AUGUST ‘22
THIS ISSUE
In it for the Long-Run The monthly newsletter that aims to connect our 2500+ employees (and countless volunteers) so that we all have a broader understanding of and empathy for the significant scope of faith-based, for purpose work Newcastle Anglican is delivering, to enable people of all ages and communities to flourish through our parishes and services.
A Place to Call HOME
Each year, the first week of August raises awareness to the issue of Homelessness across Australia. For many the complexity that surrounds homelessness can often leave us with a sense of hopelessness. The Australian Human Rights Commission reports, ‘Every night, roughly 1 in 200 Australians find themselves without a safe, secure or affordable place to sleep.. ‘A home isn’t just four walls and a roof. It’s a foundation for safety and security. Access to safe and secure housing is one of the most basic human rights.’ The experience of homelessness can be defined in many different ways and stretches across many cohorts of people, including people living in crisis accommodation, rough sleeping or those in temporary housing. Likewise, the reasons for homelessness can be varied; poverty, unemployment, a shortage of affordable Our Service Agencies
housing, or it can be triggered by family breakdown, mental illness, sexual assault, addiction, financial difficulty, gambling or social isolation. Domestic violence is the single biggest cause of homelessness in Australia. Through the Samaritan’s Foundation Winter Appeal, much-needed funds are raised to provide resources and services to the most vulnerable people in our community. Homelessness assistance for women and children escaping domestic violence, young people experiencing or at risk of homelessness, and accommodation for men exiting prison are areas in which Samaritans seek to provide dignity for people in times of need and to respond to human need by loving service. The statistics for young people are confronting. Onethird of homeless people in Australia are under 18 years old. The reasons young people are faced with the need to leave their family home can be complex, and
Mini Pen Friends make Residents Day Q&Q with Principal Parks Anglican Women’s Sunday
often with very little option but to end up on the streets. This year’s Winter Appeal focuses on the Samaritan’s Student Accommodation at Wickham, which provides safe, stable accommodation for young people 16-25 while they continue their education or training. The generous support of our donors provides young people like Corby, who failed to finish high school due to a family breakdown, the opportunity to reengage in his education and complete Open Foundation at University while working part-time. The Samaritans Winter Appeal provides a wonderful opportunity for people looking at ways to support our community. Every contribution made directly impacts the work of Samaritans and offers hope to a young person experiencing homelessness. Donations can still be made to support this year’s Winter Appeal via the Samaritans website: https://www. samaritans.org.au/getinvolved/make-a-donation.
Newcastle Anglican Schools Corporation
The
Cooking
Encounter Is there someone in your life that loves to cook, and just thinking about the mouthwatering, home-cooked goodies they create spark a flood of memories, tastes and smells?! Well, we want to bring them to life in our kitchen and feature your recipe and what makes it special to you in our new feature, The Cooking Encounter! Food is a fantastic connector, drawing communities together, and what better way to do that
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Stories on a plate
than for you to share your favourite family recipe with us? Of course, every great recipe has a story, so make sure you tell us all about it when sharing your special dish. Hospitality Services Manager Barry McKibbin and his team are looking forward to reinvigorating recipes that hold a special place in the hearts of Staff, Residents, Parishioners, Clients and Students across Newcastle Anglican. ‘We
are excited to receive recipes and incorporate them into our menus. With the generations that make up Newcastle Anglican, there are sure to be some amazing recipes just waiting to be discovered.’ So, don’t keep it under wraps any longer! Click on the link HERE to share your delicious recipe, and we could be in touch to feature you in our next Cooking Encounter!
Anglican Women’s Sunday We are women, hear us roar
On Sunday 31st July, Anglican Parishes around the Diocese acknowledged Anglican Women and the roles that they play within the church. President of Anglican Women Australia, Diocese of Newcastle, Lorraine Phillips, says, ‘The aim of Anglican Women is to work towards the extension of Christ’s kingdom through † worship, study, service, fellowship and giving to promote cooperation and understanding between the various groups which may exist in a parish.’ Originally, Anglican Women was formed as an “Umbrella Organisation” for all Anglican Women in the Diocese and continues to be relevant today. The Diocesan Executive meets four times per calendar year and organises two functions per year that are open to all women. A Lenten Retreat and/or a Quiet Day during the Season of Lent and the Annual Conference Spring Celebration are held on the first Tuesday in September. This year’s Annual Conference will be on September 6th at St Peter’s Anglican Church. East Maitland Anglican Women provides “Thank You Boxes”, which can be used, not only to thank God for the many blessings in our lives but also for donations to support a nominated worthy charity. Anglican Women annually support different programs and missions across the Diocese. In 2022-23, the focus of the Anglican Women’s ministry is the “Anglican Board of Mission Literacy & Numeracy Programs for PNG” which runs 82 adult literacy and numeracy programs across the country. Anglican Women’s Prayer Eternal God, the light of the minds that know you. The life of the souls that love you, and the strength of the hearts that serve you, help us to know you, that we may truly love you, so to love you that we may fully serve you, for to serve you is perfect freedom, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen Enquiries can be directed to Lorraine Phillips, President, Anglican Women Australia, Diocese of Newcastle email: lorraine.phillips2@bigpond.com mobile: 0419 277 294. •3
Q & A with
Principal Parks ‘My values align with the Anglican values – the focus on inclusivity, serving students at the heart of what we do.’ As we continue conversations with our Newcastle Anglican Schools Principals, it was delightful to spend the morning with Principal of Manning Valley Anglican College, Darren Parks. Celebrating his first anniversary as MVAC Principal, Darren’s booming voice, full of kindness and cheer, speaks candidly about life, Teaching and his late discovery and love of coffee. Tell us a little bit about Darren Parks. My wife Melissa and I have been married for 28 years in September. We are both Teachers, and we have three kids. Harrison, 25, has followed our footsteps and is teaching in Townsville. Our second, Emma, is in her final year of nursing student on the Gold Coast, and Sophie is 16 and currently in year 11 at Manning Valley Anglican College. Family is my first love, but I do enjoy the challenge of my job, and I live in the hope that my childhood AFL team, North Melbourne Kangaroos, will one day win the grand final! I enjoy being part of my community and have participated in my local surf clubs, refereed rugby union, officiated and commentated on rowing and in the summer, have
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my sights set on taking up cricket umpiring. My serious passion is collecting classic vinyl records, 80’s and 90’s indie genres. Anywhere I travel, you can find me scouring the local record stores. Oh, and I have discovered coffee! There’s nothing like savouring the nuances of a flat white! How did you decide Teaching would be your profession, and why did it interest you? Growing up, I strongly connected with people and always wanted to teach. I felt like I could connect well with students. In high school, I thought I wanted to be a history teacher, but I taught primary for 13 years before moving into secondary teaching. What qualities does a Principal need to have to support their school to flourish? You need to have a vision and be willing to modify it as necessary. Be hardworking and model that ethic. To connect and put people first, and always be open to asking the question, ‘how can we do this better? It’s also important to strategically focus on future improvement and have a sound
knowledge of administration compliance, budgets, and policies. What advice would you give to someone considering Educational Leadership? Be an excellent teacher first, so you know what you are looking for when describing what you need in quality teaching staff. Grab hold of coordinator roles to build your knowledge up. I took on many roles in my career; Head of Sport, Head of House, Deputy Principal, etc., and learnt each role’s difference and focus. You need a strong background – it’s the learn and earn approach – learn the ropes and earn the stripes. You have been the Principal of Manning Valley Anglican College (MVAC) for a year. What do you see are MVAC’s strengths? Its sense of community. I also see that a large body of students are hungry and want more in terms of their lives. The greatest strength is the passion and energy of the staff and the willingness to go through a change process. We are working through some significant projects. 1. A focus on Teaching and learning through embedding the Learning Power approach 2. Supporting our school community by launching our learning management system, School Box, and 3. an updated Junior School Wellbeing Program and Senior School Wellbeing Program. Where would you like to see MVAC in 3 years? I want Manning Valley to be a
What should people know about Newcastle Anglican? Newcastle Anglican is much more than people think. It has a greater sphere of influence in society in this region that extends beyond the parishes in its care for people— for example, supporting young people at risk through Samaritans, delivering educational outcomes in our schools, and providing quality care for our elderly. What do you hope your legacy will be at MVAC? I hope that it will be to grow the school not only in numbers but in stature in the community as the school of choice in the Manning region, and our Anglican ethos is lived clearly through our staff and students in our community. Do you have a favourite quote or saying? college known for providing a great holistic education. A greater focus on academic achievement, particularly in senior secondary, and to grow these years. I want to see our kids contribute to the local or broader community in service and learning how to do things for others. What or who inspires you? The ‘what’ is the greater purpose of why we educate. Guiding our students to be contributors and builders of a better society in the future. The ‘who’ - JFK for his vision, Mother Teresa for her incredible Christian service and humility, Mandela for his ability to forgive, and people who have a great story who can rise above a
challenge, achieve excellence and do great for others. The average working-class person can be an inspiration – great parents, people who teach right or wrong, that is the social justice coming out in me. As Principal of a Newcastle Anglican School, you are part of a broader community of Principals and Leaders. How does this support you in your role? I get great support from the group of other Principals and Executive Director of Education & Child Development, Liz Knight. I am supported in achieving the school’s vision but also know I am contributing to the wider vision of the Board led by Bishop Peter.
The golden rule of the Bible is, ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ Luke 6:31 Manning Valley Anglican College is nestled along the Manning River of the Myall Lakes in the picturesque Cundletown. From Prep to Year 12, Manning Valley Anglican College is a leader in education in the Manning Valley and Great Lakes region, which helps students to nurture and develop their identity, their interests, their skills and their faith, taking the first steps along the journey to success.
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In it for
the long-run ‘The 1300kms covered
equates to 1.7 million steps. That’s the estimated number of Australians who experienced physical abuse before the age of 15.’ For 19 days in 2017, solo ultramarathon runner, Kirrily Dear, ran 1300km from Broken Hill to Sydney to give a voice to the often-silent victims of family violence. Since then, the Run Against Violence (RAV) Virtual Team Challenge has grown to be the world’s largest and longest virtual team challenge. Each year, 1000s of walkers and runners from around the globe take steps together for a single purpose - to break the silence that surrounds family violence. On 30th August, a team from Newcastle Anglican led by Reverend Melanie Whalley (who participated in last year’s RAV Virtual Team Challenge) will lace up their running shoes and join together in reaching the 1300km to raise awareness and need to support victims of family violence in our community. Reverend Melanie explains the reason behind the
distance, ‘The 1300kms covered equates to 1.7 million steps. That’s the estimated number of Australians who experienced physical abuse before the age of 15.’ ‘We would love to encourage people to register with their parish, friends and family and be part of the RAV Challenge together. The Challenge begins on the 30th August and finishes on Saturday 17th September. Every step the Team takes counts toward the 1300km team total. There can be up to 20 people in a team; however, if we have more than 20, we can create more teams’ This year Reverand. Melanie hopes the teams can organise to walk together a couple of times during the time period to raise awareness about Domestic and Family Abuse. All profits raised go to the cause and fund more National
Association for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (NAPCAN) educators, helping to ensure that every teenager in Australia has the opportunity to learn about what healthy relationships look like for them. To sign up for the Challenge and be a part of this initiative to bring awareness, break the silence, and bring education and prevention to the fore, email The Reverend Melanie Whalley melwhalley@live.com. au. Read more about Run Against Violence on their website https://www. runagainstviolence.com/about.
Mini Pen Friends make Residents Day! Social connections are essential for health and well-being at all ages and may be especially important for promoting health in later life. Our Residents at Storm Village have struck up a wonderful connection with the little learners at a local Pre-school in Taree. Last month, they came to Storm Village and celebrated Grand-Buddy Day. The children drew pictures for each Resident and had lots of laughs playing balloon tennis and blowing bubbles. At the end of the visit, they had a joyful sing-a-long together. ‘Planning was underway for their second get together when sadly, Storm Village went into lockdown, so the Pre-school got creative and the children all wrote letters to the Residents.’ explained Lifestyle and Wellbeing Team Leader, Cindy Dohnt. The Residents and Anglican Care staff were delighted to receive the little letters delivered and spent hours reading and talking about the friendships they had made.
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AN-ACC A Model of Reform
Refocusing on priorities that Matter After fourteen years, a new funding model called the Australian National Aged Care Classification (AN‑ACC) will replace the Aged Care Funding Instrument (ACFI) from 1 October 2022. The AN-ACC is a key component of the major aged care reforms being implemented in response to the final report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety. The AN-ACC will provide more equitable care funding to providers that better align resident funding with the costs of delivering care. Erin Ruprecht, Acting General Manager of Residential Aged Care Services explains, “It has been known for some time now that the Aged Care Funding Instrument (ACFI) is no longer “fit for purpose” in that it fails to deliver adequate levels of funding suited to the individual care needs of each consumer, and involves a large amount of administrative time and energy from providers.” “The AN-ACC funding model aims to reduce the administrative burden on providers and allow them instead to focus on high-quality care and services to individuals receiving residential aged care support.” “The AN-ACC funding system is one of the many recommendations following the
Royal Aged Care Commission and aims to improve individual care needs by separating the assessments required and relating to funding from those which are required and relate to care and planning. This system will allow providers to have a much keener focus on what is important to individuals rather than what is important to secure subsidies.” Underpinned by the principles of high-quality care delivery, the AN-ACC model focuses on restorative care and reenablement for consumers in line with their individual needs and goals. As a result, residents can expect greater care choices and services that match their objectives. In addition, each resident will have an AN-ACC assessment undertaken by an external service visiting the Residential Aged Care Home to reduce the facility’s administrative requirements under the current ACFI model. ACFI modelled “Shad called “Shadow Assessments”, where a qualified health professional will complete independent assessments in consultation with both Residents and employees to understand the care needs of each individual. In response to the funding model changes, Anglican Care has taken steps to explore options for allied health and services
which are broader than they have been historically. Trials of these programs are currently underway to allow Anglican Care to be best positioned to provide superior care and services to those we serve. “Consumers will have the choice of a comprehensive range of options individually suited to their wants and needs, rather than pigeonholed into a one size fits all arrangement.” To assist Residents and families during the transition from ACFI to AN-ACC, Anglican Care will commence discussions and planning sessions during care to support the goals and needs each individual identifies for themselves. From that point onwards, Residents will be provided with pathways that will meet those goals and objectives no matter what they are. The Federal Government’s Department of Health has released a series of fact sheets for Residents and families who would like further information on the new AN-ACC funding model: ttps://www.health.gov. au/sites/default/files/ documents/2022/06/how-willan-acc-shadow-assessmentsimpact-residents.pdf or you can also email the Department of Health with any questions, complaints or concerns on ANACC.shadow@health.gov.au.
A Mighty Milestone for St John’s Anglican Parish In 2022, St. John the Evangelist Anglican Church celebrates serving the parish of Raymond Terrace for 160 years. As one of the oldest buildings in Port Stephens still standing today, the thriving Anglican community lives and works at the heart of Raymond Terrace and surrounds. St John’s hosted its first service in September 1862. The church, with its distinctive Muree sandstone building, remains in use today, and additional supplementary buildings have been added to the Sturgeon Street property since the 1970s. In a recent interview with a local newspaper, the Examiner, Parish rector, Fr Steve Niland, said that the history of Anglican worship in Raymond Terrace actually extended 183 years. “The first public church service was held at the original Junction Inn in 1839 in an old rectory in Glenelg Street,” he said. “Edmund Blacket designed the plans for St John church, and the original building was built from sandstone sourced from the nearby Muree quarry”. “The church was consecrated on November 25, 1862, and the pipe organ was Installed the same year. The bell tower was installed in 1882.” In 2012, the old rectory was sold by St John and is now owned by Raymond Terrace Bowling Club. Commemorative activities have been planned by the church committee between May to November, launching with a Sunday service on May 8, commemorating St John’s Day [patron saint] with eucharist plus a bacon and egg brunch. “In June, we have a combined men’s group and mothers’ union dinner to be held on June 28. On July 24, a celebratory Hymnfest followed by a soup and damper dinner,” he said. “A high tea at the parish ministry centre will take place on August 27 from 11 am and on September 25 at 9 am, the official 160th anniversary eucharist service will be followed by morning tea at the parish ministry centre and lunch at Raymond Terrace Bowling Club from 12 noon. “A trivia night will take place on October 25 from 6.30 pm, and celebrations would conclude on November 20 from 4 pm with a Mass at the Junction Inn to commemorate the 183 years of Anglican worship in Raymond Terrace.”
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Wacky Wednesday Brightens Halls of CA Brown Winter may have us feeling a bit down, and COVID and Influenza just won’t let up, but the fantastic staff at CA Brown are chasing the blues away by finding fun and creative ways to bring colour and joy into their day! Wacky Wednesday is just one idea that brings some light-hearted fun for staff turning up to work wearing the most brightly coloured scrubs in their wardrobes! They are a sight to behold, and Residents love seeing what wacky outfits they will wear each week. So, while it is timely to remember to be COVID safe in every way, there is also joy to be had in adding a splash of colour into your day!
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Good Samaritans For some time now, our Residents at CA Brown Retirement Living community have been collecting non-perishable goods to donate to the Samaritans Emergency Relief services. These essential items go toward helping our communities in need. With the current cost of living pressures, donations like the ones pictured here with Marilyn and Annette are vital in assisting individuals and families struggling to provide and put food on the table. It is so wonderful to see the partnerships within Newcastle Anglican coming together to serve and support each other.
A meeting of the Minds Recently, our Samaritans Disability Management Team met for a service planning day which allowed the team to discuss the current services offered for NDIS and disability clients and opportunities to improve and build on these services. ‘We strive hard to achieve continuous professional development for our staff, as the turnaround service is all about improvement for our clients.’ says Tammie Lawler, General Manager, NDIS Services.
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Celebrating the rich tapestry of our community A message from Bishop Peter
Safe volunteering One of the gifts to the bishops at the recent Lambeth Conference was the ministry of the volunteers. With kind words and generous hearts, they cared for our many needs. One of them shared with me on the last day the blessing that being part of the Conference and offering support to them had been. Earlier in the Conference, we had an afternoon on safeguarding people. We were reminded of the grief across the Anglican Communion because of the harm some people have experienced within the family and household of the Church. In many conversations, we were encouraged to do all we needed to make our churches ‘safe houses’ and ‘safe families’. Volunteering is an essential part of our Diocese. Every day we have people making a difference to the people we support by giving their time and talent to making a difference. Over the last 18 months, we have been catching up with the broader community around
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volunteering. The screening, selection, training, support, supervision, and review of volunteers in ways that are similar to paid workers is the base standard. Other churches and dioceses will need to move in the same direction to meet the NSW Child Safe Standards. Given all that we have been through, we are expected to be at the forefront of reform. Each of the bishops is deeply conscious of the demands that this change is having on the parish communities. We are praying for the special grace of the Holy Spirit to sustain us in this transitional work. We encourage people who feel moved to help this work to be completed, who have the gift of administration and encouragement, to offer their time to their clergy for this special project.
Generous relationships One of the blessings of spending an intense time with people for whom English is an alternate language at the Lambeth Conference, was to be encouraged by the ways people
who are invested in each other will communicate. Beginning with a wave and a ‘good morning’, there were many processes of careful speaking and listening to find words that could be understood, to correct misunderstanding, and to find shared meaning. Sometimes this occurred more quickly than it occurred with those for whom English was their common language. There were two ingredients – taking time and wholistic listening. No longer was it possible to rush a conversation or simply rely on the words used. Facial expressions, hand gestures, and spaces were all more important than ever. Generous communication is a key part of being a safe house and a safe family. It is also central to celebrating the wonderful diversity that God has given us. We are each made differently and have different stories. We are enriched by one another who, as God’s beloved, help us see the rich tapestry of being bearers of his image.
Newcastle Anglican Schools Corporation