Community Benefit SA Annual Report 2009 – 2010
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Report to the Minister for Families and Communities Community Benefit SA Annual Report 2009 – 2010 Charitable & Social Welfare Fund Established under Section 73B of the Gaming Machines Act 1992 Postal Address: PO Box 208, Rundle Mall SA 5000 Phone: 1300 650 985 Fax: (08) 8226 7047 Web: www.dfc.sa.gov.au/cbsa Table of Contents Chair’s Report...........................................................................................................2 The Board .................................................................................................................4 2009/10 Snapshot ...................................................................................................5 People assisted.........................................................................................................5 Size of projects.........................................................................................................5 Examples of Community Value.................................................................................6 South Australian Strategic Plan Links .........................................................................................6 Community Strengthening Projects............................................................................................6 Partnership Projects .................................................................................................................7 Social Innovation .....................................................................................................................7 Sustainability...........................................................................................................................7 Community Engagement ..........................................................................................................8 Social Enterprise......................................................................................................................8 Geographic distribution of funds .............................................................................9 History of applications received & approved .........................................................10 Interaction with community ..................................................................................11 Consultation ..........................................................................................................................11 Agency Visits.........................................................................................................................11 Workshops ............................................................................................................................11 Continuous Improvement .......................................................................................................11 Financial Statement ...............................................................................................13 Lists of Funded Projects 2009/10..........................................................................15 Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................15 Correction .............................................................................................................................15 Chair’s Report Hon Jennifer Rankine MP Minister for Families and Communities GPO Box 1563 ADELAIDE SA 5001 Dear Minister On behalf of the Board of the Charitable and Social Welfare Fund (Community Benefit SA), I am very pleased to present the Annual Report for the period 2009/10. 12 Board meetings were held throughout the year with two rounds of funding distributed in July 2009 and January 2010. All projects funded by Community Benefit SA are one-off and aim to assist disadvantaged people in the South Australian community. This year saw the funding of 315 one-off projects valued at $3.36m, to non-government organisations delivering services in South Australia. Approximately, two thirds of projects were small grants of under $10,000, reflecting the Board’s continuing priority for smaller grants. The non-government organisations that receive support through small grants continue to provide highly valuable services, despite scarce resources. An evaluation of the Special Family Support Grants project was undertaken and the Board was pleased to receive reports of success for four out of the five originally funded projects. These projects have made a significant difference to the families who have been supported by the funded agencies. These pilot programs are due to cease in February 2011 and the Board has been active in ensuring the effective transition of vulnerable families to other appropriate services. In order to help community organisations improve the effectiveness of projects even further, the Board fostered consideration of the role of social innovation. The Board has made some in-roads to developing partnerships with the Australian Centre for Social Innovation (TACSI), Flinders University and the University of South Australia (UniSA) as well as the South Australian Science Policy team in the Science and Information Economy Directorate of the Department of Further Education, Employment, Science and Technology (DFEEST). Partnership opportunities have included projects funded to community organisations that demonstrate collaboration, for example: The South Australian Association of Community Based Child Care Centres was funded $12,600 towards a $37,600 project to employ a part time educator for 26 weeks to establish an innovative early intervention program in partnership with Flinders University to train parents and carers to facilitate normal speech, language and communication development for 300 pre-school children who have high needs and then extend and sustain the program across Adelaide. Community Benefit SA Page 2 Catherine House received $5,000 towards the final stage of a $36,320 in partnership with UniSA, Helpmann Academy and Arts SA, to support the curatorial activity for the 'chART - Arts for Social Change' project; facilitating self-development for 4 professional artists and 50 women suffering mental health issues and culminating in a public exhibition. The Board also hosted a successful Social Innovation Forum in July 2010 that was very well received by the sector and attracted 120 participants. The Forum included guest speakers and facilitators from TACSI, Flinders University, UniSA as well as DFEEST. The forum explored the current and future trends of social innovation, provided examples of innovative projects to which Community Benefit SA has contributed and provided an opportunity for networking for community service organisations. A continuing trend is the high demand on the fund for the upgrading and renovating of community facilities in rural and metropolitan areas. There were a number of extraordinary requests for projects involving out of school hours care, indicating a need for further understanding about the funding arrangements supporting children in community and school based settings. Vehicles and transport in general remained in high demand for the fund and numerous requests were received from new arrival groups from the Northern African and Middle Eastern regions for integration support and community development. The Board was pleased to support the Homelessness Strategy Division of the Department for Families and Communities to provide expertise and approval authority for the inaugural round of the Homelessness Innovation Fund this year. A total of $100,000 was allocated between six projects, with the funds made available through the National Agreement for Housing Affordability. As this will be my final report to you as Chair, I wish to place on record my deep appreciation for all Board members I have served with for their diligence and hard work this year and over past years. I also wish to thank the hard-working staff team for their exceptional service in implementing the many tasks associated with the successful operation of the Community Benefit SA grants program. I am also extremely grateful to your Government for giving me the opportunity to serve through this extremely important fund. I commend this report to you on another year of substantial service from Community Benefit SA to the South Australian community. Yours sincerely Page 3 Annual Report 2009/2010 The Board In accordance with Section 73B (4) of the Gaming Machines Act 1992: The Board is to comprise of 5 members “who have between them, appropriate expertise in financial management and charitable or social welfare organisation administration” and “at least 2 of whom are women and 2 are men”. Board appointments are made by the Minister for Families and Communities. BOARD MEMBERS Chair Mr Mark Henley - B Ec, JP. Manager of Advocacy and Communication, UnitingCare Wesley Adelaide; Life Member, SACOSS; Chair, Heads of Christian Churches Gambling Taskforce; Member, Essential Services Commission of SA Consumer Advisory Committee; Member, SA Responsible Gambling Working Party. Board Members Mr Declan Andrews – Environmental Consultant and Campaign Coordinator, with experience in the sustainability of Indigenous and rural communities. Producer and director of short films and video productions in Australia and overseas. Ms Letitia (Tisha) Ashworth – Manager of the bookshop at the Art Gallery of South Australia, Coordinator of texts for Library and University requirements, extensive experience in bookshop operations around South Australia. Ms