Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that this report contains images, or names of deceased persons. names
Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Co-operative respectfully acknowledges that our offices are based on unceded land of the Wotjobaluk, Jaadwa, Jadawadjali, Wergaia and Jupagulk peoples.
We pay our respects to their ancestors, and to Elders, both past and present, and to the future Elders and caretakers of this land. Always was, always will be, Aboriginal Land.
Goolum Goolum, more than just a health service. We strive to provide a holistic model that supports the physical, social, emotional, cultural, and spiritual needs of our people.
CLOSE THE GAP STRONG VOICES FOCUS ON FAMILIES
BUILDING OUR FUTURE
Jake Goodes Chairperson Nola Illin Vice Chairperson
Lachlan Marks Board Director
Adrian Morgan Board Director
Makayla Secombe Board Director
John Gorton Board Director
Kelly Britten Board Director
John Gorton General Manager Chief Executive Officer Director Health Services
Nangga (Hi) Members,
I would like to start by acknowledging the Traditional Owners - Wotjobaluk, Jaadwa, Jadawadjali, Wergaia and Jupagulk peoples on which country we live and breathe.
I would like to pay my respects to our Ancestors, Elders past and present and our emerging future leaders of our community and all other Traditional Owners that live on Country.
As we reflect on the past year, it’s important to acknowledge and honour those loved ones we’ve lost. On behalf of the Board, I extend our deepest condolences to the families and loved ones affected. At the same time, we also celebrate new beginnings, welcoming all the newborns and those who have recently moved into our service area. Your presence enriches our community, and we are grateful to have you with us.
We are now in the second year of our Strategic Plan 2022-2026, with an ongoing focus on four major goals:
- Closing the Gap
- Building our Future
- Focus on Families
- Strong Voices
Each of these goals includes specific deliverables that are regularly monitored by the Board to ensure progress. The Strategic Plan continues to guide Goolum Goolum in resource allocation, setting priorities, and evaluating outcomes.
The Board remains deeply committed to supporting our community, especially in light of the recent referendum and its impact.
Moving forward, we will focus on fostering a sense of unity and healing through exclusive community events, ensuring we create safe spaces for everyone to come together and connect.
Our Board is fully behind these initiatives, and we look forward to celebrating and strengthening our community spirit throughout the year.
I’m excited to report that the Community Hub is progressing well, and we are on track to complete the project in early 2025. This Hub will serve as a vital space for our community, offering a place to gather, share, and grow together.
The Board is eagerly anticipating the handover of this fantastic new resource to the community in the coming year.
Despite the challenging economic landscape, I’m proud to share that GGAC has achieved another excellent financial result.
This success is a testament to our sound investments and careful management of capital commitments.
These outcomes will allow us to continue delivering and expanding services that meet the needs of our community.
The Board is excited to support the next generation of Aboriginal staff through our Entry to Work Strategy.
We are committed to fostering career pathways that will allow young Aboriginal people to grow into leadership roles within our organisation and beyond.
This strategy is a key priority for us as we ensure the longevity and sustainability of our workforce.
Finally, the Board continues to endorse and champion the growth of our services, ensuring that we are meeting the evolving needs of our community. It’s heartening to see our programs expanding and making a real difference in the lives of the people we serve.
Thank you all for your continued support and dedication to Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Cooperative. Together, we are building a stronger, more vibrant future for our community.
Warm regards,
Jake Goodes Chair, Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Cooperative
Dalki Muwill (Hi All)
Another year has gone by and every year we keep saying it is getting busier and busier and this year has been no different.
Goolum has continued to grow and with that it means we have less office space and as most will know now we purchased the building on the corner of Hamilton St and McPherson St. Over the last 12 months we have moved through the planning stage to build stage. It has been an interesting process watching the transformation of the building but also being a part of the team that goes to the site meetings.
These meetings have been informative for my development and the process of listening to the architects and builders work through various issues and other business. I am looking forward to seeing the end result and hopefully it meets community expectations.
We had the transfer of property management from Gerry Smith Real Estate to Horsham Real Estate. This has been a smooth transition that went well.
Thankfully a lot of the staff from Gerry Smiths were absorbed into Horsham Real Estate and we didn’t have to change too many processes and contacts. We still need to continue to collaboratively work together to ensure our tenants have a good experience and their issues raised are dealt with in a timely manner.
Two other areas within Goolum that I manage are the maintenance crew and the justice funded programs. Andrew has done a good job leading the team and does a good job maintaining all our properties as well as maintaining the Elders who are on the CHSP, helping family services clients and maintaining our properties.
The Justice team continues to have good outcomes for community through engagement and activities.
Yallum Yallum has been piloting over this 12-month period with a panel of Elders and Respected persons committing to the program and helping the community members achieve their goals to ensure they stay out of the justice system.
This is a new approach that we hope will have some great outcomes for community members.
Mick has done a great job of implementing the program.
Uncle Ron has been working on the Gulgurn Munja Gariwerd Academy with Brett, Tyson, Sam and Brittany.
This program is held once a month with kids doing cultural activities as well as being exposed to some of the area’s history and other activities.
We continue to have no kids on Youth Justice orders which is a good sign for community. It means we don’t have a lot of kids getting in trouble and we are the only region that can say that.
The Local Justice Worker program has seen a decrease of community on Corrections orders as well which is another good sign. Tyson has started working on getting himself trained to do the Worker Development Program.
This has seen some good outcomes in getting the community to get their fines wiped.
Overall, a pretty solid year and we are looking forward to the new hub opening during the next financial year which will be a great asset for the community to access.
Johnny Gorton – Wotjobaluk General Manager
Another twelve months gone by already! We have had another busy year in the Clinic increasing our services and expanding. Over the past year we have achieved all of our strategic goals with our focus remaining on chronic disease management with a holistic approach to our care.
During the year the clinic opened up on Fridays so for the first time we commenced offering a much needed five-day service.
We currently have 335 ATSI patients registered at the clinic.
Both Doctor Garry Matthews and Doctor David Hunchak continued working with us. I would like to thank them once again for their commitment and care of our patients. Their holistic view of care ensures our patients receive not only the best medical care but are also referred to other services for their social and emotional needs.
We welcomed some new team members including Tracey (Division One Nurse) and Amy as a Maternal Child Health Nurse. We also expanded our Allied Health Services by recruiting Mary Jean offering Speech Pathology for the first time in both Horsham and Stawell.
Selina has continued her studies as our Women’s Health Nurse and Barney qualified as a Division One Nurse after many years of study. A big congratulations to Barney as this is an amazing achievement! We are so proud of him!
We underwent our three- year AGPAL audit which we achieved without any issues- the auditors were very complimentary about many aspects of our clinic and service which is a credit to the whole team.
Achieving this demonstrates that our clinic is operating at the highest acceptable level and meets all the required RACGP standards.
The Clinic continues to strive to provide a high-quality range of services to the Aboriginal Community in a culturally safe manner, assisting individuals to achieve optimal health outcomes.
We strive to do this by completing as many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) Health Checks and GP Management Plans as possible to assist with recognising, diagnosing and treating chronic illnesses. We did 179 ATSI health checks and 47 GP Management Plans throughout the year.
This goal is supported and complimented by our Allied Health Services - Diabetes Educator, Podiatrist, Optometrist, Paediatrician, Audiologist and Speech Pathologist. Our Maternal Child Health Nurses Jenny, Eliza and Amy continued working two days a week outreaching to Stawell on a weekly basis. The increase in our Maternal Child Health services once again over the past year has meant that there has been time for parenting classes, more intense individual support as well as the delivery of education sessions for families.
Complimenting our approach to recognising an individual’s health needs is our focus on prevention. Health Promotion is always a part of our core work as we continue to strive to inform and educate people about achieving good health outcomes.
We held varied activities/education sessions during the year with many focuses and had the Breast Screen Van (The Beautiful Shawl program) visiting again. The clinic has worked in with our Social and Emotional Wellbeing Team also on sending our ‘Healthy Lifestyle’ messages – thank you to Toni for co-ordinating this. Barney, Jezza and Dr David also continued to offer Men’s Health Days which were well attended and we held our Children’s Health Days.
Of note, we also assisted community members to attend medical appointments both locally and regionally on 1,628 occasions.
Financially we continue to be supported through the Indigenous Aboriginal Health Program, the Department of Health, the Indigenous Health Services Pharmacy Support Program, Western Victoria Primary Health Network and RWAV. We would like to thank these bodies for their ongoing support as well as our peak body VACCHO who keeps us up with contemporary practices and guides our quality improvement.
We currently have 10 registered clients in this program which provides support to eligible Elders through maintenance, gardening, shopping and assistance with home help. We also provide social groups and outings, mainly our Ladies Group which is held weekly.
We said good-bye to Di Sultan during the year and thank her very much for her services and we welcome Stumpy back on board.
I would like to thank Kylie, Stumpy, Toni and Jeremy for their work within the CHSP program.
Ellysha continues to advocate and assist our community members to navigate the NDIS.
Ellysha has assisted 59 individual community members to become registered with the NDIS which is an amazing effort. The impact on those individuals and families cannot be underestimated and I would like to thank Ellysha for her ongoing commitment and hard work.
We became the lead Practice for our newly formed WDAC ( Western District Aboriginal Collective) which meant I held and attended meetings with the other Practice Managers in the Wimmera/South West region ( 7 in total) The formation of WDAC has been a long time coming and it has been so beneficial to get together with the other ACCO’s sharing strengths/gaps/work practices with the aim of advocating for better, increased medical services to our community members collectively in the
Finally, I’d like to thank the clinic team- Dr Garry and Dr David, Barney, Carol, Louise, Selina, Tracey, Jenny, Eliza, Amy, Toni and Jeremy for their work and care of our patients- you often go ‘above and beyond’.
I would also like to thank the Board, our CEO, the other Directors, our Finance, Quality and Administration teams and work colleagues for their support and look forward to working together over the next twelve months.
Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Co-Operative’s (GGAC) long-term financial objectives are to continue to improve its financial performance whilst reinvesting funds into its asset base with a focus on the co-operative’s future. While GGAC continues to strive in achieving its vision of; more than just a health service, striving to provide a holistic model that supports the physical, social, emotional, cultural, and spiritual needs of our people.
Reflecting on the year having been with GGAC now for just over 12 months, I remain particularly impressed with the dedication of the GGAC staff to provide the best level of service and support to our community. Our biggest asset, our staff, which is also our biggest cost, must be congratulated for their continued commitment to supporting and keeping our community safe. The organization continues to see growth in programing which also means an increase in staffing with 65 staff employed with GGAC at the end of June 2024.
Over the last 12 months the organisation has continued to strategically invest funds into its asset base with the major investment being the redevelopment of 36 Hamilton Street (Community Hub). The development of the Community Hub at close to $5 million dollars is one of the biggest projects undertaken by GGAC and will be a wonderful and safe space for our community to gather, whilst also providing additional space to deliver our services. Construction is progressing well, and we expect the project to be completed and available to the community early next year. The development has created a significant amount of excitement for the community, and I look forward to seeing the Hub open for all the community to enjoy.
Financially it was another successful year with GGAC reporting an operating surplus of $1.72M. We acknowledge that this result would not be possible without our funding partners at both the Commonwealth and State levels who we continue to maintain very strong relationships with. I would also like to acknowledge and congratulate the corporate team for all their hard work across Finance, Corporate Resources, Human Resources and Quality Assurance. With another clean end of year audit, it is a great result that we should all be proud of. GGAC continues to maintain a strong cash position, and whilst we expect that this will decline as GGAC dips into its cash reserves to fund the completion of the Community Hub the organisations cash balance remains in a healthy position. GGAC also maintains a strong balance sheet with a current asset ratio of $2.4 of current assets for every $1 of current liabilities. For detailed financial information, please refer to the Financial Statements.
Rhys Bibby Finance & Corporate Services
What a year we have had! Our Community Services and Engagement programs have continued to provide as many opportunities for community to gather and celebrate, as well as supporting Children, Youth, Elders and Families in a holistic way. The Community Engagement team have continued to grow our community programs, and we have seen some amazing events and activities offered to community and we can’t thank our community enough for supporting these activities with huge attendances, throughout the region. You may remember some of these activities/events (to name a few) since the last report.
2024 NAIDOC week celebrations - To open our 2024 NAIDOC week
Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Cooperative and Barengi Gadjin Land Council hosted a NAIDOC Week celebration at Dimboola Recreation Reserve for all our Mob on the Monday. With a theme of ‘Keep the fire Burning! Blak, loud and proud’, it was a day of traditional activities, including a Welcome to Country, smoking ceremony, flag-raising, boomerang painting, music and a barbecue lunch. Attended by a huge crowd from all over, the highlight was witnessing the Dalki Murrup Cultural Dance troop present the crowd with an amazing display of dance and storytelling.
NAIDOC
The Wednesday evening of NAIDOC saw the official opening of Goolum’s annual NAIDOC Art Exhibition. In partnership with Horsham Art Gallery and Horsham Town Hall, once again this exhibition highlighted the amazing artistic talents of local artist from throughout the region. Exhibition was on display for all to see from JulySeptember 2024.
Early in 2024, Goolum Community Services staff and selected members of the community embarked on ambitious film production project, highlighting our beautiful landscape and celebrating our local Indigenous Cultural Heritage. At the 2024 NAIDOC Art Exhibition, we were very proud to launch our film production, to the attending audience. The finished product, a beautiful short film highlighting waterways throughout areas of Wotjobaluk Country. A Blue Goanna Production, BUNJIL’s VIEW also highlights the beautiful Land Art of renowned artist, Lowell Hunter (Salty One). Filmed on location in Dimboola, Antwerp, and Jeparit, following the waterways of Barringgi Gadyin (Wimmera River), highlighting Dadidanja (Pink Lake), Gurru (Lake Hindmarsh), Djurite (Mt Arapies) and Gariwerd (Grampians).
Kids and families from all over the region spent the school holiday periods enjoying teachings in dance and cultural learning. Always a popular program of our Community Engagement Services, we have continued to embrace the partnership with the Chunky Move dance company and look forward to the 2025 program.
Exceeding all expectations, Goolum partnered with over 40 Organisations, Services and Universities to facilitate engagement with local Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander students (Year 7 – 12) and regional schools from throughout Greater Country Western Victoria.
Our Pathways Expo highlights a range of opportunities for local Indigenous students in the areas on Tertiary education support and scholarships, Traineeships and Careers. This year, we had an added emphasis on connecting with Universities and TAFE’s and the courses, supports and opportunities they offer for our local Mob. On the night before this year’s Pathways Expo, we gathered in the Aunty Irene Harrison Gathering Place to yarn with staff from Victorian and Interstate tertiary education providers, building relationships and highlighting prospects for enhanced educational opportunities for all.
As the name suggests, a small group of the Stawell Mob gather on a Monday to motivate each other in a variety of healthy lifestyle activities. This is popular weekly program, grows in number through the school holidays, with family groups converging on the Stawell HUB for a morning/afternoon of fun activities. The growing group enjoy many walks and excursions, starting the week on a positive note. Most weeks, the activity is finished up with delicious meals prepared by staff using fresh and healthy ingredients.
Through our ongoing Community Service in both Stawell and Horsham, we have continued to notice an ever-increasing number of families, experiencing food insecurity, requesting support to access food and basic household provisions. Our, now established Community Pantry program provides a culturally safe and dignified place for our Community to access pantry items or whole hampers, if needed.
This has been another example of the team’s ability to adapt and promptly respond to the ever-changing needs of our Community.
Our new Youth-led and focussed after school program has been a highlight of this year’s calendar of activities. Commencing in the 2nd half of the year, these ‘Hang-out’ sessions are bringing together our youth for fun & games. In the cooler months we have had movie nights, Koori-oke, games night and more.
Our annual community gathering event for all the Mob living on Wotjobaluk Country and all those living off Country, with links to our region. This event gives our community a chance to gather in celebration of our connected strength-putting our Hand Up, not only to offer support to others but seek social & emotional well-being support from others for ourselves in times of need.
Daughters, Mothers, Sisters and Elders come together fortnightly (Stawell and Horsham) to gather and learn. This project focuses on cultural knowledge and learning’s, partaking in local excursions, arts and crafts and hosting guest speakers on a regular basis.
During workshops, much emphasis is focused on Women’s empowerment, achievements, and abilities, creating a positive atmosphere for all women involved.
Dedicated as always, our Horsham and Stawell based Social and Emotional Well-Being (SEWB) team worked tirelessly to provide targeted therapeutic interventions to those in need, both through internal supports such as Counselling, Alcohol & other Drugs and Mental Health support, as well as, supporting connection and advocacy to external services, to address housing issues, transport disadvantage, medical access, and family connections.
Stawell Community HUB
It would be remiss of me not to report on the growth in the team’s capacity to respond to the need of our Community in Stawell. Our Stawell support team initiated a variety of community engagement and support programs this year. Under the watchful eye of Mel, our Stawell community remains well supported with visiting Goolum staff from the Horsham office, attending to the daily needs and empowerment of a strong and connected community in the Northern Gariwerd region.
We have seen some good people leave this year, move positions within the team, and we have also, welcomed some bright new faces, allowing us to grow our service in responding to Community need.
Thank you to the whole team for striving for excellence and providing the Community we serve with another year of service, engagement, and support. A big thank you to all our partners, both locally and state-wide, we are so appreciative of the support given to us throughout the year. Moving into 2025, our team is more motivated than ever to provide the community with opportunities to gather, celebrate, grow, learn, and have fun together.
Stay
safe and happy,
Dean O’Loughlin Director Community Services
Our Early Years programs have been busy over the past 12 months. We have maintained our team members and are excited to welcome Matt Cockerall back to the Early Years team.
We are also delighted to have Lakeisha (Meishy) Newell join us each week as a VET student for 2024 and 2025.
Meishy is undertaking her Certificate 3 In Early Years and we believe she will be a fantastic Early Years educator in the future.
Our playgroup programs in Stawell and Horsham continue to offer fun, play based activities to children and families focusing on building our children’s development while supporting their cultural identity.
Our playgroup is developed, based on the principles and outcomes of the Marrung Aboriginal Education plan and closing the gap targets:
Target 3 children are engaged in high quality, culturally appropriate early childhood education in their early years. Target 4 children thrive in their early years
Delkaia Aboriginal Best Start continues to make improvements and positive changes in cultural safety and cultural education being delivered within our kindergarten programs.
We also focus on Allied health services and making small changes with the medical team/ allied health service programs that GGAC offer. We have recently extended our reach into Yarriambiack Shire, which is the first time for our Best Start program.
The bupup balak wayipungang wayipungitj’s encourage teachers to learn about Aboriginal culture and perspectives through relationship building with families and community, professional development, podcasts, webinars, multiple sources to increase their cultural knowledge that can be shared within their curriculum at their kindergarten.
Funding has been received to develop and deliver toy libraries in Horsham and Stawell and will be operational from September/October 2024.
Our toy library program will provide fun toys and games that will support our children to be confident, involved learners and effective communicators which are two fundamental learning outcome areas of the
This service works with carers and children that have remained in the placement arrangement where the placement has stability and the possibility for a long-term care outcome. Supports are provided to sustain and maintain the care arrangement to prevent placement breakdowns.
Cases contracted to Goolum have remained stable over the course of the year. Goolum had positive outcomes in the Children’s court with one child moved to a Long Term Out of Home Care Order and one child was granted a Permanent Care
We would like to thank the carers who provide long term care to children unable
This service works with carers and children where a child/ren has recently come into the kinship carers home. We provide supports that help set up the placement and ongoing supports to ensure the placement is established and maintained. Goolum has continued to receive minimal referrals into the service over the course of the year. This continues to be considered a positive outcome for community as the service is required when children are unable to reside in the care of parents.
The OoHC Cultural Leader provides a service to Aboriginal children that are in foster care. When Aboriginal children are in foster care, they are usually placed with non-Aboriginal families and don’t receive the cultural supports that they need and deserve. This service connects the child and the foster family with Goolum Goolum and/or Aboriginal Agencies to ensure that the child is given every opportunity to engage with their community, connect with their family and learn cultural practices. This helps to give them a sense of belonging and identify with who they are as an Aboriginal child or young person. This service continues to be provided to ensure there is crucial cultural oversight for these vulnerable children.
Cultural Plans are for Aboriginal Children that live in an OoHC arrangement, to ensure that the child has documentation of who they are, where they are from and that they are given every opportunity to embrace their culture while they are living in OoHC. This service is highly significant to prevent the loss of an identity and to provide our children with the information they need for their cultural journey’s as they grow up not being able to live at home.
Goolum continues to drive the development of robust cultural support plans, across the state the Wimmera continues to outperform other areas across the state.
The therapeutic team provide play therapy to children who are in need. The program commenced in 2022 and has been running with success for this period. The program uses the Interplay framework to allow children to use play to work through trauma and adverse life experiences. The program continues to be in demand with an ongoing waitlist.
AFLDM
AFLDM - The AFLDM program is for families that have Child Protection involvement. The families will be offered a family led meeting to discuss the protective concerns and to develop their own plan of how they can address the concerns. Throughout the process the family will be well supported by an Aboriginal Community Convener that helps with understanding the Child Protection processes and will advocate for you where needed.
Njerna Gap-Gap Dyirr
Utilising the AFLDM model Njerna Gap-Gap Dyirr invites families to come around the table to explore what is working well for the family and what supports they required. Njerna Gap-Gap Dyirr is open to community to self-refer and all new families opened across family services and family violence are encouraged to engage with the program.
The respite program encourages community members to undertake assessments to be supported to provide respite to children in the community. The program is flexible and able to respond quickly when a parent of carer has unique circumstances that prevent them being able to care for their children for short periods of time. We would like to thank the carers who are part of the program for their help and support.
Working with CSO’s who provide intake services to victim survivors, perpetrators of family violence and children and families who are struggling, TOD offers an integrated service delivery response and initial assessment to reduce immediate risks and provide a smooth transition to case management services.
Goolum has received additional funding to increase practitioners situated in the Orange Door due to ongoing demand. Goolum is also responsible for building cultural safety for Aboriginal people accessing the Orange Door, the practice leader facilitates training to all services in the Orange Door and external services accessing the Orange Door.
Family violence case management
Case management services support Aboriginal individuals, couples and families that have experienced family violence. The program provides therapeutic responses that are culturally safe and appropriate. Family violence case management has continued to support family violence victim survivors and perpetrators while working as part of an integrated response.
As we end the 2023-2024 year, we would like to thank the Family Services Team for their ongoing commitment and dedication to the community.
Sam Darcy
Family Services
GGAC Family Services staff member Shannon Dempsey passed away peacefully on Sunday 29th September.
Shannon was a valued employee, colleague and community member of Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Co-operative.
Shannon had immense pride working for her community and was proud of being able to support them within her role.
Shannon was passionate about her responsibility as an Aboriginal Kinship Carer.
Our thoughts are with Michael, Harley, Brooklyn and extended Harrison/Dempsey families during this time.
We continue to rigorously evaluate each component of our quality assurance system. This ongoing evaluation helps us identify potential risks that may require attention or mitigation. By adopting a risk-based approach, we ensure that our quality system is not only continually improved and strengthened but also aligned with external reference standards. This proactive stance empowers Goolum to make well-informed decisions and uphold high standards of quality.
As of the 1 July 2024, the new Social Services Regulator has replaced the Human Services Regulator and provided decision-making separation between the responsibilities of the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing and decisions exercised by the regulator. Services covered include:
•Children, youth and families
•Family violence
•Homelessness
•Supported residential services
•Disability services not within the National Disability Insurance Scheme.
This means Goolum is now focusing on ensuring we continue to adhere to the new standards by ensuring our Internal audits have been modified appropriately. To ensure safe and healthy, business leaders, health and safety committee members and all employees have continued to seek out appropriate information to ensure adherence to OHS policy and regulation obligations and due diligence requirements.
This allows for a safer workplace for all Goolum staff and community. An example of this has been to include a ‘quick exit’ feature to the Goolum website for community and user safety.
Goolum demonstrates that current processes and procedures effectively meet the standards. Through testing and evaluation, we have identified strong community service. With continued training and professional development, Goolum grows in many more ways than one. We consistently strive for quality and drive continuous improvement.
Mary-Anne Lovera Quality Assurance Officer
An amazing time of celebrations and Community connection at Goolum Goolum’s 40th Anniversary. It began with a Family Day on Sunday, 11th February. We continued the celebrations with an Anniversary Cabaret on Friday, 5th April.
Held every school holidays, our kids have a ball taking part in contemporary dance lessons with educator Ngioka Bunda-Heath and her team.
To open our NAIDOC week on Monday, Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Cooperative and Barengi Gadjin Land Council hosted a NAIDOC Week celebration at Dimboola Recreation Reserve for all our Mob. With a theme of ‘Keep the fire Burning! Blak, loud and proud’, it was a day of traditional activities, including a Welcome to Country, smoking ceremony, flag-raising, boomerang painting, music and a barbecue lunch.
Art Exhibition
The Wednesday evening of NAIDOC saw the official opening of Goolum’s annual NAIDOC Art Exhibition. In partnership with Horsham Art Gallery & Horsham Town Hall, once again this exhibition highlighted the amazing artistic talents of local artist from throughout the region.
We are so thrilled with how outstanding this day went, supported by Community, Businesses, Schools, Universities & Tafes & many varied Organisations. Our expo continues to grow each year and again it was one of the largest in Regional Victoria just for our students which is a testament to you all for supporting our event.
A highlight of Goolum’s event calendar, our Back 2 School event was held in Stawell & Horsham in January. Plenty of give-aways for kids and families to get ready for learning, – school bags, lunch boxes, water-bottles…and lots of smiling faces.
GOOLUM GOOLUM ABORIGINAL CO-OPERATIVE LIMITED
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Your directors present their report on the co-operative for the financial year ended 30 June 2024.
Directors
The names of the directors in office at any time during, or since the end of the year are:
Mr Jake Goodes (Chairperson)
Mr John Gorton
Mr Lachlan Marks - Secretary
Ms Nola Illin - Deputy Chair
Mr Adrian Morgan
Ms Kelly Britten
Ms Makayla Secombe
Directors have been in office since the start of the financial year to the date of this report unless otherwise stated.
Directors Meetings
Board Meetings
Directors meeting attendance for the year was as follows: No. Eligible No. to attendAttended
Mr Jake Goodes108
Mr John Gorton 1010
Mr Lachlan Marks1010
Ms Nola Illin 107
Mr Adrian Morgan107
Ms Kelly Britten 104
Ms Makayla Secombe107
Result
ThenetoperatingprofitoftheGoolumGoolumAboriginalCo-operativeLimitedforthefinancialyearamountedto$3,145,507(2023surplus $1,642,802).
Activities
Theprincipalactivitiesoftheco-operativeinthecourseofthe yearhavebeentoprovideeffectivehealth,welfareandfamilyservicestothe aboriginalcommunityintheWimmeraregion,tradingundertheCo-operativesNationalLawApplicationAct2013andCo-Operatives National Regulations. No significant change in the nature of these activities occurred during the year.
Events subsequent to balance date
Nomattersorcircumstanceshavearisensincetheendofthefinancialyearwhichsignificantlyaffectedormaysignificantlyaffectthe operations of the Co-operative, the results of those operations, or the state of affairs of the Co-operative in future financial years.
Likely developments
Likelydevelopmentsintheoperationsoftheco-operativeandtheexpectedresultsofthoseoperationsinfuturefinancialyearshavenotbeen included in this report as the inclusion of such information is likely to result in unreasonable prejudice to the co-operative.
Environmental issues
The co-operative’s operationsarenotregulatedbyanysignificantenvironmentalregulationunderalawoftheCommonwealthorofastateor territory.
Dividends
No dividends have been declared for the year ended 30 June 2024.
Indemnifying Officers or Auditor
Noindemnitieshavebeengivenorinsurancepremiumspaid,duringorsincetheendofthefinancialyear,foranypersonwhoisorhasbeen an officer or auditor of the co-operative.
1
GOOLUM GOOLUM ABORIGINAL CO-OPERATIVE LIMITED STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
GOOLUM GOOLUM ABORIGINAL CO-OPERATIVE LIMITED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
OF CASH FLOWS
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES
Receipts from customers and grantees 11,359,185 10,177,961 Interest received 342,106 70,203 Payments to suppliers and others (2,111,052) (1,993,113) Employee expenses (5,560,796) (4,903,161) GST received/(paid) (674,739) (641,529)
Net cash provided by / (used in) operating activities 143,354,704 2,710,361
CASH FLOW FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES Payments for property, plant & equipment (4,898,476) (601,408) Proceeds from sale of property, plant & equipment - 4,544
of financial assets 1,299,626 (4,049,735)
Net cash (used in) investing activities (3,598,850) (4,646,599)
Net increase/(decrease) in cash held (244,146) (1,936,238) Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year 1,393,109 3,329,347 Cash and cash equivalents at end of year41,148,963 1,393,109
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Note 1: Material accounting policies
ThefinancialreportcoversGoolumGoolumAboriginalCo-operativeLimited.GoolumGoolumAboriginalCo-operative Limitedisaco-operativeformedundertheCo-operativesNationalLawApplicationAct2013.TheaddressoftheCooperative's registered office is 43 Hamilton Street, Horsham VIC 3400.
Basis of presentation
Statement of compliance
Thedirectorshavepreparedthefinancialstatementsonthebasis thattheCooperativeisanon-reportingentitybecause therearenousersdependentongeneralpurposefinancialstatements.Thefinancialstatementsarethereforespecial purposefinancialstatementsthathavebeenpreparedinorderto meetingtherequirementsoftheCo-operatives NationalLawApplicationAct2013TheCooperativeisanot-for-profitentityforfinancialreportingpurposesunder Australian Accounting Standards.
Thefinancialstatementshavebeenpreparedinaccordancewiththe mandatoryAustralianAccountingStandards applicabletoentitiesreportingundertheCo-operativesNational LawApplicationAct2013andCorporationsAct2001 andthematerialaccountingpoliciesdisclosedbelow,whichthe directorshavedeterminedareappropriatetomeetthe needs of members. Such accounting policies are consistent with the previous period unless stated otherwise.
Basis of measurement
Thefinancialstatementshavebeenpreparedonthehistoricalcost convention,asmodifiedbytherevaluationofcertain classes of property, plant and equipment.
Functional and presentation currency
The financial statements are presented in Australian dollars, which is the Co-operative's functional currency.
Use of estimates and judgements
ThepreparationoffinancialstatementsinconformitywithAASB'srequiresmanagementtomakejudgements,estimates andassumptionsthataffecttheapplicationofaccountingpolicies andthereportedamountsofassets,liabilities,income and expenses. Actual results may differ from these estimates.
Estimatesandunderlyingassumptionsarereviewedonanongoingbasis.Revisionstoaccountingestimatesare recognised in the period in which the estimates are revised and in any future periods affected.
Informationaboutassumptionsandestimationuncertaintiesthathave asignificantriskofresultinginamaterial adjustmentwithinthenextfinancialyear'sincludedinnotes1(a) revenuerecognition,note1(f)employeebenefits,note 1(c) receivables and note 1(e) depreciation.
a) Revenue recognition
Oninitialrecognitionofanasset,theCo-operativerecognisesrelatedamounts(beingcontributionsbyowners,lease liability,financialinstruments,provisions,revenueofcontractliabilitiesarisingfromcontractswithcustomers).TheCooperativerecognisesincomeimmediatelyinprofitorlossasthedifferencebetweentheinitialcarryingamountofthe asset and the related amount.
Operating grants, donations and bequests
Whentheco-operativereceivesoperatinggrantrevenue,donationsorbequests,itassesseswhetherthecontractis enforceable and has sufficiently specific performance obligations in accordance with AASB 15.
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Note 1: Material accounting policies (Cont)
a) Revenue recognition (cont.)
Whenboththeseconditionsaresatisfied,theco-operative:-identifieseachperformanceobligationrelatingtothegrantrecognisesacontractliabilityforitsobligationsundertheagreement-recognisesrevenueasitsatisfiesitsperformance obligations.Wherethecontractisnotenforceableordoesnothavesufficientlyspecificperformanceobligations,thecooperative:
-recognisestheassetreceivedinaccordancewiththerecognitionrequirementsofotherapplicableaccounting standards;
-recognisesrelatedamounts(beingcontributionsbyowners,leaseliability,financialinstruments,provisions, revenue or contract liability arising from contract with customer);
-recognisesincomeimmediatelyinprofitorlossasthedifferencebetweentheinitialcarryingamountoftheasset and the related amount.
Capital grants
Whentheco-operativereceivesacapitalgrant,itrecognisesaliabilityfortheexcessoftheinitialcarryingamountofthe financialassetreceivedoveranyrelatedamounts(beingcontributionsbyowners,leaseliability,financialinstruments, provisions,revenueorcontractliabilityarisingfromacontractwithacustomer)recognisedunderotherAustralian Accounting Standards.
Theco-operativerecognisesincomeinprofitorlosswhenorastheco-operativesatisfiesitsobligationsundertheterms of the grant.
Interest income
Interest income is recognised on a time proportionate basis that considers the effective yield of the financial asset, which allocates interest over the relevant period.
b) Cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents include cash on hand; deposits held at call with banks, other short term highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less.
c) Trade receivables
Trade receivables are recognised at fair value, less provision for impairment. Trade receivables are generally due for settlement within 30 days.
Collectabilityoftradereceivablesisreviewedonanongoingbasis.Debtswhichareknowntobeuncollectiblearewritten offbyreducingthecarryingamountdirectly.Anallowanceaccount(provisionforimpairment)isusedwhenthereis objectiveevidencethattheco-operativewillnotbeabletocollectallamountsdueaccordingtotheoriginaltermsofthe receivables.Theamountoftheimpairmentlossisrecognisedinthestatementofcomprehensiveincomewithinother expenses.
Portable long service leave scheme receivable
Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Co-operative is a Participant Employer of the Portable Long Service Leave Scheme (PLSLS). As a Participant Employer, Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Co-operative contributes a quarterly levy to PLSLS. The quarterly levy amount is equivalent to 1.65% of the time worked and ordinary wages paid to their employees. Pursuant to Portable Long Service Leave Regulations 2020, the PLSLS has an obligation to Participant Employers to pay from the Scheme, benefits to them as a reimbursement for long service leave paid or payable to their employees. In accordance with the Scheme Rules, the Participant Employers remain legally responsible for long service leave obligations.
9
Note 1: Material accounting policies (Cont)
c) Trade receivables (cont.)
Notwithstanding, in accordance with Accounting Standards, given the existence of the Scheme and the rules of the Scheme, where the long service leave obligation will be reimbursed by the Scheme, a reimbursement asset shall be recognised when and only when the reimbursement is virtually certain. Accounting standards specifically require the reimbursement to be treated as a separate asset that shall not exceed the value of the provision.
d) Trade and other payables
TheseamountsrepresentliabilitiesforgoodsandservicesprovidedtotheCo-operativepriortotheendofthefinancial year which are unpaid. The amounts are unsecured and are usually paid within 30 days of recognition.
e) Property, plant & equipment
Eachclassofproperty,plantandequipmentiscarriedatcostorfair valueless,whereapplicable,anyaccumulated depreciation and impairment losses.
Property
Freeholdlandandbuildingsareshownattheirfairvalue(beingthe amountforwhichanassetcouldbeexchanged betweenknowledgeablewillingpartiesinanarm'slengthtransaction),basedonperiodic,valuationsbyexternal independent valuers, less subsequent depreciation for buildings.
Increasesinthecarryingamountarisingonrevaluationoflandandbuildingsarecreditedtoarevaluationreservein equity.Decreasesthatoffsetpreviousincreasesofthesameassetarechargedagainstfairvaluereservesdirectlyin equity; all other decreases are charged to the statement of comprehensive income.
Anyaccumulateddepreciationatthedateofrevaluationiseliminatedagainstthegrosscarryingamountoftheassetand the net amount is restated to the revalued amount of the asset.
Plant and equipment
Plant and equipment is measured on the cost basis less depreciation and impairment losses.
Thecarryingamountofplantandequipmentisreviewedannuallyby directorstoensureitisnotinexcessofthe recoverableamountfromtheseassets.Therecoverableamountisassessedonthebasisoftheexpectednetcashflows thatwillbereceivedfromtheassetsemploymentandsubsequent disposal.Theexpectednetcashflowshavebeen discounted to their present value in determining recoverable amounts.
Subsequentcostsareincludedintheasset'scarryingamountorrecognisedasaseparateasset,asappropriate,only whenitisprobablethatfutureeconomicbenefitsassociatedwith theitemwillflowtotheco-operativeandthecostof theitemcanbemeasuredreliably.Allotherrepairsandmaintenancearechargedtothestatementofcomprehensive income during the financial period in which they are incurred.
Depreciation of fixed assets.
The depreciation amount of all fixed assets, excluding freehold land, buildings and building improvements, are depreciated on a straight line basis over their useful lives to the entity commencing from the time the asset is held ready for use. Buildings and building improvements are depreciated on a diminishing value basis over their useful lives to the entity. The depreciation rates used for each class of depreciable assets are:
The assets' residual values and useful lives are reviewed, and adjusted if appropriate, at each balance date. An asset's carrying amount is written down immediately to its recoverable amount if the asset's carrying amount is greater than its estimated recoverable amount.
THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Note 1: Material accounting policies (Cont)
e) Property, plant & equipment (cont.)
Gains and losses on disposals are determined by comparing proceeds with the carrying amount. These gains or losses are included in the statement of comprehensive income. When revalued assets are sold, amounts included in the revaluation reserve relating to that asset are transferred to retained earnings.
f) Employee benefits
(i) Short-term obligations
Liabilities for wages and salaries, including non-monetary benefits and annual leave expected to be settled within 12 months after the end of the period are measured at the amounts expected to be paid when the liabilities are settled. The liability for annual leave is recognised in the provision for employee benefits, all other short-term employee benefit obligations are presented as payables.
(ii) Other long-term employee benefit obligations
Provision is made for employees’ annual leave entitlements not expected to be settled wholly before 12 months after the end of the annual reporting period in which the employees render the related service. Other long-term employee benefits (eg. long service leave) are measured at the present value of the expected future payments to be made to employees. Expected future payments incorporate anticipated future wage and salary levels, durations of service and employee departures, and are discounted at rates determined by reference to end-of-reporting-period market yields on government bonds that have maturity dates approximating the terms of the obligations. Any remeasurements of other long-term employee benefit obligations due to changes in assumptions are recognised in profit or loss in the periods in which the changes occur. The Co-operative's obligations for long-term employee benefits are presented as non-current provisions in its statement of financial position, except where the Co-operative does not have an unconditional right to defer settlement for at least 12 months after the reporting date, in which case the obligations are presented as current provisions.
service leave portability
Employees entitled to the long service leave portability scheme will have their long service leave entitlement held by the scheme from the 1st of July 2019. If the employee is entitled to a higher benefit of long service leave or is not entitled to the scheme, their benefit will be calculated per the short-term or other long-term employee benefits.
A liability is recognised for benefits accruing to employees in respect of wages and salaries, annual leave and long service leave when it is probable that settlement will be required and they are capable of being measured reliably.
Liabilities recognised in respect of employee benefits expected to be settled within 12 months, are measured at their nominal values using the remuneration rate expected to apply at the time of settlement.
Liabilities recognised in respect of employee benefits which are not expected to be settled within 12 months are measured as the present value of the estimated future cash outflows to be made by the Co-operative in respect of services provided by employees up to reporting date.
The Portable Long Service Leave Scheme (PLSLS) was established to, in general, administer and manage the Scheme to provide portability of long service leave across the Victorian community service, contract cleaning and security sectors.
Whilst Goolum Goolum is a Participant Employer under the PLSLS, the Scheme rules stipulate that employees’ long service leave rests with the Participant Employer. A provision for long service leave is required to be recognised at the present value of the long service leave obligation. In accordance with accounting standards, the reimbursement asset is required to be recognised as a separate asset and the accounting policy for this has been summarised in Note 1(c).
g) Goods and services tax (GST)
Revenues, expenses and assets are recognised net of the amount of GST. Cashflowsarepresentedinthestatementofcashflowsonagrossbasis,exceptfortheGSTcomponentofinvestingand financing activities, which are disclosed as operating cash flows.
GOOLUM
Note 1: Material accounting policies (Cont)
h) Key judgements and estimates
Impairment
The Co-operative assesses impairment at the end of each reporting period by evaluation of conditions and events specific to the Co-operative that may be indicative of impairment triggers. Recoverable amounts of relevant assets are reassessed using value-in-use calculations which incorporates various key assumptions.
No impairment has been recognised for the financial year 2024.
Provision for impairment of receivables
Management has completed an assessment of recoverability and a provision for impairment is recognised when there is objective evidence that an individual trade receiveable is impaired. These amounts have been included in other expense items.
Employee benefits
Goolum Goolum applies significant judgment when classifying its employee benefit liabilities. For the purposes of measurement, AASB 119: Employee Benefits defines obligations for short-term employee benefits as obligations expected to be settled wholly before 12 months after the end of the annual reporting period in which the employees render the related service. As the Co-operative expects that all of its employees would use all of their annual leave entitlements earned during a reporting period before 12 months after the end of the reporting period, the Co-operative believes that obligations for annual leave entitlements satisfy the definition of short-term employee benefits and, therefore, can be measured at the (undiscounted) amounts expected to be paid to employees when the obligations are settled.
Employee benefit liabilities are classified as a non-current liability if Goolum Goolum has a conditional right to defer payment beyond 12 months. Long service leave entitlements (for staff who have not yet exceeded the minimum vesting period) fall into this category. Goolum Goolum applies significant judgment when measuring its employee benefit liabilities. The Co-operative applies judgement to determine when it expects its employee entitlements to be paid. With reference to historical data, if the co-operative does not expect entitlements to be paid within 12 months, the entitlement is measured at its present value, being the expected future payments to employees. Expected future payments incorporate anticipated future wage and salary levels, durations of service and employee departures, and are discounted at rates determined by reference to market yields on government bonds at the end of the reporting period. All other entitlements are measured at their nominal value.
Performance obligations under AASB 15
To identify a performance obligation under AASB 15, the promise must be sufficiently specific to be able to determine when the obligation is satisfied. Management exercises judgement to determine whether the promise is sufficiently specific by taking into account any conditions specified in the arrangement, explicit or implicit, regarding the promised goods or services. In making this assessment, management includes the nature/type, cost/value, quantity and the period of transfer to the goods or services promised.
GOOLUM GOOLUM ABORIGINAL CO-OPERATIVE LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Note 2: Revenue from ordinary activities
Note 3: Expenses ordinary activities
GOOLUM GOOLUM ABORIGINAL CO-OPERATIVE LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Note 4: Cash and cash equivalents
Cashattheendofthefinancialyearasshowninthestatementofcash flowsisreconciledtothe balance sheet as follows:
Note 6: Trade and other receivables
GOOLUM GOOLUM ABORIGINAL CO-OPERATIVE LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Note 7: Other assets
Note 8: Property, plant and equipment Freehold
The co-operative's land and buildings were revalued at 30 June 2022 by certified independent valuers, Preston Rowe Paterson. Valuations were made on the basis of fair market value using direct comparison. The revaluation movement was adjusted against the revaluation reserve in equity.
GOOLUM GOOLUM ABORIGINAL CO-OPERATIVE LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Note 8: Property, plant and equipment (Cont.) Movements in carrying amounts
Movement in the carrying amounts for each class of propert y, plant and equipment between the beginning and the en d of the current financial year.
at 30 June 2023
at 1 July 2023
15,044,314
at 30 June 2024
GOOLUM ABORIGINAL CO-OPERATIVE LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Note 9: Trade and other payables
Note 10: Provision for employee benefits
Note 11:
GOOLUM GOOLUM ABORIGINAL CO-OPERATIVE LIMITED NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Note 12: Issued capital
(a) Movements in ordinary share capital:
(b) Ordinary shares
Therighttovoteisattachedtomembershipandnotshareholding. Everyactivememberoftheco-operative has only one vote at a meeting of the co-operative.
Note
(a)
(i)Revaluationreserve:- Theproperty,plantandequipmentrevaluationsurplusisusedto recordincrements and decrements on the revaluation of non-current assets, as described in note 1(g).
(b) Retained earnings
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Note 14: Reconciliation of net cash
Provided by net result from operating activities after income tax Net result from
Add/(subtract) non-cash items
Membership fees forgiven - (7)
Changes in assets and liabilities (Increase)/decrease
Note 15: Commitments
(a) Operating expenditure commitments
Non-cancellable operating expenditure contracted for but not recognised in the financial statements: Payable -
(b) Operating lease commitments
(c) Capital commitments
GOOLUM GOOLUM ABORIGINAL CO-OPERATIVE LIMITED
NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 30 JUNE 2024
Note 16: Contingent Liabilities
The co-operative had no known contingent liabilities as at 30 June 2024 (2023: nil).
Note 17: Events subsequent to balance date
TheDirectorsarenotawareofanyothereventswhichhaveoccurredsubsequenttobalancedatewhich would materially affect the financial statements prepared for the year ended at 30 June, 2024.
Note 18: Company details
The registered office and principal place of business is: Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Co-operative Limited 43 Hamilton Street
HORSHAM VIC 3400
Cover images taken from BUNJIL’s VIEW, a Blue Goanna Production in partnership with Goolum Goolum Aboriginal Cooperative, highlighting the beautiful Land Art of renowned artist, Lowell Hunter (Salty One).
Front cover - Dadidanja (Pink Lake).
Inside cover - Gurru (Lake Hindmarsh).