E&OE TRANSCRIPT
RADIO INTERVIEW
ABC NORTHERN TASMANIA DRIVE WITH ANDRE LESLIE
SUBJECTS: New Safe Places Emergency Accommodation in Hobart; family and domestic violence prevention; Strong and Resilient Communities (SARC) Program
ANDRE LESLIE, HOST: What's been the purpose then of your visit to Tasmania today?
KATE THWAITES, ASSISTANT MINISTER FOR SOCIAL SECURITY, AGEING AND WOMEN: This afternoon I have been opening new emergency accommodation for women and children fleeing family violence in Hobart. It's a new facility that is providing expanded beds, units, family units, up to 120 women and children who can be supported each year in this new site. It's something the Federal Government has supported with $1.65 million, and it's part of our broader program. We've had our Safe Places program here in Tasmania where we've provided $3.95 million and that's delivering safe places for around 780 women and children every year. Two of those are in Hobart. One of them I opened this afternoon, and the other one in Launceston. So, this is really important. We do know that for women and children who are in family violence situations, often the biggest barrier to them leaving is having somewhere safe to go. And of course, when they do leave, we want them to be in places that are safe; that do mean they are supported and they can start to do the work of rebuilding their lives. So, it was real honour to be able to open this today. It's being run by the Salvation Army. They are beautiful units. I really hope that they do help women feel safe in this situation. And talking to the Salvation Army lead there, she was telling me about how when women walk into these environments, she can actually just hear them exhale and start to breathe again. It does give them that sense of ‘okay, I am safe, I can draw a breath and I can start to do what comes next’. So, really pleased to be part of this.
HOST: It does sound like good news for Hobart. Of course, a statewide issue, this one. What about the North West? You mentioned there is a setup in Launceston that the government's supporting. Is anything planned for the north west of the state.
THWAITES: At the moment, this work is in Hobart and in Launceston. We are continuing to support this work in Tasmania. And we have a further round, where through the Safe Places Inclusion round, the Hobart Women's Shelter will receive a further $3 million to construct 15 new self-contained apartments for women and children escaping family and domestic violence. So, there is more work planned for Tasmania and that's here in Hobart.
HOST: We're speaking with Federal Assistant Minister for Women, Ageing and Social Security Kate Thwaites, who's been in Hobart today. So, I understand this is the first of many rounds of federal funding in this space. Is that the idea?
THWAITES: That's right. As I said, through the Safe Places round, we've funded these projects already. But as I said, we also now have the Safe Places Inclusion round which is going to fund more places here in Tasmania but also right across the country. And again, that's because we know the need is great. We do need to continue to work on a national level to tackle family and domestic violence. And as a government we have really made this a priority. You know, it's something that we have now taken to two National Cabinets led by the Prime Minister, to recognise that the work of keeping women and children safe is work that requires all governments across the country, of federal government also working with state and territory governments. And it requires us to work on this part of providing safe accommodation, also services to support people, and of course the prevention work as well to try and stop family violence before it starts. It is a national priority at the moment. It is something that we have set a very serious goal of trying to end within a generation. So, this work that's happening here in Tasmania is part of that broader work that the government is focusing on.
HOST: You've talked about a lot of different initiatives that are either happening right now or starting up right now or coming quite soon. The Be Hers organisation in Hobart, this received funding of a different kind, part of their Dream Free Empowerment program. Can you tell us a little bit more in detail about what's going on there?
THWAITES: Yeah, it was really lovely for me to be able to visit Be Hers, which is an organisation in Hobart that some people may know because they have a shopfront in Hobart. They're working to support young women and to support vulnerable women, migrant and refugee women in the Hobart region to really build their confidence, to build their community connections and support them with employment and education options. They're being supported by the Federal Government through a grant under our Strong and Resilient Communities grants program. And that really does aim to do this work of connecting people who may be at risk of being a little bit disconnected from communities, falling by the wayside, making them feel connected into communities. So, we're supporting them with $360,000. It was a real pleasure to go there. They've built a beautiful space that is very welcoming to the girls and women who are involved in this program. I met one young woman from a migrant background who talked to me about how she was feeling quite isolated, her mental health was very poor before she got involved in this program. She goes down there once a week. They do things to help support her. And through the confidence she's gained through the program she's now running a business as a local artist, who's setting up at all the markets that I know Hobart is in particular famous for and selling her art there. So, she's got a real story there about how this program has helped her to feel more connected to community and turn her around. Some of the younger women there who really were telling me how they'd felt; that it was again a safe space for them to come to just be able to chill out a little bit to find some like-minded people and also a safe place to access other services as well. So, I was really pleased to see that. And I do want to congratulate the people running that program because they've done a beautiful job there in Hobart of building a place that is safe and nurturing for these women and girls. I understand they have plans soon to open up a social enterprise and a cafe associated with it. So, for people who are in Hobart, look out for that one as well.