Carol Brown (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today in the matter of public interest debate to inform the Senate of the important work of the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren—GRG—support group in Tasmania. Recently I had the pleasure of being able to be involved in the official launch of the transfer of the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren support group from the Early Support for Parents group to UnitingCare Tasmania. Up until 30 June this year the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Tasmanian program was under the management of Early Support for Parents, or ESP. I would like to take this opportunity to applaud the work undertaken by ESP over a number of years whilst operating the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Tasmanian support group. I look forward to working in the future with Lindy O’Neill, the CEO of UnitingCare Tasmania, and Therese Ryan, the state-wide program coordinator of the GRG support group.

Currently the GRG program is funded by the federal government through the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs under Strengthening Families, part of the National Illicit Drug Strategy. I understand the GRG Tasmanian support group is the only support group in Australia which has received funding to service the whole of the state.

The Grandparents Raising Grandchildren program provides a confidential, free service to the growing number of Tasmanian grandparents who care for their grandchildren in the absence of the biological parents. In 2003 the Australian Bureau of Statistics recorded that 22,500 Australian families raise grandchildren. It is estimated that these families care for more than 31,000 children. In Tasmania the Department of Education statistics in 2008 recorded that there were 494 grandparent families caring for children in the ranges from prep to year 12. The Grandparents Raising Grandchildren support program provides services to over 230 families who are registered with the group. The Grandparents Raising Grandchildren program provides:

… a confidential, free service to grandparent families created in recognition of the growing numbers of grandparents who care for one or more of their grandchildren in the effective absence of the biological parents.

The GRG support group offers support and counselling by phone or via personal visits to grandparents who often face a significant amount of physical and emotional pressure associated with providing full-time care to a grandchild. They provide one-on-one advocacy support to help grandparents communicate with services such Centrelink, schools and health services and assistance with inquiries to child protection and offer support to accessing legal processes. They also hold monthly grandparent support group meetings where grandparent parents can come together to discuss issues and provide mutual support by sharing stories and experiences. Newsletters for grandparents containing relevant information and calendar events are sent to all grandparents who are registered with the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren support group.

These are just some of the services that the GRG support group provide to their registered members across the state. In 2005 the GRG support group established a Grandparent Advisory Council, which selected delegates around the state to represent the issues which grandparents are facing. This initiative was established so that the grandparent delegates could come together from around Tasmania to address common issues and advocacy needs with the state project coordinator. This has helped with the service delivery of the Grandparent Raising Grandchildren support group as it allows the coordinator to hear feedback on significant issues affecting grandparents. The coordinator is then able to specifically tailor the grandparents support service to the areas grandparents require. These are crucial services for grandparents because, as a mother of two young children, I am acutely aware of the time, effort and love it takes for parents and guardians to care for their children. Many in this chamber would be aware that caring for a child is not an easy job and, in fact, at times it can be extremely challenging and difficult. However, I know there is nothing more rewarding than having the opportunity to provide love and care for your child. I take this opportunity to applaud the wonderful dedication, support and care that grandparents provide to children in their care.

As older Australians, grandparents often have more challenges and hurdles to cope with when faced with the prospect of caring for a grandchild. At this time in their life many grandparents would be in a situation where they would normally be beginning to slow down and prepare for the next stages of their life. Many grandparents would be preparing to cease full-time employment and begin retirement, so when circumstances occur and grandparents are called upon to provide care for a grandchild when the biological parents are not able to any more it can result in a significant amount of physical and emotional stress taking their toll. This is where the invaluable service of the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren program is so useful. Many grandparents who care for grandchildren are also often faced with the extra financial strain that comes with caring for a child. Most grandparents would no longer be working full-time and therefore do not have access to a weekly wage. Grandparents in this situation are often reliant on government income support programs to make ends meet.

As a member of the Senate Standing Committee on Community Affairs which conducted an inquiry in 2008 into the cost of living pressures on older Australians, I am aware of the financial strain many of these grandparents face when confronted with caring for a grandchild. Prior to the public hearings on this inquiry, the federal member for Franklin, Julie Collins, the now state Minister for Human Services, the Hon. Lin Thorp, and I met members from the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren support group. In the meeting we were able to meet with a staff member of the GRG support group, as well as grandparents themselves who care for their grandchildren. The meeting was also a perfect opportunity for us to hear about the challenges and concerns from the grandparents directly. Throughout the inquiry we heard evidence and received submissions from grandparents and the groups that represent them about the financial, physical and emotional stresses associated with raising a grandchild. These concerns were highlighted in chapter 6 of the A decent quality of life report of the Standing Committee on Community Affairs, which states:

Grandparents who provide care—particularly those who become primary carers—experience an increase in expenses for all facets of life, such as petrol, clothing and utilities, as well as the up-scaling of various facilities to accommodate the growth in the size of the family unit including the house, car, and washing machines.

In response to these concerns the final report included recommendation 15 which states:

(i)

the Government investigate the circumstances of grandparent carers, with particular concern for the type and level of support available to those taking on the role of primary carer through both formal adoption and informal kinship care.

(ii)

governments at all levels increase the level of support and respite available to older Australians undertaking kinship care, particularly for those taking on the role of primary carer to younger children.

In response to recommendation 15 of this report, the Rudd Labor government set about developing a national child protection framework. On 30 April 2009, the Council of Australian Governments endorsed the National Framework for Protecting Australia’s Children 2009-2020, an ambitious and long-term agenda to improve the safety and wellbeing of Australia’s children. The national framework will operate through a series of three-year action plans, each of which identifies actions and strategies aimed at ensuring that Australia’s children are safe and well through a substantial and sustained reduction in child abuse and neglect in Australia over time.

The implementation plan 2009-2012 sets out how all governments will take forward the actions identified in the first three-year action plan of the national framework. These actions include national priorities which are those actions that will be a major focus for the Commonwealth, state and territory governments and the non-government sector. Improving support for carers is a national priority under the national framework. This national priority aims to provide opportunities for financial and non-financial support for grandparents, foster and kinship carers and is due to be completed by July 2010. I look forward to seeing the results of the completed improving support for carers as part of the national framework and for the chance to meet with members of the GRG support group to discuss the results.

Whilst we are still developing this new pathway forward, in response to the release of the report the Rudd Labor government has undertaken a number of actions to support older Australians with the rising cost of living pressures. In the 2008-09 budget the Rudd Labor government spent $1.4 billion to deliver $500 one-off bonus payments to 2.7 million older Australians. We also increased the utilities allowance to $500 and the telephone allowance to $132 for those with home internet access. In October 2008, as part of our Economic Security Strategy, we made a $4.8 billion down-payment to Australia’s pensioners, seniors and carers, providing them lump sum payments of $1,400 to singles and $2,100 to couples in the lead-up to comprehensive reform of the pension system. And then finally in the budget this year we delivered our much anticipated Secure and Sustainable Pension Reform, which included a $14.2 billion investment over the next four years to increase payments to 3.3 million age pensioners, disability pensioners, carers, wife pensioners and veteran income support recipients. These are practical measures, offering direct financial assistance to older Australians.

As I finish my remarks today I want to leave the chamber with a typical story of one of the 22½ thousand Australian families who raise more than 31,000 grandchildren. This story and others like it have featured on the ABC Stateline program. It is the story of John and Ruth, whom I know quite well. They are part of the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren support group. They are a lovely couple who, more than a decade ago, received a phone call from their 10-year-old granddaughter which consequently changed their lives forever. As John recalled on the Stateline program, his granddaughter rang to say that she had been kicked out of home and asking whether he and Ruth go and pick her up. As is the case with a number of situations of this nature, the child’s parents were struggling with drug and alcohol addiction and could not cope alone with their children. And so eventually, via the way of the Family Court, John and Ruth became parents again and were granted custody of three grandchildren aged 10, seven and four. After speaking with John at the recent event to hand the GRG support group to Uniting Care Tasmania I was able to learn that 10 years later John and Ruth have raised three wonderful grandchildren. In fact, on the Stateline program, Kylie, one of John and Ruth’s grandchildren, said:

I have a really good life. I’ve got a fiance. I’m getting married soon. I’ve got a full time job. I own property. And they’ve had a lot to do with that. They taught me the value of money. They taught me that if you want things, you’ve gotta work for it.

John is extremely proud that he was able to impact so greatly on his grandchildren and give them the best start in life, and rightly so. However, John has also told me that it was not easy—in fact, John said it was very difficult and very challenging to become a parent again in his sixties. As John pointed out, there are significant financial strains placed on grandparents.

John has also praised the work of the Tasmanian state Minister for Human Services, the Hon. Lin Thorp. I would also like to place on record my support for the work and commitment to this cause by Minister Thorp. In fact, since beginning her time in the Tasmanian parliament Minister Thorp has been a long-time advocate for grandparents who raise their grandchildren. In 2002 she set up a parliamentary inquiry into grandparent care and now, as a minister, she is overseeing the Relative Care Assistance Program, which aims to help ease the burden grandparents and other relative carers face. There are a number of payments for financial assistance under this program but more needs to be done. The minister has also already taken steps to reform Child Protection Services, when, on 1 August 2009, in Tasmania, the Gateway Services and the Integrated Family Support Services commenced.

The minister has also indicated that the Tasmanian government is exploring options to better support grandparents who are raising their grandchildren and has indicated that a review will be conducted, where each family’s circumstances will be individually reviewed, as I understand it. The minister has also indicated that the review will be handled sensitively and thoroughly. There are around 300 children in that program—these are 300 children who are outside formal kinship care. So, there are things that are happening, and the minister is moving these along. I hope that the review will not take long. At the same time as the minister made reforms to the Child Protection Service, amendments to the Children, Young Persons and Their Families Act were proclaimed to support this initiative. The reform is based on the position that vulnerable families need support when problems first emerge rather than waiting until the problems escalate to the point that removal of the child is the only option. (Time expired)