National Child Protection Week 2017 will see two important events hosted by the South Coast Child Wellbeing Network (SCCWN).
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
SCCWN is a collaboration of Illawarra and Shoalhaven based non-government and government agencies working together to support vulnerable children.
The sixth annual Child Protection Week Conference will be held on August 29, with the theme “Children’s Trauma Needs: Understanding and Responding in our Daily Work”.
It is expected 200 professionals from children’s welfare, early childhood, government and other community services will gather at the Kiama Pavilion.
“We aim to raise awareness and educate our community about the needs of local children. Working together in a collaborative way helps to strengthen and grow our knowledge as a sector and ultimately provide improved support to at-risk children and families,” organiser Mary-Anne Fleeton from Anglicare said.
The conference will feature preeminent keynote speakers currently working with vulnerable children, including Dr Annette Jackson from Berry Street and Angela Weller, social worker and family therapist from the Australian Childhood Foundation and workshops facilitated by local specialists in the field including Dr Jodie Park, Karen Triggs and Lisa Roberts.
Brett Fahey will provide a practitioner presentation on the Caring Dads project.
A free Family Fun Day will be held on September 7 from 10am – 12pm, aimed at families with children under five, supported by multiple agencies in the community and Warrawong Plaza.
“Children and families in our local area will have the chance to learn low-cost or no-cost games to play at home, focusing on early literacy and school readiness, as well as find out about agencies available to support them in the community,” Lynda Sinnott from Barnardos said.
National Child Protection Week occurs from September 3 – 9.
White Balloon Day
Bravehearts’ annual awareness and fundraising campaign White Balloon Day will celebrate 21 years on September 8.
This year’s White Balloon Day campaign will feature innovative and fun activities for all ages including the Bravehearts National Chalk Art Project and a virtual balloon race.
The Chalk Art Project will see schools and budding artists of all ages ‘ChalkItUp’ for Aussie kids by creating a chalk mural or drawing of their own design and sharing images of their work on social media using the hashtag #ChalkItUp. Each piece of art must include a white balloon as a symbol of hope, with the most creative pieces receiving prizes for their efforts
White Balloon Day is held annually during Child Protection Week, and is Bravehearts’ key awareness and fundraising event designed to help prevent a crime which affects more than 60,000 children every year.
Funds raised as part of this year’s White Balloon Day support Bravehearts’ education program ‘Ditto’s Keep Safe Adventure Show’, which has educated more than 720,000 children about personal safety.
Cyber safety initiative ‘CyberEcho’, which has been developed in partnership with Google Australia and the Australian Federal Police, is aligned with the Australian National Curriculum and is the leading education program in Australia for teaching students and teachers how to stay safe online.
Money raised throughout the White Balloon Day campaign goes towards these education initiatives as well as Bravehearts’ suite of training programs and specialist support for kids and their families who have been affected by the crime of child sexual assault.
“White Balloon Day is very close to the heart of communities right around the country and is the longest-running child protection campaign dedicated to the prevention of child sexual assault,” founder and executive chair of Bravehearts Hetty Johnston AM said.
“Bravehearts has come so far over the last two decades and has been instrumental in breaking the silence on this crime, but we have a long way to go, and on September 8 our quest continues as we strive to create a safer Australia for our children.
“Child sexual assault is a tough topic but we are encouraging the community to ‘chalk’ about it through art and sharing the message of hope and prevention.”
Further information about White Balloon Day and how to get involved in the campaign is available via the official White Balloon Day website at whiteballoonday.com.au.
Want more from the Kiama Independent? Try these:
