1. Funds fillip for education
giving
businessnews.com.au | December 7, 2015 | 23
COMMUNITY
ARTS SECTOR
Brightwater in
new CEO search
THE three-month search for Brightwater
CareGroup’snextchiefexecutivecontinues,
with the current head of the state’s seventh-
largest aged care group, Penny Flett, due to
step down early next year.
It’s understood Dr Flett, who has held the
role for 20 years, will continue to be involved
inBrightwater’sactivities,aswellasmaintain
an advocacy role for women in leadership.
According to BNiQ research, along with
BaptistCare’s chief executive Lucy Morris,
Regents Garden Group’s general manager
YvonneAyre,andMercyHealth’sstateman-
ager Anita Ghose, Dr Flett is one of only four
womenwhoheaduponeof20ofthebiggest
agedcareorganisationsinWesternAustralia.
Hawaiian Ride
for Youth win
YOUTH Focus charity bicycling fundraiser,
the Hawaiian Ride for Youth, has won the
awardforbestcharityorcause-relatedevent
at the Australian event awards.
Youth Focus chief executive Jenny Allen
saidthe700-kilometrebikeridefromAlbany
to Perth raised $2.4 million last year and,
since its inception in 2003, had raised more
than$13milliontohelpYouthFocuscontinue
to provide its free expert clinical services for
young Western Australians. ,
Generosity has
clean-up costs
FOUR of Western Australia’s leading chari-
tieshavecometogethertotryandsavemore
than $300,000 in annual clean-up costs by
launching an education campaign about
how to correctly donate items at charitable
collection bins.
Good Samaritan Industries, St Vincent
de Paul Society WA, Anglicare WA and the
Spine and Limb Foundation have set up the
website GIV.org.au in an effort to reduce the
$312,000 spent annually to clean up after
people who leave items that are often dam-
aged, vandalised or strewn outside charity
bins and stores.
Spokesperson for the campaign, Good
Samaritan Industries’ Debbie Cameron,
said the website had helpful information
for people to become better informed as
to what standard of goods charities would
acceptandwhere,whatandhowitemscould
be donated, including those too big to fit in
charity bins.
“The vast majority of people who visit
one of our donation stations and realise
they can’t easily deposit their items in the
bin think they are doing the right thing by
leaving their donations outside,” Ms Cam-
eron said.
“But in actual fact this causes huge head-
aches for our organisations in the form of
complaints from councils, shopping centres
and the public, and by increasing antisocial
behaviour.”
Business News understands only one
person has been prosecuted in WA after
beingcaughtillegallydumpingitemsatchar-
ity bins, since the Litter Act was introduced
in 1979.
The offender was fined $600 plus $200 in
court costs.
Fix needed for
arts funding
THE Chamber of Arts and Culture WA
has identified what it calls is a ‘worry-
ing trend’ within the state government
of replacing long-term operational
funding with short-term project fund-
ing from multiple sources.
In its submission to the state govern-
ment for the 2016-17 budget, chamber
chair Helen Cook said 81 per cent of
Western Australians attended at least
one cultural event last year, and demand
was growing.
However, she said without strategic
and long-term targeted investment, the
state risked losing the option to capital-
ise on the capacity of these events to
provide strong economic returns and
diverse experiences for the community.
“We have a sector that contributes
$10.6 billion to the state economy and
employs over 42,000 people,” Ms Cook
said.
“Yet in the absence of any long-term
plan the investment in the culture and
arts portfolio has been reduced to less
than 1 per cent of the state govern-
ment’s overall expenditure.”
Ms Cook said the arts and cultural
sector offered the state a unique way
to diversify its economy, develop
greater innovation and build stronger
communities.
“For example there is an unrealised
potential in our indigenous arts; some-
thing that is unique to this land. It’s
time that we properly celebrated and
acknowledged this creative wealth,”
she said.
“What we’ve been able to achieve is much
better school attendance,” she said.
“We found before, when we were working
one day a week in the schools, that the kids
all came on the day we visited … so obviously
by being here more regularly we encourage
the kids to come along.
“The behaviour of the kids has also
improved. That’s happening for a number of
reasons. By doing physical activity they’re
building their mental health and wellbeing;
they’re building their competence and their
ability to stay seated and learn.
“They’re also learning how to behave
every time they’re in our programs because
they have to. And certainly the kids from
the homework classes, the feedback we’re
getting is they’re trying so much harder in
classes, and they know what to do in order
to learn more effectively.”
Ms Lisignoli said Nyoongar was working
closely with the schools to maintain attend-
ance levels by insisting students come every
day or miss out on Nyoongar’s breakfast,
lunch and after-school activities.
The charity, whose total annual revenue
is now about $1.4 million, has continued to
deliver its broader-based activities, which
includes teaching ancient Aboriginal sport-
ing games to corporate organisations as part
of team-building exercises.
It also runs a competitive mini-basketball
competition for older children at risk of
breaking the law, works with Ruah Com-
munity Services women’s shelters, and
delivers school holiday programs in 19
regional towns.
“There are a lot of myths out there that the
Aboriginal community doesn’t value educa-
tion and we’ve clearly demonstrated that’s
completely not true,” Ms Lisignoli said.
WORTHWHILEWORK:NyoongarstaffMistyGray(left)andSaraRicheswithsome
of the young Aboriginal students Nyoongar Wellbeing and Sports works with.
A WESTERN Australian charity focused on
improving the lives of Aboriginal children
through exercise and nutrition programs
has hired staff and increased the amount of
work it’s doing in several schools, following
a major funding increase.
Nyoongar Wellbeing and Sports, Aus-
tralia’s only Aboriginal-controlled health
promotion charity, recently received a near-
100 per cent increase in its grant income
from the Commonwealth, which has allowed
it to grow its Aboriginal staff members by
two, to eight.
There are a lot of
myths out there that the
Aboriginal community
doesn’t value education
and we’ve clearly
demonstrated that’s
completely not true
- Karyn Lisignoli
Making a
contribution to the
community is an
essential part of doing
business; I believe
we are a significantly
better organisation
because of it - David Flanagan
$
855,000 Federal funding for Nyoongar Wellbeing and Sports
WA is home to Australia’s only Aboriginal-controlled
health promotion charity, and the unique operation has
secured additional federal funding.
Saskia Pickles
saskia.pickles@businessnews.com.au
@FlyPickles
Despite record low iron ore prices taking
the company to the brink, and reducing its
share price from 70 cents in August 2014 to
2 cents in December, 93 per cent of Atlas’s
community investments this year were cash
donations.
While the index does not disclose the total
value of corporate donations, Mr Flanagan
said more than a dozen community groups
had received Helping Hands grants of up to
$5,000 in 2015.
“Making a contribution to the community
is an essential part of doing business,” he said.
“I believe we are a significantly better
organisation because of it.”
Chief executive Karyn Lisignoli told Busi-
ness News that, as part of requirements
involved in accepting the boost in federal
funding from $450,000 per year to $855,000,
the charity had agreed to focus its activities
more intensely on fewer schools.
It now visits six primary schools most days
of the week, and Ms Lisignoli said teachers
were reporting improved behaviour.