Kate Washington MP

💚💛 WELCOME HOME!! Our incredible Paralympians have inspired our nation and the next generation. We’re all so very proud of you all 💚💛 Liesl Tesch AM Steve Kamper Paralympics Australia Vanessa Low OAM Qantas

On Sunday, the OurSPACE NSW team were delighted to attend the Sydney Foster and Kinship Care Week Picnic at Penrith Showground. This annual event is a wonderful opportunity to come together and celebrate the incredible work of individuals, families and organisations that provide safe, nurturing homes for children and young people. This year's theme was Under the Sea, and our team engaged children and young people in the fun, hands-on activity of crafting crabs and jellyfish. It was also a pleasure to catch up with the Minister for Families and Communities and Minister for Disability Inclusion, Kate Washington MP.

NSW action on the Disability Royal Commission! Good discussion today with Kate Washington MP and our colleagues in the NSW Disability Advocacy Network. We stressed: - Health - Mainstream capacity building and take Intellectual Disability Health Teams statewide. - Criminal justice - Broaden the IDRS diversion program beyond just 6 of 155 Local Courts. - Jobs - Fix the dire rate of jobs in the public sector for people with intellectual disability. - Guardianship reform - CID is bursting to work with the government on moving from a working party report to legislation. There is much to be done! Joanne Yates Megan Spindler-Smith Kim Roots Down Syndrome NSW Family Advocacy NSW

A record crowd of children, carers and families came together on Darug Country in Penrith yesterday for a Foster and Kinship Care Week picnic. The annual event celebrates the incredible foster, relative, and kinship carers across NSW who undertake vital work in caring for children. Thank you for the work you do! Among the guests were Kate Washington MP (Minister for Families,Communities and Disability Services), Michael Tidball (Secretary DCJ), Simone Czech, Renee Carter (CEO of My Forever Family NSW), Steve Kinmond (Children’s Guardian), and John Leha (CEO of AbSec), however, everyone agreed that the true VIPs were the children themselves! Find out more about becoming a foster carer: https://lnkd.in/gstE4xKw

We’re heading into the final week of initial hearings for 2024/25 Budget Estimates! Last week, our Upper House committees examined… 👉 The Transport portfolio of Jo Haylen 👉 The Families and Communities and Disability Inclusion portfolios of Kate Washington MP 👉 Attorney-General Michael Daley 👉 The Skills, TAFE and Tertiary Education portfolios of Steve Whan MP 👉 The Finance, Domestic Manufacturing and Government Procurement, Natural Resources portfolios of Courtney Houssos 👉 The Local Government portfolio of The Hon. Ron Hoenig MP 👉 The Roads, Arts, Music and the Night-time Economy, Jobs and Tourism portfolios of Special Minister of State John Graham 👉 Aboriginal Affairs and Treaty, Gaming and Racing, Veterans, the Central Coast and Medical Research portfolios of David Harris See what hearings are coming up this week at https://lnkd.in/gbF434fs Recordings of the hearings to date will also be published to our YouTube channel as they become available: https://lnkd.in/gZUf7qh

Happy Foster and Kinship Care Week 🥳 Which I celebrated today surrounded by amazing carers and kids at the annual Foster and Kinship Care Week picnic in Penrith. Thank you to every single carer in the state for making a difference every single day 🙏🏼 But we desperately need more. So if you’ve ever thought about becoming a foster carer - we want to hear from you! Many thanks to the caring team at My Forever Family NSW for putting on today’s picnic and putting smiles on so many faces 😃 NSW Department of Communities and Justice Renée Leigh Carter Maree Walk AbSec Steve Kinmond Michael Tidball Daniel Barakate

Baby seahorses!!!! 💕💕💕 Great to release these cute creatures with Minister Tara Moriarty at Little Beach, Nelson Bay today.

The Minns Labor Government is making essential information more accessible for communities across the state with a new ‘Easy Read’ format using simplified language, large font sizes and images to support text in government documents. This new format is particularly useful for people with an intellectual disability. In NSW, there are approximately 1.34 million residents living with disability, and one in 20 who require assistance in their daily lives Very happy to have partnered with the Council for Intellectual Disability to deliver this format, and congratulations to Kate Washington MP on progressing an important election commitment! Check out the new Easy Read hub here - https://lnkd.in/gHUdP67D NSW Department of Customer Service

📢 Next Friday, 13 September at midday, we will be welcoming home our NSW Olympic and Paralympic heroes at the Tumbalong Park Sound Shell in Darling Harbour. 👉 You will have the opportunity to meet and greet our inspirational athletes that have made us proud in Paris, hear their stories in a Q&A session and enjoy live music. 🥇 Come and show your support for our champions – and you may even snag an autograph! https://lnkd.in/gm7FSHBf

MEDIA RELEASE: AbSec congratulates the Minns Labor Government and Minister for Families and Communities, Kate Washington, for their decisive action in greatly reducing the use of Alternative Care Arrangements (ACAs) and banning the use of unaccredited emergency accommodation for vulnerable children in New South Wales. The NSW Government’s announcement, made during Child Protection Week, builds on significant progress in reducing the number of children in ACAs from 139 to 39 over the past ten months. John Leha, CEO of AbSec, stated, “Today’s announcement is a long-overdue shift towards a care system that prioritises the wellbeing of children, especially Aboriginal children, who have been grossly overrepresented in unsafe ACA placements. No child should be left in environments that undermine their cultural safety and identity.” Read the full media release: https://lnkd.in/eKsMn76R #AbSec #AlternativeCareArrangements #ChildProtectionWeek #ChildWellbeing