ANNUAL REPORT

S T R E N G T H E N I N G F A M I L I E S

S T R E N G T H E N I N G C O M M U N I T Y

2019/2020

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We acknowledge with great respect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people as the first

people of this land.

Gateway Family Services recognizes that Darug and Gundungurra Traditional owners have a

continuous and deep connection to their Country and that this is of great cultural

significance to Aboriginal people, both locally and in the region.

For Darug and Gundungurra People, Ngurra (Country) takes in everything within the

physical, cultural and spiritual landscape – landforms, waters, air, trees, rocks, plants,

animals, foods, medicines, minerals, stories and special places. It includes cultural practice,

kinship, knowledge, songs, stories and art, as well as spiritual beings, and people: past,

present and future.

We pay respect to Elders past and present and to the children of today who are the elders of

tomorrow

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Mission & Vision ……….........…………………………………………………..….…..….. 4

Chairperson’s Report ……………………………………………….……………………… 5

Chief Executive Officer’s Report ….…………………………………………..………….. 6

Practice Manager’s Report ………………………………………………..………………. 7

Finance Manager & Admin Report ……………………………………………..………… 7

ENRICH …………………………………………………………………………….….……. 9

- Family Work, Case Management & Counselling …………………….…………….. 12

- Community Events / Community Connections……………………………………… 13

- Child Centered Play Therapy ………………………………………………………… 14

- Art and Expressive Therapies ……………………………………………………….. 14

ESSENTIALS ………………………………………………………………………………. 15

- Emergency Food, Financial & Pharmacy Assistance & Linker Project………….. 16

- Christmas Hampers …………………………………………………………………… 19

EVOLVE …………………………………………………………………………………….. 21

- Parenting Programs …………………………………………………………………... 24

- Community Hubs …………………….………………………………………………... 25

- Playgroups & Bub and Us ………..…………………………………………………... 26

- Choc’n’Chat ……………………………………………………………………………. 28

- Early Childhood Mentoring Project ………………………………………………….. 29

SPECIAL PROJECTS and EVENTS ……………………………………………………. 31

- Step by Step Disaster Recovery Service …………………………………………... 32

QUALITY SERVICE PROVISION ……………………….……………………………….. 33

- Community Partners ………………………………………………………………….. 35

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS …………………………………………………….………… 37

- Treasurer’s Report ……………………………………………….……………………… 38

Blaxland office: “The Cottage” 70 Old Bathurst Road, Blaxland 2774

admin@gatewayfamilyservices.org.au

1300 316 746 Toll Free (02) 4720 6500 (Blaxland) (02) 4782 5326 (Katoomba)

www.gatewayfamilyservices.org.au

Katoomba office: “The Clairvaux Centre” 14 Oak Street, Katoomba 2780

www.facebook.com/GatewayFS

PO Box 3051, EAST BLAXLAND 2774

Penrith office: Cnr. Henry & Station Streets Penrith 2750

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RESPECT

We respect the dignity and rights of all people

DIVERSITY & INCLUSION

We value diversity, include all and learn from each other.

FOCUS ON STRENGTHS

We recognise all families have strengths and resources they can

call upon to create a better future

IMPORTANCE OF COMMUNITY

We appreciate the impact of community in people’s lives and the

importance of belonging. We work to build connections and

strengthen communities.

OUR VALUES

Strength Based Principles

underpin our work with:

Each other

The children, young

people and families

with whom we work

Communities

Other services

GUIDING

PRINCIPLES

MISSION & VISION

Our Vision Safe, healthy, resilient children, young people and families in strong inclusive communities.

Our Mission

Inspired by the example of Jesus we respond to the needs of children, families and communities with

caring and compassion.

The Difference We Make Gateway Family Services works to make a difference with and for families in the following ways:

Children and young people are happy and thriving

Parents are satisfied in their parenting role

Families have positive relationships

Families are connected to people and community

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CHAIRPERSON’S REPORT

GATEWAY FAMILY STAFF, OFFICE VOLUNTEERS & STUDENTS

2020 has certainly been an interesting year for all of us and the Gateway Family Services team have risen to each and every challenge with the care and professionalism we have come to respect. This year is our 30

th Anniversary and I have to say

over the years we have seen every challenge we could possibly face, yet we still come out delivering to the community, demonstrating what an excellent team we have.

Gregory Lazarus, our CEO, has probably experienced the biggest challenge of any CEO with the January bushfires leading to intense negotiations with State government to fund a recovery process that the team began before the ink was dry on the funding agreement.

This was rapidly followed with COVID 19 enforcing distancing and depleting our volunteer force, as many in the community had to self-isolate. Whilst we haven’t seen an end to the pandemic, staff have had to rapidly adjust their operations to ensure the safety and wellbeing of everyone including the most vulnerable.

I would like to thank the team and Gregory for their exemplary performance under extreme duress during this year and hope that 2021 brings pleasanter challenges. I especially would like to acknowledge the hard work our executive team undertake to keep everyone on track and single out Terese Klynhout for her successful management of transitions to online platforms, liasing with the Sunshine Project re fundraising for solar panels installed in July 2020 and overseeing the many and varied contracts Gateway hold.

I would also like to recognise the hard work of the management committee this year in adjusting to online meetings via Discord, with echoing voices and dropout of calls. Meetings as a volunteer are challenging face to face, meeting in an online chat room adds another layer of complexity, so I thank you all for your support this year.

It is with great sadness that we farewell one of our more ardent management committee members and Gateway supporter Glen Beaver, who has been part of the committee for many years. We will miss his constant guidance and steady words and wish him all the very best for his future community engagements, as we know he will never stop giving to his community.

In closing I would also like to thank the many contributors to the financial success of Gateway, the local Members of Parliament who support us, donors and sponsors and State and Federal government agencies. Funding these critical services is of utmost importance and the recognition of Gateways work in the community is appreciated.

Thank you all,

Karen van Woudenberg

Chairperson

Gateway Family Services

Management Committee

Karen van Woudenberg Peter Berry

Glenn Beaver Mark Elliott

Peter Tamsett Dave Tupper

Gregory Lazarus

Sonja Keller

Terese Klynhout

Alison Smith

Amanda Taylor

Anne Crestani

Eleanor Mann

Emma Nicholson

Jennifer Quealy

Jenny Hardimon

Jill Carlson-Beardall

Joanna Brown

Karen Bartle

Kathie O’Connor

Leanne Walding

Lenore Vartha

Lisa Duck

Michelle New

Morgana Thomas

Nicola Horton

Ruth Myers

Sally Grant

Sophie Corbett

Stephen Hare

Volunteer Office Staff Students

Anne Cooper Alicia Wigfield

Kate Rankin Amie Sykes

Laurie Facer Bindi Mathew

Lesley Tamsett Kate Rankin

Liz Armstrong Marcelle Smith

Nikki Boyes Millicent Hysset

Noel Hanrahan Rebekah De Melo

Shailee Bartle Rhiannon Coulton

Sally Weymouth

Work Experience

Thomas Smidt

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CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER’S REPORT I thought that after my last annual report and

AGM in 2019 that I’d seen an end to my baptism

by fire as the CEO at Gateway Family Services.

2020 is our 30th anniversary and will be long

remembered as one of our most challenging

years. Shortly after our last AGM we were into

the devastating Bushfires of last

Spring/Summer. Gateway was approached just

prior to Christmas by various levels of

Government to ask if we were prepared and

ready to roll out the Step by Step program.

Gateway had developed the program in the

wake of the 2013 fires here in the Blue

Mountains. This time GFS were asked to roll

out the program across the Lithgow, Blue

Mountains and Hawkesbury LGA’s as one of

seven Bushfire Recovery Programs being

established across NSW. Many of those

persons who had made possible the previous

program were still around and they all

responded with great generosity, expertise and

passion. Just as we were all taking a breath

with the program well in place and working with

many people affected by the fires along came

COVID-19.

OUR IMPACT

The program reports that follow provide the data

and stories pertaining to the work of Gateway

Family Services. The results are the product of

hard work, passion and commitment by those

who engage in our programs and services.

During the coming year we will secure a new

five (5) year contract with DCJ (Department of

community and Justice) and negotiate a further

contract with DSS. We will continue to engage

with our Mission Objectives of Sustainability,

Organisation Culture, Innovation and Advocacy.

LOOKING FORWARD

Cement GFS as a leader of Expressive

Therapies in Penrith

Further creation of Innovative programs for

Children and Parents

Establish Gateway as a Community Safety Hub

Develop and secure funding for GFS as a

regional specialist in Community led Disaster

Recovery

Further Develop our Social Media Profile and

Marketing capacity

Foster alternative funding

STORY BEHIND OUR IMPACT

As a family support service undertaking many

different programs supporting our community we

had to make many simultaneous adjustments.

We needed to spec up our workforce to work

from home and then to take most of our

programs and put them on line. It was a novel

and challenging time but we were kept close to

the ground as we engaged with many of those

people we work with who were dealt hard blows

by the reality of the pandemic.

I had witnessed wonderful blessings during these

strange times. Resilience abounds around us

and so does generosity. The community engaged

even more strongly in supporting the work of

Gateway, our therapists adapted and played and

created art online with their young clients, our

family workers and group facilitators found novel

and creative ways to engage with those we work

with, and all were patient and understanding as

we all adapted to a COVID-19 world. Such a

blessing to witness.

There are so many people to thank for their

support and beneficence this past year. Our

Management Committee have held steady and

endured many technical difficult meetings and

always supportive. The Executive Team and all

persons working at Gateway have gone well and

truly beyond in maintaining our services and

responding to new and different needs. Those

we work with for their patience and

understanding and especially those silent and

wonderful persons who support us in the

background with tireless energy and passion, our

volunteers and office workers ever present, the

supporters, benefactors, local organisations, our

funding partners who contribute to the work of

Gateway Family Services. Thank you so much.

It has been a humbling year as I have worked

alongside your wonderful energy.

Gregory Lazarus

Chief Executive Officer

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PRACTICE MANAGER’S REPORT

FINANCE MANAGER & ADMIN REPORT

After rampant bushfires, undulating floods and a viral pandemic that rocked the planet, the word that comes to mind for Gateway is “Resilience”. Resilience is that ineffable quality that allows some people to be knocked down by life and to come back stronger than ever. Rather than letting life’s circumstances overcome them and drain their resolve, they find a way to rise from the ashes. So, in a nutshell, resilience can be defined as the ability, and tendency, to bounce back.

The staff at Gateway Family Services have managed to rise above the trauma of this year’s craziness and continue doing what they do best – excellent work with vulnerable families. They have done this by “looking outside of the box”, drawing on collective skills, knowledge and expertise, aligning creativity and best practice with the values and mission of Gateway Family Services.

Gateway Family Services have proven over and over, they are up to the challenge - the process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy or significant sources of stress has been nothing short of extraordinary.

As Practice Manager, I am proud of the systems we have implemented to allow staff to feel supported and safe during this vulnerable and unprecedented time. This has allowed all counsellors, family workers, group workers and program facilitators to adapt to the growing needs in the community, fine tune their offerings and continue to offer an excellent, evidence-based service.

Well done Team! Sonja Keller

Practice Manager

Last year Sonja our Practice Manager echoed that “2019 had seen enormous change at Gateway” and I don’t expect that any of us could have predicted what 2020 held in store. Whilst change is inevitable, there are some changes that present to test our versatility and resilience. With three of the five management roles having not long taken up their post I must commend our new CEO, Practice Manger and our two Team Leaders in supporting myself and the rest of the Gateway team through the period that will now be known as “the 2019 Bushfires”, “before Covid” and “during Covid”.

At our Christmas luncheon in December the first discrete discussion took place within Gateway as to the inevitable need to deploy another Step by Step (SXS) bushfire recovery team in 2020 and over the Christmas/New Year period formal discussions with Office of Emergency Management (now Resilience NSW) took place. The establishment of a new SXS team which now covers four LGA’s was an enormous task to get up and running in a short period of time. With the State Govt coping with such a large unprecedented area to cover the delay in getting funding was a constraint. Thanks to the backing of our Management Committee and good governance we were able to get Anne and her amazing SXS team on the ground in February 2020 to support those residents who had been affected by the Dec/Jan bushfires and the Hawkesbury residence that had a second hit with the floods. This project has been boosted by Hawkesbury City Council also funding a worker to expand the team in the HCC LGA. No longer had we had the SXS team on the ground and Covid19 presented the whole team with an upskill that they were not anticipating that would see them become more technologically savvy. Moving away from primarily office based phones and PC’s to converting over all staff to be fully mobile with laptops, phones and offsite data was an enormous task to be done is a short space of time. Whilst this task fell at my desk as the IT Manager I must commend every one of the Gateway team for their willingness to learn and their patience with technology that was very new to them. Whilst we have all been pushed out of our comfort zones throughout the whole ‘work from home’ environment, Covid19 has introduced new ways of doing things and had our team ‘think outside the square’ to continue to deliver our services to those who need it most in times such this. I take this opportunity to thank everyone from the Management Committee down to our newest employees and students for having such a ‘can do’ attitude and I look forward to operating “after Covid”!

Terese Klynhout

Finance Manager

The first six months of the financial year was one of fresh starts and anticipation of new beginnings. We were putting in strategic processes to build our strong reputation within the Blue Mountains and Nepean districts by consolidating our branding and expanding our social media footprint. Our organisation was receiving great recognition within the community and the monetary donations and products being received for our Essentials program were representative of the generosity of our community. Our CEO Gregory had done an amazing job taking on the refurbishment of the new counselling and therapy space down at Penrith with the view of having an exciting ‘launch’ on 2

nd April 2020. Staff

had settled in under the guidance of a new look Executive and our counselling team had farewelled Stephen in August, but welcomed Anne back to the team in November 2019.

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9

Enrich

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ENRICH FAMILY WORK, CASE MANAGEMENT & COUNSELLING

Enrich Family Work, Counselling

Services and Family Support works

alongside families on a broad range of issues concerning parenting and family life. Strength-based family centered practice informs all aspects of practice at Gateway Family Services. This approach acknowledges that an emphasis on strengths rather than deficits is most likely to effect lasting change and build capacity for parents and families. Our services are provided at no cost to parents and both centre based and home visits are available.

Family Work & Counselling helps children,

young people and parents harness their

strengths, learn new things to assist them to meet

the challenges of life & imagine a hopeful future.

Family Support is skilled work focussed on

supporting change, builds on strengths and

focusses on change that is meaningful to clients

and their families.

Child Centered Play Therapy through our

partnership with Connect Child & Family Services,

Gateway provides play therapy counselling and

support for children.

Art and Expressive Therapies help

children and their families set goals, harness their

strengths and practice solutions in a safe context.

Family NSW Early Intervention Family Work - Penrith and Lower/Mid Blue Mountains

Child, Youth & Family Program: Family Support

- Blue Mountains & Penrith

- Counselling Work including Connect Child Centre

Play Therapy and Art & Expressive Therapies –

Blue Mountains

Family Work & Counselling Projects

FAMILY RESPONSES:

If it hadn’t been for your support, I would have taken the wrong road.

Many thanks to the amazing Therapist. So grateful and so lucky to have had access to

this service. This is an exceptional service delivered by Professional, skilled, insightful

and caring therapists.

Thank you for the fantastic service of Play Therapy. The service is easy to access with

no “red tape”. Our therapist was delightful.

My son has asked me to say that he “really likes this service and would recommend it

to my friends”.

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ENRICH COMMUNITY

402

618

143

307 Penrith LGA

Lwr Mountains

Mid Mountains

Upper Mountains

Parenting Difficulties

3+ Complex Issues

Sole Parent

Domestic & Family Violence

Metal Ill Health

Past Trauma

Child Protection

Disability – Intellectual / Physical

HOW WELL

DID WE

DO?

Client contacts hours occurred

282 Home

e

672 Office

470 Phone

e

197 Other

e

94% of Enrich clients had 3 or more

complexities - time spent with service

38% Under 3mths

50% 3-6 mths

6% 6-12 mths

6% 12mths +

HOW MUCH

DID WE

DO?

Complexities experienced by all clients noted at Intake

Primary Reasons for Referral Referral Sources

7 Parent Group

9 Information

9 Financial

Crisis

18 Family Crisis

60 Child/Youth

Support

94 Parenting Support

96 Self

10 Health Service

6 School

5

Childcare

1 Playgroup

4 Parent Group

100% Client has improved their relationship with their children

100% Client has increased or improved new/existing connections

97% Client has increased knowledge and/or use of local services

96% Parents say they learn new things to assist them in parenting

100% Client is satisfied with services provided

Financial

Isolation

Other - Y.P. (Parent under 25) - Accommodation/Housing - Sexual Assault - Alcohol or other drugs - Health – Physical issues

- Legal / Justice issues

- School Disengagement

285 A/TSI

Our Counselling team conducted

270 sessions with families with children.

107 0-5 years

112 6-11 years

51 12-17 years

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Counselling Counselling is offered to help support parents and caregivers in their parenting journey. It offers individuals an opportunity to debrief their struggles and challenges in a calm, relaxed environment, so that they find ways to develop and enhance their relationships with their children. We support families who may have, or might be experiencing separation, family violence, childhood trauma, inter-generational parenting and disaster recovery.

Counselling is a way to unpack the experience, utilise existing strengths, and develop and discover new supports and resources in the community. This then breaks down the feeling of being isolated in a problem and instead builds a sense of capacity and problem solving. Counselling therefore offers new ways of moving forward, learning new skills such as understanding the child’s emotions behind their behaviour, communication techniques, addressing emotions and blocks, all to support their parenting journey.

Resources such as using picture cards, creating art activities, meditation techniques and sensory objects are incorporated to compliment talking therapy and to help a person describe a situation which they may feel difficult to find words for. The counselling provided is an act of deep listening with respect and empathy whilst providing a professional environment from which to grow.

Family Work, Case Management – A Client’s Story A family impacted by Domestic Violence was referred for Family Support.

Together with the worker the mother was able to recognise her families’ strengths and build on her parenting skills and confidence. The Family worker provided referrals to specialist services and programs, along with advocacy at the children’s School.

The family worker referred two of the children to attend an Edmund Rice Sibling Camp. The Camps are individually tailored to encourage and support children’s resilience, self- esteem and encourage a sense of purpose and achievement.

Following the camp, the mother noticed an “improvement in the brothers’ communication and relationship”.

Ongoing practical assistance has also been provided to the family in the form of food and vouchers.

The family continues to have a positive level of engagement with other services.

Family Support – Community Events

Let’s Make Art:

This year we have had the privilege of journeying with numerous families within our community. This has been both on an individual basis and groups. During Covid-19 lockdown the Let’s Make Art Together group went online.

Through art making, dancing, listening to stories and making art together the families were able to connect with one another and learn mindfulness art based practices to help them through challenging times of isolation.

Art Therapy via online platforms was a new way of working this year, it allowed us to continue to support the families and children and demonstrated how our families are incredible at adapting and being resourceful during challenging times. With some of the children an image of a hot air balloon was used that took us, and whoever the child wanted to invite, on a journey. We visited some amazing locations, some of them out of this world! A favourite place was the top of Mount Everest. Here we had to land safely, look after one another, we had to maintain the balloon and we had to find ways to keep ourselves warm.

When the child is provided with an opportunity to explore their inner world through art and play they begin to better understand and feel more capable in their everyday lives.

Let’s Make Fun:

Fun days in partnership with ACRC. These days involved a range of art based activities, play

opportunities and time to chat with other parents, workers and Community Elders in our lovely outdoor

bush setting. These fun days have helped build a sense of connection to the service especially for

Aboriginal families.

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2019-2020 has been a year of stops and starts, highs and lows, change and challenges just as it has for many in our community. Between July and October 2019, we were able to provide a number of exciting groups and events.

KINDRED CONNECTIONS

After the success of the Winter Magic Community Art Project we ran last year Gateway applied for another Winter Magic grant. We were successful in winning the grant and we began developing some lovely ideas to help bring the community together again after the fires to celebrate our collective strengths and heal together. It soon became clear, however, that the Winter Magic Festival would have to be cancelled as due to the pandemic. Being creative and flexible the team applied for the Community Assistance grant being offered by BMCC and got to work on adapting their ideas for Community Art making so that the project could continue even while our community were in physical isolation. Auntie Marie Clegg worked with our Counselling team to develop Kindred Connections,

Below are some of the lovely works created for Kindred Connects that reflect the things that have helped families get through the many challenges this year has thrown at us.

INTERAGENCY MORNING TEA

We have always worked collaboratively with other organisations in order to provide a stream lined and supportive service to the families we work with. In August we held a networking afternoon tea for our colleagues from across the sector. Our partnerships continue to grow and serve our community.

In October we were forced to close our office at Katoomba due to the fires. We were mindful of the importance of maintaining the therapeutic relationships we have with the families that use our service, especially in uncertain times.

Our staff continued to support families by working from home. While some face to face visits had to be cancelled others took place off site. Thrive Service and Connect Family Services both generously donated rooms in which to meet our clients, maintain those important connections and provide some consistence in a time of upheaval.

Not long after the smoke had settled we faced the challenges of the upheaval wrought by Covid-19.

As the service was forced to close again, we knew that maintaining connection and keeping alive the therapeutic relationship was all important. Home visiting would have to be stopped, Art and Play therapy was no longer possible…or was it. After the initial shock of the shut down the team rallied with some amazingly creative responses to the challenges of working with families while maintain social distancing. Online platforms were being mastered and becoming the norm for Play therapy, Art Therapy and Family Work. Puppet friends were being introduced online to children who could not come into the playroom. Art games were being played and art packs being sent to children so they could run an art therapy session via video. Various packs were dropped off to families we worked alongside with activities, resources and other essential items for those who were struggling to manage life in isolation.

Training of staff was sought, a research to help ensure that we were able to deliver the highest quality support for families in the vastly different circumstances we now find ourselves.

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Child Centered Play Therapy

Through bush fires and pandemic we have managed to keep the therapy going. We’ve moved around fire zones and zoomed to social distance …but the therapy must go on. And in the process have discovered strengths we didn’t know we had.

In Play Therapy, where the relationship is a key element, it can remain strong even with a last minute change of venue, or through a computer screen. The children continually demonstrated their adaptability and ingenuity. Hide and seek is often a game with strong therapeutic content. Children explore risks -“what if she doesn’t find me?” They explore attachment ……”how much do you want to see me – how much do I mean to you?” They play with power and control….. “I will be the one to decide if I want to find you or not!” They play with emotions….. anticipation, fear, hope. It is one thing to play this in a room together, but a whole different thing through computer screen.

Our Therapists have had to juggle confidentiality and safety whilst still keeping the session playful. We have many wonderful opportunities to work closely with families to ensure this works. One child was able to find their voice through this new medium of zoom play therapy where they could utilise the best of both worlds. The parent said they love to watch how their child interacted and noticed the changes in confidence.

We can work together in a strengths-based framework alongside

an individual family’s circumstance. One therapist can be working

with carers as another works with children. The results can be a

closer appreciation of each other’s strengths within the family unit.

Art and Expressive Therapies In Art Therapy the child or adult can chose whatever materials they would like to explore.

A recollection of one child who decided to build a tower... “It’s hard, I can’t do it, it’s not strong enough, I give up”.

In Art Therapy we play with the materials, we build confidence and trust in our capabilities, to become okay with failure, to learn and to grow resilience. To feel proud, to feel capable and to see for themselves what they can do.

Through this process the language shifts, past stories of trauma are reshaped through the art making process and retold with strength. Resilience is created that allows the child to move forward.

Then hearing… “Yes! It’s working, it’s strong, I put in more supports, look what I made, I am strong”.

So much of the Art therapy journey is not limited to the Art Therapy session, when the child and the family, as well as teachers and other therapists are all able to work together to support the child we see incredible outcomes.

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Essentials

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Gateway stays true to the mission

and vision in ensuring a high level

of quality interaction with our

clients.

Gateway prides itself as an

organisation on its application of

Strengths Based approaches. We

strive to notice and remind

people of the strengths they have

that can be harnessed to help

them to move forward.

We are constantly amazed at the

resilience of people who have to

cope with seemingly

insurmountable problems.

It is important that we

demonstrate the respect that we

have for our clients in tangible

ways and that their experience in

coming to Gateway to seek

assistance is a positive and

affirming one.

The Essentials project relies completely on food, grocery and financial donations. The funds are imperative to keep essentials operating and assisting a broad range of clients within the community. The project is assisted by a committed team of volunteers and the wider community, making it possible to offer valuable services which support vulnerable people and those who may be experiencing financial strain or crisis.

Provision of this service is coordinated by Family and Community workers Karen Bartle and Lenore Vartha and supported by our wonderful volunteers. We also acknowledge our various University and TAFE NSW students in training throughout the year who learn valuable tools as they assist our staff and provide appreciated aid to the project.

The Essentials Project is more than just a food parcel! Our data shows, even more so over the past year with clients experiencing loss of employment and unforeseen hardship needing to access our service for the first time as they have been impacted by natural disasters including floods, bushfires and the current Covid-19 pandemic. The essentials team restructured the project and continued to service the community throughout the restriction period adhering to Covid safe plans implemented by the whole service.

Our team has responded to client needs by ensuring their dignity, assisting even if only for the shortest periods by walking alongside and acknowledging their strengths and resilience.

The Essentials project provides emergency food relief/voucher assistance along with relief with utilities, pharmacy and other initiatives. Often being the first point of contact of the service and building on the necessary immediate assistance, clients are often referred internally to Gateway’s other projects where they can be further assisted. They can also be connected by external referrals to other appropriate or specialized services to provide a holistic approach to their needs through our Linker Program.

Linker Project The linker network is a group of service providers operating across the Greater Western Sydney region designed to work together to help clients access the support they need.

Gateway Family Services was involved in the Linker pilot program in 2017, and continues to provide benchmark standards in delivering client-centred, collaborative and coordinated support for clients and families. Clients report feeling welcomed to our service and their needs attended to.

Over the past 12 months the Essentials team have worked closely with other Gateway projects and external services to facilitate referrals and convene case conferences.

The team have built strong relationships with community partners and other organizations within the social sector. The positive outcomes for clients could not have been achieved without this collective approach.

We recognize and appreciate partnerships that allow our project to deliver such a high level of service provision and gratefully accept that without the essential collaboration of these wonderful organizations our efforts would be even more challenging in supporting vulnerable clients within our community.

The Essentials Project

Our Service

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ESSENTIALS COMMUNITY

HOW MUCH

DID WE

DO?

HOW WELL

DID WE

DO?

611 Adults

643 Children

363 Christmas Hampers

97

Volunteers

We survey clients directly throughout the year and this past year they have told us …..

100% I was satisfied with the service I received from Gateway

100% It was easy to access the service I needed

100% The Gateway staff responded quickly to my request for service

100% The Gateway staff made me feel welcome and comfortable

100% The Gateway staff understood my needs

100% The Gateway staff were knowledgeable in the areas I needed assistance

100% I would recommend Gateway to my family or friends

ESSENTIALS

Actual emergency relief aid provided to

clients attending our service

1,352 Client Visits

4,213 Grocery Bags

$238 Pharmacy

$6,586 Food

Vouchers

$23,950 EAPA

$5,640 Other

$1,087 Sydney Water

This is an increase of 9% of total hampers from

Christmas 2019 and 32 more families supported. Linker Network

Linker

276

Total clients

252 Hours

474 Tasks

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FOOD DRIVE,

BREAD & IGA PICKUP

HONOUR ROLL

Kathy Byron

Jon Bayley

Penny Bayley

Lorraine Ryan

Mike Gresham

Peter Tamsett

Lesley Tamsett

Nerida Murray

Noel Gwilliam

Heather Gwilliam

Bronwyn Sutherland

Debra Russell

Marjorie Roberts

Carol Morris

Marilyn Pettit

Judith Snelson

Graham Ware

Helen Ware

Gregory Lazarus (CEO)

Sally Weymouth (Student)

Bindi Mathew (Student)

I just want to say what a great service Gateway Family Services has provided to me & my newborn son. I spoke to the worker on Wednesday & on the same day I received so many phone calls for support.

The main support was the legal service & case worker. Today I received loads of food & vouchers. I can now sleep a lot easier at night knowing I can protect myself & my son. I want to say a huge thank you to Gateway Family Services for going above & beyond for us in such a short period of time.

Thank you so much! It’s always been a great help for my

family. All of you are very nice and accommodating. God bless

you all !

These guys are AWESOME, they have helped me so much!!”

❤️ ❤️ Love Gateway !

I don’t believe this service requires any improvements its

10/10 !

Thank you for everything and all the love and support you

have all given me and my family ❤️

I just want to thank you for your amazing provision and help

this year. It has made a huge difference for my life, I

appreciate your kindness, and having the stress relieved for

my bills. Thank you for the surprise hamper too. In such a

time of need we are very thankful !

Emergency Food, Financial & Pharmacy Assistance and Linker Project

We acknowledge major sponsorship and support from …..

our wonderful partner in food rescue and sustainability;

Those who have organised the Food Drives and Bread Collection Rosters, Food Drive Volunteers & Bread collectors IGA for use of their premises and for their donations of food and support;

Blue Mountains City Council who provided money for Food Vouchers;

The Fruit and Vege Co-ops for their donations;

Bakers Delight at Springwood & Emu Plains for their donation of bread;

Rotary for their donations and financial support towards our Christmas Hampers;

Winmalee Neighbourhood Centre;

Community Smiles for the various donations and support to our Essentials Project.

As well as the multitude of individuals, schools, churches, community groups, businesses and retail stores that provide donations, food drives, and contribute toward supporting those in need.

It really does “take a village”…..for this we say THANK YOU!

CLIENT’S REPONSE:

19

We would also like to thank the many individual donors who supported the Essentials Project with gifts of food and money. We are VERY grateful.

We would like to thank those groups and organisations who donated food, presents, financially and helped in a myriad of ways …..

Blaxland Chamber of Commerce

Blaxland Christian Reformed Church

Blaxland East Community Pharmacy

Blaxland East Newsagency

Blaxland East Public School & P&C

Blaxland East Supermarket

Blaxland High School

Blaxland IGA Supermarket

Blue Mountains TAFE Staff

Blaxland Pre-School

Blaxland Presbyterian Church

Blaxland Public School

Blaxland Uniting Church

Blue Mountains Transit Bus Company

Chlorox Pty Ltd

Community Smiles

DHL

Emu Plains Community Baptist Church

Emu Plains Public School

Euroka Early Childhood Centre

Faulconbridge KU Pre-School

Glenbrook Baptist Church

Glenbrook Chamber of Commerce

Glenbrook CWA

Glenbrook Pre-School

Glenbrook Public School

Glenbrook Uniting Church

Janelle’s Hair & Beauty

Lower Mountains Medical Centre

Lapstone Public School

Little Superstars Early Learning Centre

Lower Mountains Rotary Club

McPhee Kelshaw Solicitors

Montessori Pre-School

Mortgage Choice Blaxland

Mt Riverview Public School

NRMA Springwood

Roc Hair – East Blaxland

Rose Rentals

Rotary Recycles Op Shop Blaxland

Second Bite

Seventh Day Adventist Church

Sewing for Charity Australia

Share the Dignity

Skyline Drive In

Springwood Pre-School

Springwood Uniting Church

St Andrews Glenbrook Uniting Church

Storage Plus Blaxland

The Zonta Club Nepean Valley

Unity Studios

Uniting Women’s Fellowship – Glenbrook

Warrimoo Public School

Winmalee Lions Club

Wycliffe Christian School

We are so very grateful for the

continued support of various

individuals, businesses,

organisations, pre-schools,

schools and churches who gave

so generously through financial

donations, gifts, food items and

volunteer hours.

Our amazing and dedicated

Volunteers assist our

organisation in a variety of areas

whilst bringing their passion,

energy and enthusiasm.

A special thank you to Blue Mountains City Council

and Rotary Club of Lower Blue Mountains for their

financial support which assisted in providing the

hampers and pre-purchase of standard hampers from

Foodbank NSW.

The organisational skills of Heather and Noel Gwilliam

made it possible through their leadership in overseeing

the team of volunteers who also gave of their time and

energy in sorting, packing and moving hampers to

guarantee the ever increasing need in our Community.

The overall dedicated hours are endless to ensure that

families don’t go without at an important time such as

Christmas.

CHRISTMAS HAMPERS

20

21

Evolve

22

CHILDREN & FAMILIES

123 Magic & Emotion Coaching

Circle of Security

From Floundering to Flourishing

Tuning In To Kids

Bringing Up Great Kids

No Scaredy Cats

Filial Play

Let’s Make Art

Courses Parenting Education Programs focuses on

providing parents with information, educational

experiences and practical activities that promote

children’s growth and development.

Community Hubs and Playgroups provides

a place for families and the community, to hear

about and connect with other services, join in

activities, make new friends and have fun whilst

focusing on the well-being of children, family and

their community.

Bub and Us offers a warm and friendly space

for young parents with their first baby from 0 to

6 months old to meet and enjoy each other’s

company as well as being supported on their

parenting journey to grow their confidence as

parents.

Choc’n’Chat is a safe space for parents of a

child with a diagnosed disability to find support

and share with other families who can understand

what they are going through.

Early Childhood Mentoring Project

(ITAV) is one of the early intervention strategies

of the service, which builds the capacity of early childhood services to identify and support vulnerable families. Through Mentoring sessions Educators are made aware of potential referral options for families and are able to link families to appropriate services.

PARENTING GROUP RESPONSES

“I enjoyed attending parenting program, first time doing something like this. I find the atmosphere and group participants were open & engaging in learning environment. No pressure from facilitator and facilitator made it easy and enjoyable, learnt a lot. The program was professional and well run, I was very happy with how it was presented and run. “

“I must admit I thoroughly enjoyed the course, really put a lot of things into perspective, new concepts and strategic ways to help better my parenting style. Opened my mind to a lot of things to look out for that’s beneficial for my kids. Bigger, stronger, nicer and filling my kids cup really resonates and will always stick to me.”

“Well done – safe, friendly, informative, interesting and very well presented. Excellent communication, extremely clear & engaging. Material was very helpful. Very happy with the workshop. Spread the word – more parents need to know !”

“Overall it was enjoyable and very, very helpful ! I was fully satisfied with this course and the presenter. Materials provided were helpful. Thank you.”

“Loved it, thanks heaps. I really enjoyed the group and look forward to attending more.”

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HOW MUCH

DID WE

DO?

HOW WELL

DID WE

DO?

16 Parent Groups

70 Sessions

70 Participants

25 Childcare minded

EVOLVE

98% said that they felt positive about the future for their families

100% said they learnt new skills to help them and their family

98% said they were doing things differently for their family

88% said they knew more people or services who could help them and their family 98% would recommend the group to other parents

EVOLVE COMMUNITY

Parent groups ….. Of 51 parents who completed post group surveys ……

48 Families

37 Sessions

69 Children

Winmalee Playgroup

Blaxland Playgroup

22 Families

38 Sessions

32 Children

24

Build strong families and strong communities

Provide vital links for parents and children in a world in which

people are increasingly isolated

Offer parents opportunity to share and learn from each other and

connect with people from their own communities.

Provide an essential referral link between services and families –

especially vulnerable families

Parenting Support & Education Programs

Parenting Programs

form an integral part

of family support

work.

These programs provide …..

Parenting Groups and Supported Playgroups in a therapeutic framework that

acknowledges family strengths and builds on them. These groups provide healthy

parenting skills, an increased sense of empowerment, and a feeling of belonging. The

playgroup setting allows space for the parent/carer and child to take part in shared

experiences, strengthening their relationship and bringing mutual benefits.

Community strengthening activities that are wide reaching in scope, having the best

chance to link vulnerable children and their families with services that support safety and

well-being.

Training and mentoring support for early childhood services that enable them to more

effectively recognise and support vulnerable children and their families.

The Projects providing these programs …..

The Blue Mountains Mobile Hub Project – Winmalee Community Hub, Lower Mountains

Community Hub (HUBitat), supported Playgroups at Winmalee PS, and Blaxland PS in

partnership with the DSS Family Links project.

Dept. of Social Services (DSS) – Parent Support Groups, Blaxland PS Supported

Playgroup

The “It takes a Village…” (ITAV) Project – Penrith and Blue Mountains support, staff

mentoring & training and parent support through early childhood services.

25

The Community Hubs at Winmalee and Lower Mountains

(HUBitat).

The Community Hubs are Winmalee, Lower Mountains (HUBitat). Penrith Hub is in the process of being established.’

A Hub is: • A place that focuses on the well-being of families,

children and individuals.

• A place where families hear about a variety of community services, join in activities and make connections with other people.

• A place that provides integrated services for children (0 to 8 years) and their families.

• A place where you can meet up with your friends or make new ones.

• A place where you can get information and support.

The project is part of the Blue Mountains Child and Family Plan

with the support of the Blue Mountains Stronger Families Alliance,

the Winmalee Hub Steering Commitee and HUBitat Steering

Committee.

The steering committees are represented by members from

Winmalee, Blaxland, Blaxland East, Ellison and Warrimoo Public

Schools, LM Rotary, Winmalee Lions Club, Winmalee

Neighbourhood Centre, Belong BM, Springwood Uniting Church,

Family Day Care, Pinnarroo OOSH, Carinya Children’s Centre,

Uniting Kids Care, NSW Police, Bunya Child Care Centre, BM

library, BM Council, and community members.

Play and Chat in Blaxland

Play and Chat in Winmalee

Play and Chat in the park – a National Families

Week celebration

Open Day events during Education Week

Emergency Services visits at Play and Chat

Simultaneous Storytime

Mulberry picking excursion with Winmalee and

Blaxland Play and Chat groups

Regular meetings with multi stakeholder steering

committees to plan and oversee the project.

COMMUNITY HUB ACTIVITIES

Community Hubs

Other Community Partners:

Belong Blue Mountains

Connect Child and Family

Services

Care Pair

MOCS Mobile Minders

Once Upon a Magical Party

Volunteers

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Blaxland Playgroup

THE BENEFITS OF PLAYGROUP AS EXPRESSED DIRECTLY

FROM THE PARENTS:

My children and I love going to playgroup. I find that we are developing a stronger bond together through play. Creating crafty projects and listening to stories together is making us feel more connected. We express our thoughts and feelings while we create things and I love listening to all the unusual things they come up with. Having the craft all prepared for us means that I get a little break and have less stress from having to think up ways to entertain the kids. I also get to spend more time playing with my kids. I don’t know who enjoys listening to stories more, me or my kids. It benefits my emotional wellbeing as well as the kids. We did enjoy getting together with other parents and kids back before Covid. My children got to learn to play with other kids, learnt conflict resolution when kids want the same toy, and I found that they tried new foods, they wouldn't normally try, when we all shared morning tea and all done in a safe environment. Being able to talk to other parents and get out of the house was great for me too. I can’t express how much it benefits the community. Watching my kids’ faces light up when I say it craft time is the reason I keep coming back. They truly love it.

My daughters and I enjoy coming to Play and Chat as it is a safe and nurturing environment that provides us with opportunities to engage socially with local families and participate in a variety of activities. Coming to Play and Chat helps to give structure to our week without having to commit to anything financially over a period of time and we always look forward to it. The Gateway workers are always well prepared and friendly, always making us feel welcome.

Professionally run, and well-structured and organised by the coordinator/s. Theme approach is well executed. Good combination of community e.g. firefighters / ambulance officers/ police, with craft activities, reading and play. Good support for parents. Great group of parents and kids.

My children and I can be involved and connected to our local community through meeting and playing with local mums and kids. It is beneficial for me to interact with mums at the same stage of motherhood and for my children to interact with kids their age and developmental stage. Both of my kids are catered for since there are kids of all ages at playgroup. Playgroup provides lots of learning experiences that we love such as shared eating, play, story and song sessions and of course Sue’s wonderful craft.

We love coming to play group as it’s a chance for all of us to socialise and get out of the house. From the start we felt so welcomed and included as everyone is so friendly. We have made friends that we catch up with outside of playgroup. The weekly themes with craft, books and songs are amazing. The way playgroup has adapted during lock down has been fantastic. We look forward to seeing Jenny, Lisa, Chris or Sue reading stories and doing the craft packs.

Playgroup is an important part of our week! It gives us a sense of belonging, allowing us to meet with other families in our local community and have a few hours of quality play time together without other distractions.

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Blaxland Playgroup cont’d……

Playgroup is an important part of our week! It gives us a sense of belonging, allowing us to meet with other families in our local community and have a few hours of quality play time together without other distractions. I love that my children have opportunities to engage with other children their ages, developing important social skills, but i also love that I too, get a little time to connect with other adults, which is so valued since I'm a full time play-at-home mum! We tried a few different playgroups through the years, but found Blaxland play and chat to be the most suited to our needs. I believe having a third party (Getaway Family Services) run the playgroup is ideal and this is a winning point for me. Playgroup is always organised, stable, consistent, friendly, fun and so supportive! Having staff who are trained in the area of social and community work is also a benefit. There's always someone to talk to who can offer a listening ear or advice for situations that may not always be great conversations to have with other parents who you're trying to develop friendships with. I also like the connection with a local school, that helps with the sense of community belonging which I'm sure will support my child with big school transition eventually. We continue to come to playgroup each week because of the welcoming, easy-going, fun atmosphere and the way everyone is treated equally. The staff clearly enjoy what they do and that shines through each week. My kids look forward to going and so do I. Thanks for all that you do!! We value your time, effort and support very much!

I love playgroup because it helped me with a dark time in my life when I was suffering from post-natal depression. I felt very cooped up in my house and needed something to regain my sanity. I saw Blaxland Play and Chat advertised on a local mum's group and decided it would be a great opportunity for both my daughter and I to get out of the house each week. I love(d!!!) coming each week. Everyone is very non-judgemental and friendly. I love taking my daughter somewhere local where we could both socialise and have fun. Jenny, Chris, Lisa and the gang are super friendly and supportive and put their heart and soul into their interactions with the group. It's lovely getting able to check in with them as they genuinely care as well as meet other adults and the children alike. I love the variety of toys and activities. For a gold coin donation and piece of fruit, it is an affordable life saver and I miss very much attending on a Thursday. Though, again the crew made a concerted effort by providing lovely ready to make craft activities in a bag that was dropped off. A wonderful, essential service that goes above and

beyond. ❤️

I started attending a playgroup because as a first time mother I was struggling with loneliness while at home with a baby all day long and no other adults to talk to. I found the other parents so welcoming and willing to invite me into their community. I like to think now that we no longer attend playgroup but we ARE the playgroup; a community of carers to young children with a deep understanding of what each other is going through. Playgroup has been my village when I’ve needed encouragement to keep going through times when being a parent is tough and also to celebrate with me as my children grow and develop. I so value the input from the Gateway staff each week. They have such a great energy that gets the kids excited to participate, and a willingness to walk alongside the parents. We love playgroup and recommend it to everyone who is looking to grow their support network.

We come to playgroup because it's a lovely space with beautiful likeminded and kind people. We bond with parents and kids and share fun times. It gives us a space to be a kid and be a Mum separately. No stress, no pressure, just relax and let them explore relationships, toys, sport, creativity, art, dance, songs and reading. It's supportive and interactive and we will keep coming back physically or virtually. Thanks for all the hard work to adapt to our kids and our world.

Myself, my 4.5yr old and my 3yr have only have the most positive things to say about Blaxland

Playgroup. Both my children and I receive so much support and care and I have enjoyed seeing my

children’s social and emotional development grow. From day one we have felt welcome and included

and we are proud to say we are apart of a such a caring and non judgmental playgroup. Playgroup has

also went the extra step in these tough COVID times by using video tutorials and taking the time and

effort to organized craft and activity packs which have been a blessing for our family. The art has been

phenomenal! Thanks so much for your time and effort.

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Choc’n’Chat (Parents of a child with a disability)

The benefits quoted directly from the women who attend…….

Choc n Chat started off as a way for all us parents to come together and have a place to chat about our children and the many challenges they face. It’s also a group where we can develop our skills as parents of children with special needs, and a safe, non-judgemental space where we can vent about the good, the bad and the ugly. But it’s not just about that. Choc n Chat is very much a group that not only supports one another but is also a group that has become family. I call all these amazing human beings as my sisters in arms, who not only allow me to breathe but provide me with love and comfort. They are home.

Choc n chat is a light title for a group that is anything but light in its importance. While there are

moments of lightness, and laughter (tear-inducing laughter, sometimes!), the women of this group have

been my lifeline. Our monthly gatherings are, quite literally, the rare place where I can be fully myself,

as the parent of a child with autism and intellectual disability. I feel understood here, valued here, seen

here. More than that, I receive encouragement, advice when sought, empathy, friendship, information...

this group has stretched me in so many good ways. I feel forever indebted to Gateway for supporting

this group and most especially our coordinator Jen. To have this one area of my life where I just have

to turn up, knowing it’s taken care of, and not manage, plan, rearrange, etc., is priceless. Thank you!

The Choc’n Chat group means a lot to me. I feel really supported by the other participants in the group.

It’s a place where I am heard and understood, and I can talk about my feelings. Being able to attend

means I get some time out and a mental break from my busy schedule. Listening to the other ladies

talk about their issues and offering advice helps me feel like I am giving something back to others,

which is important to me.

I really enjoy coming to the Choc and chat group run by Jenny. I continue to keep coming because it’s

a non-judgmental place to come and talk about our life concerns, and shared experiences in relation to

having children with special needs. We are able to share information and support and have a laugh at

things only relevant to ourselves. It helps me navigate things like the NDIS and therapies etc. to get the

most benefit for my children and our family and to learn about what is available to them. Unless you

have a child on the autism spectrum or with another disability, you don't really," get it" in a practical

way. People often deal with these issues in isolation. Our friends and family often don't really

understand what we’re going through. Because they haven't lived it. Having a group with shared

experiences of our hardships, challenges and triumphs is invaluable. Jen is such a competent and

compassionate person. The group has strongly bonded to each other. But I think if it wasn't for these

set days and times to get together, we probably wouldn't organise it ourselves, as we all tend to devote

all our time to our high needs children and so we need something like this for us to take time out and

do something for ourselves. Which helps prevent us from becoming burnt out as carers.

My name's is Mechelle and I've been a part of the Choc n Chat group since its inception many years

ago. Choc n chat has been a real lifeline for me and even more so now as a single parent. The

friendships and bonds that I've made and share with the women of the group is priceless. It is perfectly

timed for weeks 3, 6 and 9 enabling us all to share our day to day experiences which are often quite

different to other parents. This is so beneficial and allows us to go back to our routines and keep

carrying on. Jenny is and has always been a fabulous resource and mentor. Be lost without this group.

29

Early Childhood Mentoring Project

The phrase “It Takes a Village” describes the concept that support given to people, either by family or

community, fosters growth, develops positive relationships and reduces isolation. With an awareness

that early childhood settings are an integral part of family’s lives in areas such as childhood

development, relationship building, interagency support and child protection, Gateway Family Services

has been providing a Mentoring project for over ten years to Early Childhood Educators in the Blue

Mountains and Penrith LGA’s.

The mentor meets with educators and provides information pertaining to local services, referral pathways

and helps staff to build their confidence and skills to provide support and engage with vulnerable

families. Through this mentoring program, educators develop deeper relationships with families who, in

turn, then feel safe to communicate their concerns or challenges to the educator such as financial stress,

chronic health issues, trauma or family breakdown. By participating in the mentoring program staff are

further able to assist families by providing information and resources that will increase a family’s capacity

to gain understanding, feel supported, increase their resources and reduce isolation.

Following is feedback from educators who have participated in the ITAV program:

Q: Since participating in the ITAV program how have your skills increased?

I feel like I am becoming more confident in speaking with families

Skills to talk to parents about their child’s behaviour

My confidence working with families

I now feel I can better support families when needed and give them details as to who they need to

contact.

Confidence in having crucial and challenging conversations with parents

My knowledge of resources

My confidence in my relationships with parents and carers

Increased my confidence working with families

Q: How might your attitudes towards vulnerable families changed since participating in the ITAV

program?

Not to judge a parent based on appearances and to gather more information about their circumstances

I have become more supportive of families

I feel I have more knowledge and resources behind me to help as much as possible

I have increased respect and want to support them

SUPPORTED CHILDCARE CENTRES

Werrianda Children’s Centre

Yoorami Children’s Centre

Tamara Children’s Centre

Rainbow Children’s Centre

St Mary’s Children’s Centre

30

31

Special Projects

and Events

32

Gateway is once again proud to be playing an important role in the NSW bushfire recovery efforts, offering Step by Step recovery services in not only the Blue Mountains but also the Hawkesbury, Lithgow and Mid-Western LGA’s. Resilience NSW has provided funding to run the service for twelve months and Step by Step is one of seven Recovery Support Services to be offering support to bushfire impacted regions across NSW. Extra support is being provided by Hawkesbury City Council funding an additional worker for eighteen months. In our region alone there are 120 homes and 293 outbuildings destroyed and 224 buildings damaged. There is also the significant loss of natural habitat and wildlife along with the loss of livestock and beloved pets.

We know from our experience working in the 2013 Blue Mountains Bushfire recovery that it will be a long and very challenging road ahead for households and communities. But that experience has provided us with a wealth of knowledge, understanding and skills that we are able to bring to Step by Step 2020. We are focused on working from Gateway’s strengths and solutions focused model along with our trauma informed approach to provide the vital psychosocial support that people need.

Step by Step is currently working with 222 active

cases with bushfire recovery issues including:

Insurance, recovery grant applications, repair and

rebuild, housing, fencing, dangerous trees,

financial stress, loss of business, trauma,

relationship and family stress, mental health

issues and referrals to local community support

services.

As the saying goes…it takes a village to rebuild a

village. Step by Step is working collaboratively

with a wide range of recovery services including:

Red Cross, Salvation Army, Dept of Primary

Industries, Local Health District Mental Health

Specialists, Rural Assistance Mental Health

Program (RAMPH), HeadSpace, Lions Club,

Winmalee Neighbourhood Centre and Rotary. We

are also working closely with the Recovery

Support Teams at each of the local Councils

across our region.

Blue Mountains

Ruth Myers

Hawkesbury and the Blue Mountains

Amanda Taylor

Hawkesbury

Michelle New

Lithgow

Jenny Quealy

Mid-Western

Leanne Walding (from Lithgow Information & Neighbourhood Centre)

PROGRAM SUPPORT STAFF Project Co-ordination

Joanna Brown

Finance & IT

Terese Klynhout

Social Media

Alison Smith

STEP BY STEP TEAM

Anne Crestani

Manager

Some of the Steppers from left to right Joanna Brown, Michelle New, Amanda Taylor, Ruth Myers, Leanne Walding

Step by Step has been re-activated to

support residents affected by the

catastrophic 2019 bushfires that have

devastated large swathes of NSW.

33

Quality Service

Provision

34

QUALITY SERVICE PROVISION

A Key indicator of quality of our work is the participation of staff in professional development and supervision.

Quality Measures: No. of Professional Development opportunities attended by workers.

In 2019-2020 Gateway Workers participated in both external and team professional training.

Tertiary Students &

Field Education

Gateway has hosted 9 students covering courses in Community services, Social work, social work Masters Qualifying and Counselling.

Each of the students have brought with them their own developing skill sets and knowledge which has been valued by the organisation.

Feedback from Universities and students has been exceptionally good.

358 Professional

Development Hours

Various Staff Meetings

Staff meetings were held face to face during the first half of the financial year, and then moved to an online platform during the pandemic.

Due to increased isolation of workers during Covid restrictions, staff were able to meet more frequently using the Discord online platform. This proved very successful.

Teams continue to meet monthly to develop skills and improve practice, while sub committees meet to focus on core target areas for improved practice.

External Clinical Supervision

100% of frontline staff attended

external clinical supervision.

All family workers and counsellors were

provided with external clinical

supervision with Colleen Hirst (Clinical

Psychologist and Trainer), Tracey

Willow (Psychologist), Play Therapy

Australia and Intergroe Partners.

Our staff were provided with

approximately 120 supervision

sessions.

“Walk With” Disaster Recovery

Introduction to Filial Play Therapy

Solution-Focused Brief Therapy

Toddler feeding and nutrition

Supporting children to heal from trauma of family

violence

Epigenetics Settles the Debate – Not Set in Stone

Experiencing, Step by Step: Master the Body-

oriented Approach to Trauma

How to provide counselling and psychotherapy using

online technologies

No Scaredy Cats

Bringing Up Great Kids for the First 1000 days

Infection Control Training (COVID-19)

Interventions for Therapy using ZOOM

Supporting Grieving Children: Creative Therapy

Interventions and Practical Strategies to Promote

Healing

Identifying and Respond to Children and Young

People at Risk

Trauma Informed Therapy

On the Run (Accidental) Counselling

DEX Portal Training

DEX & NSW TEI Program Training

35

COMMUNITY PARTNERS

Gateway’s support to those facing difficult times has been made possible by the constant support of many

community partners.

The community of the Blue Mountains and the Nepean area have again given generously of their money,

encouragement, energy, skills, knowledge and wisdom. We are truly grateful to be part of a community

that genuinely cares for the other. Together we build and strengthen.

Baker’s Delight – Emu Plains & Springwood

Belong Blue Mountains – Neighbourhood Centres

Blaxland Chamber of Commerce

Blaxland Christian Reformed Church

Blaxland East Public School

Blaxland High School

Blaxland Pre-School (Boorea St)

Blaxland Public School

Blaxland Uniting Church

Blue Mountains City Council

Blue Mountains Family Day Care

Box Divvy

Community Smiles

Connect Child & Family Services

Dept. of Industry, Innovation & Science

East Blaxland Community Pharmacy

Euroka Pre-School

Emu Plains Community Baptist Church

Family & Community Services – Penrith & Blue Mtns

FaMS –NSW Family Services Inc

Faulconbridge Pre-School

Glenbrook Baptist Church

Glenbrook Chamber of Commerce

Glenbrook Public School

Glenbrook Pre-School

IGA (Blaxland)

Lapstone Pre-School & Early Intervention Service

LEAD Professional Development Assoc.

Lions Club of Winmalee

Marise Payne MP

Mountains Community Resource Network

Mountains Mobile Minders

Mountains Outreach Community Services

Mt Riverview Public School

Mountains Youth Services Team (MYST)

Nepean Community Neighbourhood Services

Nepean Hospital Mid-Wives team

NSW Dept. of Justice

NSW Police Service

Penrith City Council

Penrith City Council Children’s Services

Penrith Uniting Church

ROC Hair

Rotary Club of Lower Blue Mountains

Rural Fire Service Mt Riverview

SecondBite

Seventh Day Adventist Church Warrimoo

Springwood Community Health Centre

Springwood Uniting Church

Stronger Families Alliance

Stuart Ayres MP

Susan Templeman MP

Sydney Water

The Department of Social Services

Thrive Services

Trish Doyle MP

Warrimoo Public School

Wentworth Area Health Services

Werrianda Children’s Centre

Wesley Mission

Western Sydney University

Wycliffe Christian School

Wimlah Women’s Refuge – West Connect Domestic Violence Services

Winmalee Neighbourhood Centre

Winmalee Public School

Uniting NSW/ACT

Zonta (Nepean Valley)

36

37

Financial

Statements

38

TREASURER’S REPORT

The audited annual accounts are available for your perusal upon request. Net profit in 2019/20 was a surplus of $31,887.68 compared to a surplus of $3,438.50 in the previous financial year. Total income for 2019/20 was $1,525,404.73.

Income for 2019/20 has increased by $315,156.55 over the 2018/19 figure mainly due to:

Step by Step (OEM/Resilience NSW funding)

Step by Step (Hawkesbury City Council funding)

Increase in Tax Receipted Donations (up by $20,000)

COVID19 Cash Flow Boost

Expenditure for 2019/20 has increased by $187,003.80 over the 2018/19 figure mainly due to:

Refurbishment of Penrith venue $19,300

Emergency Relief expenses up by $5,000

Increase in Employment Expenses due to Step by Step project

Increased expenditure directly attributable to impact of COVID-19

Looking forward can be summarised with the following points:

5 Year Funding contract has been signed with NSW Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) for Targeted Earlier Intervention programs across the Blue Mountains and Nepean Districts.

Funding from Dept of Social Services (Federal) for Children and Parent Support Services ceases June 2021. Gateway will be campaigning to obtain a long term contract to keep this service in the Blue Mountains.

Income likely to remain similar to 2019/20 due to the continuation of the Step by Step program throughout the majority of the financial year.

Continued government support by way of COVID-19 Cash Flow Boost.

Expected increase in Emergency Relief Expenses due to continued downturn in economy due to COVID-19.

While there have been some steps forward in terms of funding certainty, Gateway still operates within the

political will and the constraints this necessarily imposes. The trend towards funding larger organisations

means that many smaller locally based quality services will face greater challenges in the future to obtain

funding for vital programs.

In presenting this report, I again want to thank Finance Manager, Terese Klynhout, for her dedication and

thorough attention to detail in maintaining the financial records of GFS. I commend to you the report of

our Auditor Raymond Brooks and thank him for his work in ensuring that GFS continues to meet its

financial and legal obligations.

Peter Tamsett Treasurer

Gateway Family Services ABN 15 607 266 742

Committee's Report

Your committee members submit the financial accounts of the Gateway Family Services for the financial year ended

30 June 2020.

Committee Members The names of committee members at the date of this report are:

Karen Van Woudenberg (Chairperson)

Mark Elliott (Secretary)

Peter Tamsett (Treasurer)

Glenn Beaver

Peter Berry

David Tupper

Principal Activities

The principal activities during the financial year were: Family & Community Services.

Significant Changes

No significant change in the nature of these activities occurred during the year.

Statutory Registrations

• Gateway Family Services is registered as Other -Unincorporated Entity, with an ABN and GST on the

Australian Business Register.

• Gateway Family Services is Registered as a Charity with the Australian Charities and Not-for -Profits

Commission (ACNC)

• Gateway Family Services is a Public Benevolent Institution and has Income Tax, FBT and GST Concessions.

• Gateway Family Services is endorsed as a Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR)

Operating Result

The profit from ordinary activities after providing for income tax amounted to:

Year ended

30 June 2020

$31,887.68

Signed in accordance with a resolution of the Members of the Committee on:

Dated: 30th September 2020

Year ended

30 June 2019

$ 3,438.50

Karen Van Woudenberg (Chairperson)

Mark Elliott (Secretary)

39

Liability is limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation

Fax: 02 4729 0014 ABN : 33 262 496 063

CHARTERED ACCO UNTA NTS '" Tax agent AVS TRAl l A • NEW ZEALANO 53675008

Gateway Family Services ABN 15 607 266 742

Independent Auditor's Report to the Members

Report on the Financial Report

I have audited the accompanying financial report , being a special purpose financial report, of Gateway Family Services (the association) , which comprises the Statement by Members of the Committee, Profit & Loss Statement, Balance Sheet, Notes comprising a summary of significant accounting policies and other explanatory notes for the financial year ended 30 June 2020.

Committee's Responsibility for the Financial Report

The committee of Gateway Family Services is responsible for the preparation and fair presentation of the financial report, and

have determined that the basis of preparation described in Note 1, is appropriate to meet the requirements of the Associations Incorporation Act and is appropriate to meet the needs of the members. The committee's responsibilities also includes such

internal control as the committee determine is necessary to enable the preparation of a financial report that is free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.

Auditor's Responsibility

My responsibility is to express an opinion on the financial report based on our audit. We have conducted our audit in

accordance with Australian Auditing Standards. Those Standards require that we comply with relevant ethical requirements

relating to audit engagements and plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance whether the financial report is

free from material misstatement.

An audit involves performing procedures to obtain audit evidence about the amounts and disclosures in the financial report.

The procedures selected depend on the auditor 's judgement, including the assessment of the risks of material misstatement

of the financial report, whether due to fraud or error. In making those risk assessments, the auditor considers internal control

relevant to the association 's preparation of the financial report that gives a true and fair view, in order to design audit

procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances , but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of

the association 's internal control. An audit also includes evaluating the appropriateness of accounting policies used and the

reasonableness of accounting estimates made by the committee as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial

report.

Raymond Brooks Chartered Accountant Postal: PO Box 8280 Werr lngtonCounty NSW 2747

Phone: (Mes g ) 02 4729 1041

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Opinion

In our opinion, the financial report presents fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of Gateway Family Services

as at 30 June 2020 and its financial performance for the year then ended in accordance with the accounting policies

described in Note 1 to the financial statements, and the requirements of the Associations Incorporation Act (NSW). ·

Basis of Accounting and Restriction on Distribution

Without modifying our opinion, we draw attention to Note 1 to the financial statements, which describes the basis of accounting. The financial report has been prepared to assist Gateway Family Services to meet the requirements of the Associations Incorporation Act (NSW). As a result, the financial report may not be suitable for another purpose.

Signed:

Raymond Brooks, Chartered Accountant

PO Box 8280, Werrington County NSW 2747 September 12, 2020

Raymond Brooks Chartered Accountant

41

YE2020 YE2019

GFS Admin **8902 $117,842.09 $66,834.06

GFS SAVER **8929 $423,390.37 $252,911.69

GFS Gift Fund **8910 $60,854.95 $32,742.97

GFS VISA Debit **6288 $3,005.41 $1,306.02

PayPal Merchange Acct $777.70 $0.00

Uniting Church Trust **3588 $141,107.29 $140,177.26

CBA Term Deposit **0457/0465 $200,000.00 $200,000.00

Petty Cash $190.00 $190.00

Trade Debtors $1,694.00 $4,072.00

Pre-Payments & Deposits with Vendors $2,615.77 $0.00

Total Assets $951,477.58 $698,234.00

Trade Creditors $10,945.12 $11,487.77

Staff Christmas Sav Management $681.00 $477.71

GST Liabilities $45,124.81 $15,143.16

Payroll Liabilities $43,965.07 $19,723.11

Provision - Project Grants/Funding $233,861.60 $118,456.04

Provision - Administrative $110,801.83 $118,355.00

Employment Provisions $312,768.07 $253,148.81

Total Liabilities $758,147.50 $536,791.60

Net Assets $193,330.08 $161,442.40

Retained Earnings $103,032.25 $99,593.75

Current Earnings $31,887.68 $3,438.50

Historical Balancing Account $58,410.15 $58,410.15

Total Equity $193,330.08 $161,442.40

Liabilities

Equity

GATEWAY FAMILY SERVICES

PO Box 3051,

Blaxland East NSW 2774

Balance Sheet30th June 2020

Assets

42

YE2020 YE2019

Income

Project Income $363,609.21 $149,207.66

BMCC $10,750.00 $2,750.00

NSW Family & Community Service $857,081.12 $838,387.01

Dept of Social Services $163,670.22 $159,829.18

Friends of Family Support $59,074.40 $36,435.00

BWUC - Church Contribution $6,000.00 $6,000.00

Fundraising $3,427.75 $5,700.02

Donations $2,297.20 $5,559.45

Income - Misc $3,558.48 $1,870.64

Interest 5936.35 $4,509.19

COVID19 Cash Flow Boost $50,000.00 $0.00

Total Income $1,525,404.73 $1,210,248.15

Expenses

Audit / Accountant / Legal $937.50 $868.64

Advertising $3,803.83 $7,912.15

Bank Fees $500.87 $743.09

Cleaning / rubbish / housekeeping $6,712.23 $1,940.80

First Aid / OH&S $1,255.37 $0.00

Catering Expenses $5,196.39 $6,107.41

Electricity / Gas $1,972.01 $2,181.65

Repairs & Maintenance $5,914.81 $7,323.84

Gifts / Awards $558.40 $710.63

Membership / Subscriptions $4,477.95 $7,023.38

Printing / stationery / postage $12,679.75 $11,985.28

Equipment $20,049.30 $2,579.20

Security $1,614.55

Telephone / internet $14,452.99 $13,190.72

Travel / parking $17,861.47 $18,756.93

Accommodation / Housing $17,119.47 $16,601.18

Supervision $13,866.81 $14,458.18

Child Care $119.55 $1,365.00

Training / Development $10,207.89 $6,460.77

Special Projects / resources / contract work $182,489.56 $133,643.10

Emergency Relief Expenses $25,269.46 $20,595.70

Employment Expenses $931,413.02 $853,924.70

Employment Provisions $96,218.31 $59,315.27

Total $1,374,691.49 $1,187,687.62

Operating Profit $150,713.24 $22,560.53

Other Income

PROVISIONAL FUNDS

Opening Advanced Grant Funds $12,121.31 $563.11

Opening Provision A/c Funds $102,008.31 $149,292.05

Closing Project Deficit to Prov $0.00 $0.00

LEVIES INCOME $295,258.97 $275,663.00

Total Other Income $409,388.59 $425,518.16

Other Expenses

PROVISIONAL FUNDS

Opening Project Deficit $0.00 $54,847.57

Closing Project Funds to Prov $232,955.18 $114,129.62

LEVIES EXPENSE $295,258.97 $275,663.00

Total Other Expenses $528,214.15 $444,640.19

Net Profit/(Loss) $31,887.68 $3,438.50

July 2019 To June 2020

GATEWAY FAMILY SERVICES

PO Box 3051,

Blaxland East NSW 2774

ABN: 15 607 266 742

Profit & Loss

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