Page 1113 - Week 03 - Thursday, 22 March 2012
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I think there are six or seven key thrusts regarding this care. One is a housing support service. One is crisis mediation. There is the emergency accommodation network, which you have just asked about. There is a friendly landlord service, a youth identified accommodation and support program, a mentoring life skills and social enterprise service and a parent accommodation support program.
As I looked through the list of who were providing these services, these are well-regarded, well-connected services, and I have confidence that the youth homelessness sector here in the ACT will continue to provide the quite critical services and the networks and referrals on to make sure that these young people are afforded the opportunity, in many ways—I will use the adage—of getting their life in order and are moved on to sustainable tenancies.
MS BRESNAN: A supplementary, Mr Speaker.
MR SPEAKER: Yes, Ms Bresnan.
MS BRESNAN: Minister, what risk assessments and safety analysis have been undertaken on this previously unknown cluster house model, considering there will not be 24-hour supervision provided in all of the houses?
MS BURCH: It is my understanding there is 24-hour on-site staffing. I am not clear whether that is on each property, but there are certainly video links between the properties, and they are very, very close together. It is my understanding that this model has been worked through with the sector and the provider, which is the Salvation Army through the Canberra Youth Refuge. It is a well-regarded, well-experienced service provider.
MS LE COUTEUR: Supplementary.
MR SPEAKER: Yes, Ms Le Couteur.
MS LE COUTEUR: Minister, will you guarantee the future safety of the young people and staff who will live and work in these houses?
MS BURCH: What I will guarantee is that we will work very closely with these providers. These providers are Barnardos, the Ted Noffs Foundation, St Vincent de Paul, the Salvation Army, CatholicCare and the Conflict Resolution Service. These are well-regarded, well-thought-of services with many decades of expertise within them. If there are concerns for safety, I have not heard of them. If you have heard of them, I would ask that your office approach me directly rather than through a question time question, because it implies that these services are not putting their minds to care and attention, and I believe that they are.
ACT election campaign—communications
MR SMYTH: My question is to the Chief Minister and relates to communications between the government and the public service during the last election. Chief Minister,
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