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Organisation Open Place: Support Service for Victoria's Forgotten Australians (2010 - )

From
18 January 2010
Richmond
Categories
Records Service and Support Service
Website
http://www.openplace.org.au

Summary

Open Place: Support Service for Victoria's Forgotten Australians provides former 'care' leavers (people who grew up in institutions or foster care in Victoria until 1989) and their immediate family members with personal support, help with records and family searches, counselling, social activities, reunions, support groups, opportunities to learn new skills, as well as assistance with other specific needs. This service is run jointly by Berry Street and Relationships Australia.

Details

Open Place provides the following services:

  • Brokerage counselling: Forgotten Australians who were in 'care' in Victoria can have counselling arranged in their local area, and attend at no cost. Arrangements will continue for people who are currently seeing a counsellor.
  • Counselling for family members: Immediate family members of Forgotten Australians (children, partners, siblings) can have counselling arranged in their local area, and attend at no cost.
    Social & Support Groups
  • Life Skills Program: Financial assistance for Forgotten Australians to attend a course or class to develop or improve skills. We may also be able to run some small courses through Open Place if people have common interests.
  • Health: Financial assistance for Forgotten Australians to access dental, specialist medical, optical and other health services will be available.
  • Access to Records: Assistance will be provided to help Forgotten Australians access records from their time in care.
  • Support to find Family: Assistance will be provided to help Forgotten Australians trace family members and support to meet them for the first time.
  • Personal Support & Referral and Support to access other services: Support will vary depending on what Forgotten Australians need, including referrals to other services, help with reading materials and filling in forms, advocacy, going to appointments and meetings.

Location

18 January 2010
The Support Service for Victoria's Forgotten Australians opens in Suite 1, 8 Bromham Place, Richmond. Location: Richmond

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Timeline

 1989 - Victorian Adoption Network for Information and Self Help
       2009 Interim Service for Forgotten Australians
             2010 - Open Place: Support Service for Victoria's Forgotten Australians

Related Glossary Terms

Related Organisations

  • Berry Street (1994 - )

    The contract to run the new Support Service was awarded to Berry Street and Relationships Australia in September 2009.

    Date: 2009

Publications

Online Resources

Sources used to compile this entry: 'Submission number 178', in Commonwealth Contribution to Former Forced Adoption Policies and Practices: submissions received by the Committee, Commonwealth of Australia, 2011, http://aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate_Committees?url=clac_ctte/comm_contrib_former_forced_adoption/submissions.htm.

Prepared by: Cate O'Neill

Created: 30 October 2009, Last modified: 13 June 2012