother to

the Gunditjmara of South-west Victoria and to the Taunarung people of the lands over the Black

Spur. As is the tradition of my people, I acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land we are

meeting on today, the Wurundjeri people and their good neighbours the Boon Wurrung, both of the

greater Kulin Confederation. And I respectfully acknowledge their Elders, both past and present.

The Kulin have nurtured these Lands, as they have their communities, families and children since

time immemorial. And to this day they continue to have, a deep and emotional connection to this

country, and thank you again Aunty Di for sharing with us some of that ongoing connection, through

Welcome Ceremony.

Introduction

I was appointed in July 2013 as the first Victorian Commissioner for Aboriginal Children and Young

People. Prior to that for the past 40 years I have worked in a broad range of community and

government positions from Victoria to North Queensland and the Top End. It has been a long

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journey for me personally and for the Koorie community over those 40 years. With the good there

could have been better. And over the years I’ve seen a lot of both.

The Commission

Let me tell you about the Commission and my role; some of what I know about Aboriginal babies,

children and young people and what we want for the future.

My role as Commissioner came about due to the recognition that we need to do better for our

Koorie children. The 2012 Cummins Inquiry found that the history of dispossession, colonisation

and past government and church policies continues to impact on Aboriginal communities in Victoria

and directly impacts on Aboriginal children and families today. Cummins noted the numbers of

Aboriginal children involved with statutory child protection and out-of-home care continues to rise

and is unacceptably high so recommended the role of an ‘Aboriginal Children’s Commissioner….to

measure and report publically on …vulnerable Aboriginal children and young people across all

areas of government activity.’

The Commission’s role is to ‘provide advice to Ministers, Government Departments, health and

human services about policies, practices and the provision of services relating to the safety and

wellbeing of children and young people.’ We act independently and impartially.

Koorie children in Victoria

If you didn’t already know it but let me remind you that the great majority of Koorie children in

Victoria are growing up in loving, safe and culturally strong families. Families in which learning and

education are valued, nurtured - considered as fundamental. Families in which their family histories

are known and celebrated as part of their identity and ongoing strength and resilience – of their right

to feel good and proud about themselves as they thrive.

And of course, the Koorie population in Victoria is young and growing. Koorie children and young

people 0-18 make up almost half of the total Koorie community of about 47,000 in Victoria. This is

compared to less than a quarter for the broader Victorian population. Around 1300 Aboriginal babies

are born annually in Victoria.

Unfortunately, and this is where the not so good news kicks in, while only around 1 per cent of the

general Victorian population, our children make up about 16 per cent of children in out of home

care, and are 12 times more likely to be in youth detention and 16 times more likely to be on

community based supervision.

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The child protection placement rates for Koorie kids in Victoria is higher than the National rate and

much higher than for non-Aboriginal children. In 2014, 63 per 1000 Koorie kids were in out of home

care compared to 5 for non-Aboriginal children whilst the national rate for Aboriginal children is 55

per 1000. And there are localities in Victoria in which this over-representation is as high as 119 per

1000.

And this is underlined by a 42 per cent increase in Koorie children in out of home care in Victoria -

This is staggering and if this was I believe an outcome for non-Koorie children there would be a

State of Emergency. We need to know what why and we need to do things differently.

Many of you will have heard of Taskforce 1000 co-chaired by myself and the Secretary of the

Department of Health and Human Services, in which we are looking at the lived experience of over

1000 Aboriginal children in out of home care through a case file review based on a survey

containing over 160 questions and talking through each child’s circumstance in local area panel

discussions to identify areas for improvement.

To date almost 800 children have been reviewed as part of Taskforce 1000 across 12 Areas.

Some of the key findings coming out of the Taskforce are that children are living in families where

parents have multiple and complex needs.

90 per cent of children had experienced ‘exposure’ to family violence before entering care.

For over 50 per cent family violence is also a key reason cannot be returned home.

Family violence co-exists with alcohol and other drug misuse and in 60 per cent of cases parents

experience mental health issues. Around 20 per cent of children had parents who were

incarcerated.

What is clear is that we need to reduce the numbers of children entering care and ensure those in

care have the best possible outcomes. We also need to support our families and communities to

heal by providing practical and culturally inclusive trauma informed programs to those in need. To

achieve this we also require a highly skilled Aboriginal workforce, who has the knowledge,

experience and trust of our families and communities to provide this support.

Bouverie Street staff have participated in some of the Taskforce 1000 Area Panels. Some of the

identified systemic issues or themes show there is a critical need to have Aboriginal and Torres

Strait Islander workers who can work effectively with traumatised families to address issues so that

children can remain within their families and community. There is an important role for the Bouverie

Centre to continue to deliver this training to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander workers and to be

able to nurture the ongoing professional development of graduates. Working with traumatised

families is complex and challenging and requires a workforce who has knowledge skills and

experience to do so.

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It will be the families, communities and our children - our Future - who will ultimately benefit.

The Bouverie Centre Aboriginal Family Therapy Training Program has one of the highest tertiary

retention and graduation rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, where participants

report that it is a positive, educationally challenging and personally transforming experience. There

is a pressing need to continue to improve the program and establish it within the professional

development landscape, which is why the Impact Analysis Report is so important. It provides sound

evidence-based findings that the training program leads to substantial gains in the specialised

knowledge, skills and motivation for its Graduates in their capacity to meet the needs of the families

they work with.

The Report documents that the workers who participate and graduate are more effective in their

work with families, community and with other services.

In summary this Report highlights the need to nurture and support Aboriginal and Torres Strait

Islander health, welfare and family workers in undertaking this challenging but useful course and

then, following their graduation, supporting their ongoing professional development in the range of

settings in which they work.

And that is why it gives me great pleasure to officially launch the Bouverie Centre. Aboriginal

Family Therapy Training Program Impact Analysis Report today along with the Evidence Brief.

Thank you

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The Indigenous Team. From left to right, Esmai Manahan, Robyne Latham, Kerry Proctor,

Fiona McIlwaine, Alison Elliott and Banu Moloney.

Dr Jeff Young thanking Aunty Di Kerr for her Welcome to Country.

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THE COOKTOWN MOB GRADUATE. So sorry about the side on view. The text cant be read once the image is flipped. ;-)

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The Bouverie Centre’s Collaborative Family Therapy

Model for working with Aboriginal Families. Nat Oska from VACCA’s ‘Therapeutic Healing Team’ and Esmai Manahan from Bouveries ‘Working with the Mob Program’, provide a culturally safe place for Aboriginal families to gently heal. In this therapeutic context families can give voice to their strengths and challenges, whilst exploring and telling their stories. Family Therapy sessions are held at Bouverie. The Black White Model is a systemic collaborative approach to working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families. This unique model provides two family therapists, (one Aboriginal and one non-Aboriginal Family Therapist), working together with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families, in a culturally sensitive and safe way. Trauma and trans-generational trauma is viewed through a cultural lens. The ‘Working with the Mob Program’ has a flexible approach to working with families and c consults. We have a sound understanding of theoretical and cultural understanding in advocating for Aboriginal families. Cultural safety for all is paramount in these collaborative sessions. Important aspects of the Black and White Model include:

• Understanding and familiarity with Aboriginal service systems for referrals

• Genograms are used to understand cultural and familial relationships

• Family mapping exercise with timelines • Strengths based theoretical approaches include narrative

therapy, trauma and neurobiological theories, attachment

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HEALING ABORIGINAL FAMILIES Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, as individuals and within their families and communities, have been profoundly hurt socially, emotionally and spiritually by layers of

historic, social and cultural (complex) trauma across generations.

Who Should Attend?

- those working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults , young people and families.

- Out of home care workers, Residential workers, Foster Carers, KESO’s, DHS workers, VACCA/VAHS Workers.

This 3 day integrated workshop will:

- be fun!

-work from a strengths based approach -provide further up skilling for those working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander

families. - be a ‘taster’ for those considering the family therapy training at Bouverie. - build practical skills around a more therapeutic relationship with others

- explore the use of culturally appropriate genograms. - an awareness of cultural safety principles when working with Aboriginal & Torres Strait

Islander clients & families.

Presenters:

Alison Elliott and Robyne Latham from

The Indigenous Program Team - The Bouverie Centre

When: 10th, 11th and 12th of June 2016.

2nd, 3rd and 4th of Nov 2016. N.B. It is critical to attend all 3 days.

Where:

The Bouverie Centre, La Trobe University 8 Gardiner St

Brunswick. 3056

Cost : $495 (cost includes all three days, morning tea, lunch & afternoon tea)

Bookings: http://www.bouverie.org.au/training/pd/ (Max 20 people)

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Getting to the heart of it Healing Aboriginal Families

I am returning to my workplace with learning which is deep. I feel so encouraged fro my work and my journey. The workshop has been healing for me also, for which I deeply thank Robyne and Alison. THANK YOU. THANK YOU for the training. I have learned a lot. The feeling that was created in the workshop space was what I learned the most from and what I want to create when working with Aboriginal families. Alison and Robbie were knowledgeable and interacted well wit the group. Activities were fantastic especially day 3. It was made by their lead a safe placer to share. These workshops will be held again in 2016. If 5 or more people from the same organisation attend the workshop, there is automatically a 5% discount.

Them’s funny fullas eh!

This three-day workshop, facilitated by Alison Elliott and Robyne Latham was held at the Bouverie Centre on two occasions this year. Below are comments from the participants evaluation forms.

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If you have images or articles, jokes or stories, you’d like to publish in the next Yarn’n Up, email to Robyne Latham at rlatham@latrobe.edu.au

I just love this image so wanted to share with you all.

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Joel Wright Gunditjmara language specialist has over 20 years of research experience in understanding and appreciating Aboriginal languages of the Warrnambool area. Warrnambool is an Aboriginal word meaning place of many camps. Joel reminded us at the culture and language workshop in Warrnambool that once many hundreds of Aboriginal people lived in permanent stone dwellings in and around the Warrnambool area. The language day was put together in creative and engaging ways by Joel who had us speaking in sentences by the end of the day. Joel explained the construction and sound of the language which was aural not written and hence difficult to be absolutely accurate about . What became very evident in the very process of learning the language was how integral it is for Aboriginal children and adult in developing a sense of self, identity and confidence. The day was extra special as you can see from the picture that it included a field trip to the beautiful river mouth - Moyil or Point Ritchie I would recommend this and Joel Wright in particular if you are interested the understanding and learning the language of the Warrnambool people.

Banu Moloney

The above photo is of some of our Bouverie Mob attending Cultural Safety Training in Warnambool, November 2015. From left to right, Mel, Kerry and

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SNAICC CONFERENCE: PERTH 2015. The Conference was hosted by the Secretariat of National Aboriginal and Islander Child Care. SNAICC is the national non-government peak body in Australia representing the interest of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families. The conference objective included

• Inspire Action • Share and Celebrate Stories • Listen Learn and Grow

Alison Elliott and Robyne Latham presented and experiential workshop t the conference. They had anticipated around 20 workshop participants and infact 44 folk turned up. The feedback was wonderful and the shared experience very rich for all., particularly for Alison and Robbie. The next SNAICC conference will be held in 2017.,. Should you and/or your organisations want to present at

the next SNAICC conference, keep an eye out for the ‘Call for Abstracts’ on the SNAICC web-site.

Richard Walley at the Welcome Ceremony.

Above Alison Elliott and Robyne Latham

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A  mob  of  us  made  a  quick  visit  to  Kings  Park  after  the  second  day  of  the  conference  The  Kings  Park  was  celebrating  its  50th  Birthday.  Lots  of  the  huge  trees  were  beautifully  dress  for  the  occasion.    The  one  opposite  was  planted  by  Queen  Elizabeth  11  fifty  years  ago.    

Above; Deb and Alison beside a boab from the Kimberly.