in the house december 2015rosshouse.org.au/.../rha-newsletter_december-2015.pdf · the sidney myer...
TRANSCRIPT
On Wednesday 2nd September, Ross House Association held an Information and Strategy Forum in the Hayden Raysmith Meeting Room. It was a very well attended forum, and we thank all of you who took time out of their day to be there. Attendees shared their thoughts and ideas as to where they see the future of Ross House Association. These ideas were collated and have resulted in a Community Consultation Kit, which was sent to all members on the 5th November 2015. The Community Consultation Kit contains a survey for all members to complete. Please return the survey to the RHA office by 14th December 2015. The RHA Committee of Management will also be creating a ‘Future Development’ Working Party to put together a 5-10 year strategic plan for the future of Ross House, at this stage we anticipate that the working party will meet monthly, with the first meeting scheduled for early February. If you are interested in joining this group, please contact General Manager, Michael Griffiths at [email protected]
2015 RHA Information and Strategy Forum update
in the house D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 5
2 0 1 5 R H A
C O M M I T T E E
CHAIRPERSON
Valerie Elliott
(Handknitters Guild)
VICE CHAIR
Christine McAuslan
(COSHG)
TREASURER
Keith Bettles
(U3A City of Melbourne)
De Grebner
(TreeProject)
Maree Norris
(HAAG)
Sue Healy
(Appointed Member)
Charles Brass
(Futures Foundation)
Johannes Klabbers
(Exit Victoria)
Amber Moore
(Appointed Member, Staff
representative)
Michael Griffiths
(Ex-officio, RHA General
Manager)
CitySwitch Awards 2015 On Wednesday 18th November, Amber and Michael attended the 2015 CitySwitch Awards, whereby Ross House Association was shortlisted as a finalist in the over 2000m2 category. Whilst we didn’t win this year, it was an absolute honour to be shortlisted as a finalist in what was an incredibly competitive category. The fact that we were finalists alongside some very big companies, like the Transport Accident Commission, really demonstrates just how much impact we are having with our sustainability works. By implementing green works to the Ross House building, we are not only keeping opera-tional costs down against rising utility prices, we also contribute to the bigger picture - the national effort to reduce carbon emissions. It is about finding ways, however large or small, to reduce our overall reliance on energy consumption, and being smarter in the way we operate and think.
P A G E 2
Building & Maintenance
There’s always a lot going on in this big old building of ours, so please make sure you keep an eye out for the building maintenance emails that circulate regularly. We have replaced the vertical blinds in the Sue Healy (mezzanine) and Jenny Florence rooms with roller blinds and I’m sure you’ll agree that this is a vast improvement. We have also begun rolling out the upgrade of the Ross House internet service. The new provider will be ClearDay Networks and the service will consist of an 8 wire service (up to 20Mbps upload & download however estimated to be at 8-10Mbps) with unlimited data. It is expected that the upgrade will be completed by Monday 7th December. The new internet charges will be $18+GST/month for each tenant, irrespective of the size of the tenancy. Existing users of the RHA internet service are to advise Samantha Thornton via [email protected] if they do not wish to take up the new internet service at Ross House. If we do not hear from you, the new charge of $18+GST/month will appear on your January invoice, which will be issued in early February 2016.
We have scheduled a final hard waste and e-waste collection for 2015. E-WASTE
� Items are to be placed in Bay 16 of the carpark
� Items must be placed in Bay 16, by 5pm Tuesday 15th December or they will not be collected.
� Items that will be accepted for E-Waste collection, include: computers, moni-tors, cables, printers, telephones and fax machines.
HARD WASTE
� Items are to be placed in Bay 16 of the carpark
� Items must be placed in Bay 16, by 5pm Wednesday 16th December or they will not be collected.
Ross House Association continues to make incredible energy savings as a result of sustainability works to the building, behaviour change and continued commitment from the entire Ross House community.
Note: the reduced energy consumption seen in October, November and December 2013 is
due to the HVAC installation works; a number of units were not in use during this time, result-
ing in reduced energy consumption.
I N T H E H O U S E
P A G E 3
Ross House member, The Animal Law Institute (ALI), is currently seeking expressions of interest from individuals in relation to one vacancy on our panel of Volunteer Lawyers around Australia to assist us in both our advice work and litigation. The Volunteer Lawyer must have a practising certificate in one Australian State or Territory (it does not have to be unrestricted) and will provide their services pro bono under ALI's professional indemnity insurance and be supervised by ALI's Principal Lawyer (you will not be operating under a firm's banner if you hold an employee practising certificate). Specific experience in one area including litigation is not required however the Volunteer Lawyer must be passionate about animal welfare and willing to work as a team. ALI expects you to commit approximately 20 - 40 hours of pro bono assistance per year. Deadline for applications is 31st October 2015, so get in quick!! For more information, visit http://www.ali.org.au/careers/
AsbestosWise
Notice of Annual General Meeting
Thursday 10th of December 2015
4.30 – 5.30 pm
FOURTH FLOOR -
HAYDEN RAYSMITH ROOM
ROSS HOUSE
247 – 251 FLINDERS LANE
MELBOURNE VIC 3000
The 2014-2015 Ross House Association Annual Report is
now available. Pop down to reception and grab yourself a
hard copy or click here to view it online: http://
bit.ly/1Nn2GNo
A massive thanks to Lewis Brownlie, a local illustrator, who
provided us with the cover illustration of Ross House.
Check out his work here:
Lewis Brownlie Illustration
P A G E 4
Grants News
There are many grants open at the moment, but here are a couple of grants that look great! The Ian Potter Foundation Community Wellbeing Funding round is open—closing on 11 December 2015. The objective of the Community Wellbeing area is to help alleviate disadvantage and promote the general wellbeing of the community. The Community Wellbeing program currently operates two streams of funding:
• General grants ($50,000 - $100,000): emphasis on innovative programs that work to alle-viate disadvantage and promote the general well-being of the community.
• Large grants (more than $100,000): prevention of homelessness, in particular early inter-vention programs that aim to break the cycle of disadvantage that can lead to homeless-ness.
Applicants are required to speak to a Program Manager if submitting an Expresion of Interest (EOI) for a grant of more than $100,000. To be eligible for funding, you must have:
∗ Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status
∗ Tax Concession Charity (TCC) status For more information, please visit http://www.ianpotter.org.au/what-we-support/community-wellbeing/ The Sidney Myer Fund and The Myer Foundation Poverty and Disadvantage Small Grants Program 2015/2016 is an ongoing funding round, offering grants of up to $10,000. The Small Grants Program supports strategies to benefit Australian communities. The aims are to:
• alleviate the negative effects of poverty and disadvantage
• demonstrate new ideas about how to address poverty and disadvantage
• strengthen communities’ abilities to deal with poverty and disadvantage You do not need to have Deductible Gift Recipient status to be eligible for this funding. For more information, please visit http://myerfoundation.org.au/grants/poverty-disadvantage/small-grants/
I N T H E H O U S E
Top Grant Writ-
ing Tips
1. Follow the guide-lines and align your project to what the funder is looking for. If you’re unsure, contact the grant
provider directly.
2. If you see a grant
that you may be
eligible for but it
closes in less than
7 days – think
twice! Quality
applications re-
quire plenty of
time and atten-
tion.
3. Keep it short.
Sometimes grant
providers have to
read 100’s of
applications. Con-
cise yet informa-
tive applications
will stand out and
be appreciated.
4. In strategic giv-
ing, it’s all about
the outcomes. Be
focussed on your
outcome and how
this aligns with
your organisations
mission state-
ment.
5. Acknowledge
your key risks and
how you will miti-
gate them.
6. Advise how suc-
cess will be meas-
ured.
New Members P A G E 5
Indigenous Women in Business Indigenous Women in Business provide a platform for Indigenous business women to connect, learn, share and lead – they exist to provide support and tools to grow and empower their members with a focus on mentoring young peo-ple. They’re building a supportive community where their members are grounded in culture, passionate about growth, and confident in pursuing their defined success. www.iwibaustralia.com.au Depression & Anxiety Timeout – Melbourne The members of Depression & Anxiety Timeout Melbourne are people from all walks of life that have suffered from de-pression and/or anxiety. The self-help group provides regular events and discussion sessions for their members where, through the encouragement of social interaction, it is hoped they will gain confidence to build on having a happier and healthier life as well as inspiring them to help others. www.meetup.com/Depression-Anxiety-Timeout-Melbourne/
New Tenants Climate Council The Climate Council is an independent organisation committed to providing accurate information to the Australian public on climate change. They combat the lack of factual information in the media, and are consistently asked to provide guid-ance on how to communicate the complex science and solutions to the public. www.climatecouncil.org.au
Tenant Moves ♦ Asbestos Wise moved across the hall to Room 2.8
♦ RISE has moved next door to a larger space –
Room 1.5
♦ Financial Consumer Rights Council and Outer Urban Projects have both moved out of Ross
House.
Neighbourhood Houses Victoria AGM
The Neighbourhood Houses Victoria (formerly
known as ANHLC) AGM will be held on Monday 9th
November.
∗ Come and help us celebrate our new name! ∗ Hear from prominent philanthropists about
the future of collaborations with Neighbour-hood Houses
∗ Meet the 2016 Board
When: Monday 9 November 2015
Arrive at 12:40 pm for 1pm start.
Finish at 3pm followed by light refreshments
Where: Multicultural Hub, 506 Queen St (opp
Queen Vic Markets), Melbourne
RSVP: Click here to register your attendance http://
bit.ly/1jxPYnf
RHA Committee News Ross House Associa�on held its Annual General
Mee�ng on Wednesday 18th November, 2015.
During the AGM, the following nominees were
presented and duly elected:
Officer positions (2 year term)
Chairperson: Valerie Elliot, Handknitters Guild)
Vice-Chairperson: Christine McAuslan, Collec-
tive of Self Help Groups)
Ordinary Members (2 year term)
Charles Brass, Futures Foundation
Ordinary Members (1 year term)
Johannes Klabbers, Exit Victoria
P A G E 6
Ross House-keeping
∗ Ross House will be closed between Thursday 24th December 2015 and Sunday 3rd January 2016 (inclusive).
The building will re-open on Monday 4th January 2016.
If you wish to access the building during this period of closure, you will need a swipe to enter and exit the building. If you don’t have a swipe and need to use the building during this time, please ar-range to pick one up from reception by 4:45pm on Friday 18th December 2015.
Please note, all mail delivered to Ross House will be ON HOLD between 24th December-4th January 2016.
∗ Please remember payment terms on in-voices are 14 days. Invoices that remain unpaid will incur a late payment fee of $15 + GST. If you anticipate a delay with paying your invoice, it’s important to con-tact Junxia and let her know - email [email protected]
I N T H E
Katie got married!
On Sunday 22nd November, enveloped by the circle of trees at Edinburgh Gardens in North Fitzroy, our gorgeous Katie married her partner Banjo, in what has been described by many as “the best wedding ever!” And you know what? It really was! We wish Katie and Banjo all the love in the world! Katie will be on leave 11th of December-10th January, as she and Banjo are heading to the UK for wedding number 2!
∗ We will continue to clean the meeting rooms monthly – please do not move any chairs from the meeting rooms as we list the number of chairs available on our website.
∗ A big thank you to everyone who is
calling through for last minute book-ings, we have see a major improvement regarding the unauthorised use of meeting rooms. A reminder that if a group is found to be utilising a meeting room or car park without booking (this includes arriving early), a fee will be charged equivalent to a 2 hour booking for that space.
∗ Workshops have been going really well
with some great feedback being re-ceived; we hope to bring you more in 2016. If you have any thoughts, con-tacts or ideas for potential upcoming workshops, please let Katie know - email [email protected]
∗ 2016 room bookings will open to the
general public on Monday morning (7th December) so get in quick if you have any last minute requests.
Ross House team represent—just missing Junxia!
P A G E 7
National Volunteer Week 2016 - Expressions of Interest
All tenants and members have been asked to complete an Expression of Interest regarding participation in an Open House at Ross House during National Volunteer Week in 2016. We receive many enquiries regarding volunteering opportunities at Ross House and we are looking at ways to best capture and engage this potential wealth of volunteer power. One idea is to open up Ross House to the general public for a day during National Volunteer Week. An Open House where visitors interested in volun-teering could visit participating tenants in their offices to discuss volunteering opportunities and access member groups at stalls set up around Ross House – an amazing opportunity for our members to access the wealth of volunteer power available in Melbourne. We would also need people from within the Ross House community to volunteer their time to meet and greet visitors and to direct them to areas where their interests may be met. We would need a large number of ten-ants/members to take part in this event for it to be a success and effective for volunteers, therefore Ross House will only participate if enough interest is received. If you’ve not returned your Expression of Interest form, you’ll soon get a call from Membership & Tenancy Officer Sam who is keen to gauge your interest in participating in this exciting event. Contact Sam if you have any questions - [email protected] or phone 9650 1599.
General Manager
Michael Griffiths
Development Program Manager
Amber Moore
Membership & Tenancy Officer
Samantha Thornton
Information & Administration
Officer
Katie Stoll
247-251 Flinders Lane
Melbourne VIC 3000
Phone: 03 9650 1599
Fax: 03 9650 3689
Email: [email protected]
www.rosshouse.org.au
in the house is a Ross House Association internal publication, produced six times a year. If you would like to contribute an article, promote an event or share some exciting news about your organisation, keep your eye out for an email from Amber, in the new year, re-garding submission deadlines. Please send all submissions to: [email protected]
Ross House Association Staff
Facility Manager
Nazzareno Marchionda
Finance Officer
Junxia xu
Casual Front Desk staff
Lucie McMahon
Sue McDonough
Stephanie East
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