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Giving Back
Noel had the privelege of speaking ath the PIA State Conference on the 22nd of September in Toowomba. See a brief synopsis below. If you would like a copy of the full presentation please email us through the 'Contact Us' link.
Whatever Happened to our Social Infrastructure?
(or Oops, that wasn’t what we meant)
[Synopsis of presentation to PIA Conference, Toowoomba Sept 2011]
The Not-for-profit or charitable sector is one of the fastest growing segments of the Australian Economy, in 2006 growing by twice the national average and accounting for greater paid employment than the wholesale trade sector, the transport and storage sector and government administration and defence.
Yet, as the response to the introduction of the carbon tax demonstrated, government rarely considers the impact upon this sector and the flow-on impacts to community services in adopting new policies. The sector involves a wide array of sporting, cultural, religious, environmental and social organisations involving 40% of people in
Australia, most if not all adding demonstrable value to the life we enjoy in our country.
This lack of consideration also occurs in the interface between the charitable sector and local government and the town planning system, which rarely considers the impacts of its policies on this sector. These impacts are threefold – differing assessment processes between different jurisdictions, extensive approval timeframes and cost implications from conditions and infrastructure costs in development permits.
These elements ultimately result in fewer services to the communities that they are purported to serve, as unlike the for-profit sector, there is no end user to absorb any increase in costs – it must come out of services.
The recent natural disasters in Australia demonstrated the resources within the sector, its ability to deploy readily and quickly and the credibility with which it utilised donated funds all demonstrating the value of the sector to our society. Indeed the Productivity Commission concluded that ‘the extent of the Not-for-profit activity is often taken as an indicator of the health of a society’.
Few master planned communities make any provision for charitable sector participants who are usually thus required to catch as catch can. Community planners seem to have scant regard to facilitation of this sector of community. Local authorities are normally left to try to provide for those groups.
Were changes made to the assessment levels within planning schemes and the charging regimes therein, this more integrated and facilitative approach to the sector would bring the resultant benefit of greater services to our communities at less cost and greater speed – a worthy outcome and appropriate goal for those in government and private supporters who fund the services provided by these groups.
Grummitt Planning has provided town planning advice to a range of community groups including Parkwood and Gold Coast Rotary clubs, Nerang Community Association, the Sailing Adventures in Life Skills (SAILS) programme,the Commonwealth Association of Planners and various local churches and charities.
We also proudly support a wide range of organisations seeking to make a positive difference in the lives of children and young people, including the Police Citizens Youth Club and Blue Light Discos, Red Frogs Hotel Chaplaincy, Palm Beach-Currumbin Lions Club Children charity, the Mater Children Hospital Foundation, World Vision Child Sponsorship and Scripture Union school chaplaincies.
As part of our ongoing commitment to Ipswich we are again one of the sponsors for the special Christmas lunch for the homeless provided by Ipswich Awakening.
CHO is a local Non-Government-Organisation involved in a range of community development, child protection, education, and support activities. In 2010 Grummitt Planning donated $1800 to the activities of CHO, particularily in support of child safety and trade training.
We are very excited Grummitt Planning joined the B1G1 Organisation and is now committing to regular support for CHO. How that is intended to work is that for every new commission, we will donate funds to CHO sufficient to train a young woman to be a seamstress or a young man to be a motorcycle mechanic or welder. We look forward to partnering with our clients to see lives changed and give hope and dignity in Cambodia.
We welcome our clients partnership in enabling Cambodian Hope Organization to help young people gain qualifications and life skills to support themselves and their families and Break the Poverty Cycle. This can be done directly through www.b1g1.com through their project list for Cambodia with as little as 0.10c (US) prodivind one days informal village schooling up to $360 (US) to provide a years support for a child in care, a trade teacher or a patient with HIV/AIDS. WHY NOT JOIN US IN HELPING CHO?
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Noel & Ghislaine with the two brothers- Vuthy (11) and Vutha(8) - who we sponsor. They have lost both parents to AIDS.
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CHO Sewing Co-op CHO Sewing Class
CHO undertakes many projects, including training in motorcycle repairs, sewing, welding, farming (crops, animals and fish), IT and English; Micro-loans are provided for sewing machines, agriculture,carpet making, storekeeping and others; Support for education, including 'school on the mat', free soy milk for pre-schoolers, establishment of school libraries and school gardens (which also provide meals for the students); Digging wells for remote communities. A new Community campus, to provide a secure home for children (currently 18 in number whose families have died or are unable to look after them) and victims of domestic violence, was opened in 2009 and a training centre to provide alternate skills for women rescued from exploitive situations will open in 2010.
CHO has a staff of more than 60 Khmer people under their director - Chomno-In - involved in deliverying these programmes and assistance to the most disadvantaged of their people. They operate in the westernmost region of Cambodia where the effects of the civil war and cross-border child trafficking are most severe. Headquarters are in the border town of Poipet.
Major donors include US Department of Agriculture, Tear Fund UK, World Concern and Be a Hero.
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