1. Making a Difference for Families in Remote South Australia Author: Gwen Crombie

2. Red Cross commitment to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People
The aim of this presentation is to discuss the need, implementation and outcomes of a pilot project which identified and addressed the challenges associated with food security on the APY Lands in South Australia.
This project adopted a strength-based approach to connecting families to appropriate services in times of crisis.
It was noted that many people did not have access to food at least three days a fortnight, with the elderly and children being the most at risk.
A major priority of the project, identified by the community, was to address the immediate need for emergency food supplies particularly focusing on the needs of the children and the impact of addictive behaviours such as drugs, alcohol and gambling.

3. FREGON EMERGENCY FOOD PROGRAM
The pilot involved the development of case management processes through extensive community consultation, a project advisory committee which consisted of local Aboriginal community members, and a positive partnership with the Fregon Community Council.
Community ownership was maintained throughout the program.
Following the completion of the trial, the project and food supplies were handed over to the community council and runs independently of Red Cross.
The project was able to build the community’s capacity to support families through crisis by providing a practical way to identify and address barriers to food security.

4. Where is APY Lands ?

6. Referral Form

7. September DATA COLLECTION SHEET
date
ADULTS
Children
Meals
Reason
Follow-up
Outcome
08/09/11 1 4
3 meals for 5 people
No food or money
Financial Training/Centre Pay
Centre Link /Families SA 2
3 meals for 2 people
09/09/11
22/09/11
9 meals for 2 people
9 meals for 1 person
1 one baby 7 months
9 meals for 3 people
23/09/11
9 meals for 4 people 3
9 meals for 5 people
27/09/11
3 meals for 1person
Total 16 11
60 meals for 27 people
27 people unable to budget money until pay day
16 people referred for Centre Pay and Financial Training with FSA
Signed up for Centre Pay and Financial Training FSA

8. Our commitments National Board commitments
Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander Strategy
How we work
build key partnerships
at invitation of communities
long haul
employing local people
not duplicate - won’t compete with Aboriginal led agencies

10. Jack’s Red Cross Story

11. Anangu Training

12. Community Involvement

13. FREGON EMERGENCY FOOD PROGRAM APY LANDS
Fregon Community Mapping Overview of Food Security
by Gwen Crombie
Families SA – Anti Poverty Team
Provide food for some families with children.
 CDEP – Provide breakfast and lunch for their workers.
 12 Service providers providing approximately 16 various types of food services
Some suggestions to overcome barriers to Food Security
Look at barriers and address with follow up:
Revisit Red Cross Case Studies documented prior to Emergency Trial Food Pilot Program.

14. FREGON EMERGENCY FOOD PROGRAM APY LANDS
Look at any changes. (Have the situations changed for better or worse and why?)
Meetings – Service Providers with authority to brain storm and implement change.
Agencies with food programs to look at ways to simplify and create ease of accessibility for clients. ie. one stop entry.
Agreed client eligibility for assistance: e.g. same criteria used by all agencies.
A fair and equitable process which is known to all community members and strictly adhered to.
Programs implemented to address substance misuse and problem gambling
Monitor Basic Card implementation

15. FREGON EMERGENCY FOOD PROGRAM APY LANDS
Red Cross advocate and work with Government for change in laws which have allowed stores to hold customers cards for over 20 years.
Many agencies including consumer affairs, legal rights have tried unsuccessfully to address this situation.
Impact is no money for food, humbugging from family, violence.

16. FREGON EMERGENCY FOOD PROGRAM APY LANDS
Challenges:
Weekends & Public Holidays – Shop shut and agencies not operating.
No safe storage provision, no fridge
Humbugging
Impact of sorry camps, funerals & Cultural Business
Damage/loss from heat, violence, dogs and pest contamination.

17. Financial Training at Fregon

18. APY Lands SA

19. Red Cross Food Security Review
Conducted nationally in 2010 across all food security programs
Recommends that
Food security is addressed across the “three pillars” of food availability, access and utilisation
Shift away from model of individual food provision toward a holistic model seeking to genuinely address underlying structural and systemic causes of food insecurity. Advocacy on key issues.
Invest in development of technical food security expertise, program planning and community development approaches across its programs and services

20. Australian Red Cross FOODcents® program
Safe smart
Cook smart
Shop smart
Spend smart
Move smart
Eat smart

21. APY Lands - Partnerships
As part of Red Cross’ ways of working, consultation with key stakeholders and partner agencies is crucial .
Red Cross recognises and acknowledges the vital role of Aboriginal led organisations on the Lands together with the APY Executive Council and community councils in their decision making and endorses a consultative and partnership approach in how we work on the APY Lands.

22. Newspaper Article (Outcome)
GOVERNMENT officials have been told to immediately start helping people in South Australia's Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) Lands obtain ready access to fresh, affordable food.
The federal and SA governments say they will work with the APY executive in the state's far north to ensure essential investments to support communities are delivered in a "coordinated, effective and timely way".
The move comes after the Red Cross sent emergency food aid to the APY community of Fregon last week after reports of families were going without food for days at a time.
Federal Minister for Indigenous Affairs Jenny Macklin and SA Minister for Aboriginal Affairs Grace Portolesi said in a joint statement today that officials from both jurisdictions had been told to start work "immediately".
The statement revealed that $4.95 million of federal funding, given three years ago to SA for the APY lands, would finally be used - to build three family wellbeing centres.
Ms Macklin allocated the funding in 2008 in response to recommendations in former Supreme Court judge Ted Mulligan's inquiry into the abuse of Aboriginal children on the state's APY lands.
The commonwealth government has deployed a Centrelink team to encourage people receiving welfare payments in the APY lands to use weekly payment options and Centrepay to enable more effective budgeting and financial management.
The federal government will also immediately deploy a money management team to the APY Lands to run community information sessions about budgeting tools, and money management workshops covering financial literacy education.

23. We still have a long road to travel