Leadership and Structure
A young church, invigorated In November the newly elected Maitland-Newcastle senior secondary school leaders came together at Riverwood Downs for a three-day leadership retreat. Bishop Bill, recently recalling the highlights of the year, claimed some of his favourite moments “were to do with the growth in faith and service of our young folks”. He was “deeply encouraged” especially by the group of young leaders who gathered at the leadership retreat. “It’s a moving thing to see our young people realise that a life of faith is not just ‘going to church’, it’s a life of faith. And the thing is they’re young enough to get it. “It is invigorating to…find yourself in the midst of that young church. They want to do better than we have done, and so they should. They need to be astonished at what Jesus actually said and did, and to know something of what he and the Spirit have inspired men and women to do with their lives down the ages. Then they see how they have a place in that story, how they are called to write their chapter. Lord knows, they’ve got the gifts and the generosity of spirit. I’ve seen it,” Bishop Bill said.
The times they are a changing… “Do not be satisfied with little things, because God wants great things!” St Catherine of Siena. For the Catholic community in Singleton the year 2000 saw the creation of St Catherine’s Catholic College, a Kindergarten - Year 12 model, combining three schools into one, with the parish office included in one central location. The parish opened a childcare centre in 2006 which gave parents the option of long day care and preschool before ‘big school’. To be able to enrol in day care and continue to Year 12 is a wonderful pathway for families to be able to utilise. The childcare centre is now St Nicholas Early Education and is run by the diocese, further linking our Catholic community across the region, but maintaining the pathway for families. The relationship between the school and the parish continues to flourish in 2016 with secondary and primary classes combining to attend a weekly parish Mass. Having a daily parish presence within our College community makes being a parishioner and a student so much more real and genuine. The students know our priest, principal and parish community from their baptism through to the end of their secondary education. I feel that each child, however long their journey with our College, leaves with a touch of family and a lasting relationship. The common thread we are forever blessed with is the ‘love of our Good God’.
“There is sound academic evidence that demonstrates that the earlier supports are provided to children at risk and vulnerable families, the more likely it is that strategies can be implemented to prevent the escalation of serious issues that may lead to family breakdown. “The goal of the CatholicCare early intervention service is to provide a range of supports that address the vulnerabilities of the family and to equip family members with the skills to deal with issues as they arise,” Ms Smit said.
� SINERGIE This program provides evidence based supports for foster carers who are caring for children in out of home care. The SINERGIE worker is part of a multi-disciplinary team that provides carers with strategies that give them the skills to work with traumatised children to ensure permanency and stability for children in care. � Restorations Program This program works with our out of home care team to identify children and young people in the foster care program who may be able to be restored to the care
CatholicCare’s new early intervention services include: � Parenting Hub The parenting hub provides evidence based early intervention and support on a fee for service basis for parents in the community. The focus is to educate and empower parents to be able to deal effectively with the daily stresses of raising children and to understand the effects of trauma on the brain during pregnancy.
of one or both of their birth parents. The restorations worker provides intensive support to birth parents to ensure they have the best possible chance of having their children restored to their care. “Our early intervention programs work in collaboration with each of the other valuable services we provide to ensure that we can make a difference in the lives of the people we support,” Ms Smit said.
D I O CE S E O F M A I T LA N D - N E W CA S T LE | Y E A R I N R E V I E W 2016 | 41