It seems like only yesterday I was introducing myself as the new CEO of CatholicCare. The last 150 days have passed very quickly - and what an enjoyable and stimulating time it has been!
Back in November and December I was busy just trying to remember names, familiarise myself with our programs, get around to our various CatholicCare sites, and identify our key stakeholders and supporters.
In only my second week, I was able to attend the Family Relationships Services Australia conference here in Melbourne and get a sense of the national picture. In addition to the Attorney General announcing the review of the Family Law Act and the subsequent roll over of our family law service contracts until 2022, I was overwhelmed and curious about the strong presence of Catholic organisations from across Australia. I have been interested to make contact with several of these and enjoy understanding our similarities and differences within the larger Catholic family, seeking to find ways for us to work together.
Soon after I was also privileged to attend the Mass of appreciation held at St Patrick’s Cathedral in November. The Mass is a wonderful opportunity for CatholicCare to acknowledge and thank the generous support of our donors, supporters and volunteers – without whom we would be unable to carry out some of our signature programs. The Archbishop of Melbourne thanked our supporters for their contribution and spoke highly of the great work undertaken by CatholicCare. After Mass we shared a light lunch and it was lovely to meet so many of our great supporters and thank them personally.
I can now say I have visited each of our 14 sites across Melbourne and Gippsland, and have met with most of our staff. They have provided such valuable insight into our work and into the needs of the many families and individuals who seek our assistance.
I have discovered we provide services to families and to individuals seeking counselling, family law support and help with parenting and family issues. I am proud that we have a CatholicCare chaplain working in every prison in Victoria, and of our extensive support of asylum seekers and refugees. I have learned more about our marriage preparation courses, our work with parishes, and our adoption and permanent care services. And I am impressed with our School Counselling program which operates at a number of schools across Greater Melbourne, Geelong and Gippsland.
I have discovered we provide services to families and to individuals seeking counselling, family law support and help with parenting and family issues. I am proud that we have a CatholicCare chaplain working in every prison in Victoria, and of our extensive support of asylum seekers and refugees. I have learned more about our marriage preparation courses, our work with parishes, and our adoption and permanent care services. And I am impressed with our School Counselling program which operates at a number of schools across Greater Melbourne, Geelong and Gippsland.
Throughout my visits to each site I have learned of the incredible diversity of our organisation – with more than 40 different cultures represented across our employees underpinning our capability to work with the many different communities we support.
I’ve received such great support and advice from a strong Board and have greatly appreciated the advice, resources and support of the Archdiocese, along with that from my CatholicCare Victoria and Tasmania colleagues.
Another thing I was quick to learn was our dependence on government contracts for around 55% of our income and our critical relationship with government. I have enjoyed meeting with both federal and state governments, understanding the planned reforms across our sector, and planning for the future.
So what’s in store for the next six months?
- I will continue to work with the CatholicCare team to build on our strong foundations. I am committed to an expansion of programs to meet the needs of disadvantaged people across the community. We will need to prepare ourselves for a demanding and changing government funding environment, and to organise ourselves to provide a strong account of our great work with families across our programs.
- I will seek to consolidate relationships with our key supporters and stakeholders, cementing our presence across different regions and particularly within Gippsland.
- I hope to work out ways we can work better with our other CatholicCare colleagues across Victoria and in other states as we respond to similar issues, opportunities and challenges.
I have greatly valued the encouragement and cooperation of CatholicCare staff and supporters, and know that together we will be able to achieve even more for the people we support each and every day. I am certain that the next six months will be as enjoyable and stimulating as the last – and for that I am very grateful.