Winter appeal support
I AM writing to express my heartfelt appreciation to everyone in Victoria who supported The Smith Family’s 2022 winter appeal.
At a time when Victorians continue to face COVID challenges and ongoing economic instability, we’ve been humbled by their tremendous generosity.
This show of support could not have come at a more necessary time, with the fallout from COVID still impacting children’s education, particularly those experiencing poverty. We know that financial disadvantage creates barriers for learning, and our recent family survey found parents and carers continued to be worried about their children falling behind at school, during ongoing disruptions and the after-effects of extended periods of home learning.
The Smith Family’s vision is a world where every child has the opportunity to change their future – and our programs equip students with the knowledge, skills, and aspirations they need to unlock their potential.
With the donations received, The Smith Family will provide extra learning and mentoring support to an additional 3879 Victorian children and young people during terms three and four. These include an out-of-school reading program and our after-school learning clubs. We know these evidence-based programs work because we measure the progress of students to ensure they are benefiting.
Parents, students and teachers tell us that our programs are helping children to be more confident and engaged at school, improve their learning outcomes, and become more aware of study and career opportunities post-school.
In the last year, our programs reached around 180,000 children and young people nationally. And with more young Australians in need of support than ever before, we want to extend this reach to 250,000 in the next five years. But we can’t do this vital work alone, and that’s why community support is crucial.
So, to everyone who generously contributed to our appeal, I say a great big thank you.
Anton Leschen
General manager
The Smith Family
Additions to presumptive rights
I HAVE been pressing the Victorian Government hard to add ovarian, uterine and cervical cancers to the list of “presumptive rights” available to Victorian volunteer and paid firefighters.
A presumptive right makes a brigade or service firefighter diagnosed with a cancer listed on Victoria’s schedule of work-related diseases automatically eligible for state-funded medical care and compensation.
Fire Rescue Victoria’s 3500-strong workforce includes about 170 women, and the Country Fire Authority’s 30,000-strong volunteer force is estimated to include about 5000 women. Forest Fire Management Victoria has the highest proportion of women firefighters – about 25 per cent.
But Victoria’s current schedule of presumptive rights does not include three types of cancer that occur only in women.
Women firefighters tell me they did not know these cancers were absent from the schedule, and have been quite shocked there’s no formal recognition of female-specific cancers that can be caused by their work.
In the past 10 months, I’ve raised directly in meetings with former Health Minister Martin Foley and Emergency Services Minister Jaclyn Symes the need to include ovarian, uterine and cervical cancers in Victoria’s schedule.
I’ve also put the issue to Parliament, promoting political and community awareness of the occupational health risk, liability and equity issues. I sought to amend government legislation in October 2021, and introduced a private member’s bill in May 2022.
The government committed in October to undertake “further consultation … before (proceeding) with any reform…”
Yet there’s been no further consultation to which I’ve been invited to share my views, or what I’m being told by women firefighters.
But the release this month of the World Health Organisation’s cancer research agency findings that firefighting as a job is carcinogenic to humans should compel the government to urgent action.
It’s simply a fair, just and safe decision that would help protect these women who put themselves at risk protecting us.
Tania Maxwell
Derryn Hinch’s Justice Party Member for Northern Victoria
