Flourish Magazine - Autumn 2023

Welcome to the latest edition of Flourish, a colourful collection of stories, people and events emerging from our wonderful UnitingSA community over the past six months.

We use Flourish as an opportunity to share just a small selection of the stories of impact happening every day through the work of our dedicated staff, and made possible by our strong community partnerships and generous donors.

It’s a sad fact that South Australia is in the midst of an ongoing crisis in housing affordability and security, made worse by a supply shortage.

In this edition, read about some of the important projects and programs that UnitingSA is involved in to tackle this crisis, including our largest-ever community housing development (page 11), our involvement in the Housing Security for Older Women Taskforce (page 6), and the launch of Peppertree Place, an emergency accommodation pilot program (page 7), supported by the Adelaide North West Homelessness Alliance (ANWHA).

We also take a look at the future of Retirement Living integrated with Residential Aged Care through the eyes of TV personality Deane Hutton and his wife Jan, who are residents of our five-storey state-of-the-art complex at West Lakes. Many of you will recognise Deane, who turned 82 in April, as a South Australian television icon. Our story, on page 8, also touches on his television career as presenter of The Curiosity Show, along with some secrets to that famous moustache!

Also on a fun note, explore the skill and vibrancy of the talented Kumangka Karrarendi poetry and performance group on page 12.

The group’s Coming Together show late last year is just one example of the amazing work that happens at our Taperoo Community Centre. We always love celebrating our fabulous volunteers and in this edition we hear from Sue and Julie who volunteer their time at Hawksbury Gardens and UnitingSA West Lakes Aged Care, and we also pay tribute to Wesley House Aged Care volunteer Gary West who was recently named the 2023 Charles Sturt Council Senior Citizen of the Year.

Rewarding volunteer opportunities exist in our Aged Care facilities, so if you want to be like Sue, Julie and Gary and give back to our older citizens, check out their stories and our list of available positions on pages 4 and 5. And while Christmas might seem a distant memory, it would be reminisce of me not to share this amazing news.

It’s official. We have a new record for financial donations from our annual Christmas Appeal with our 2022 appeal raising a record $48,000, ensuring we were able to meet the significant rise in demand for Emergency Relief services. What an incredible result. On behalf of everyone at UnitingSA, I express my heartfelt thanks and gratitude to everyone who donated. We head into the colder months of 2023 buoyed by the strength of our amazing community. And on that note, thank you for being part of the UnitingSA family.

Jenny Hall Chief Executive Officer

“ Rewarding volunteer opportunities exist in our Aged Care facilities, so if you want to be like Sue, Julie and Gary and give back to our older citizens, check out their stories and our list of available positions on pages 4 and 5.”

CEO JENNY HALL, 2023

12,517 PEOPLE SUPPORTED

PEOPLE SUPPORTED ACROSS AGED CARE

2,077 PEOPLE PROVIDED EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE

2,387

THE JOY OF VOLUNTEERING

Centenarian Bessie loves spending time with volunteer Sue. The pair make mischief together and can often be found sharing a joke and a giggle.

“She is wonderful – a very nice lady,” mother-of-six Bessie says, as she and Sue sit together in a quiet corner of UnitingSA’s Hawksbury Gardens Aged Care, in Salisbury North.

“It’s good that she takes time with people like me. It’s lovely here.”

How to volunteer

UnitingSA is currently looking for volunteers across all of our Residential Aged Care homes.

Some of the volunteer roles currently available include:

y Resident companions

y Leisure and lifestyle support

y Card and board game companions

y Bingo assistants

When Bessie turned 100 last April, Sue gave her a special gift.

When the big day arrived, the much anticipated telegram from the Queen wasn’t delivered in time.

So Sue simply made a fake by downloading a copy of the congratulatory certificate from the internet.

When the real one arrived a few weeks later, the true story unfolded, leaving Bessie with two telegrams from the ‘Queen’. She loves them both. The pair have shared plenty of laughs and have a beautiful friendship, which

y Art and craft assistants

y Football tipping assistants

y Gardening group support

y Men’s social group companions

y Hairdresser escorts

y Café assistants

y Piano players

Find out more: unitingsa.com.au/ volunteer-with-us

has developed through Sue’s love and dedication to Bessie and the other residents who call Hawksbury Gardens home.

Until she retired two years ago, Sue worked at Hawksbury Gardens as a carer, nurse and activities leader. But retirement couldn’t keep her away from the work she loves.

“I volunteer here once a week. I love it,” Sue says.

“You get so much pleasure from seeing the residents’ faces and being involved, perhaps having a little sing-song. They love music and they love telling you their life stories.”

Julie is another of UnitingSA’s valued volunteers. She spends time at UnitingSA West Lakes, helping to escort residents to hair appointments at the onsite salon.

When she retired in 2020, Julie was planning on going on a European cruise. Covid-19 soon put those plans on hold. When she found out about the volunteer hairdresser escort position, it sounded perfect.

“I have sisters who are hairdressers and I love getting my hair done. It makes you feel pampered and so much better,” Julie says.

“I love just seeing the residents and the interaction with them. They really appreciate everything that you do for them.

“It just makes you feel like you are making a difference in their lives.

“I’d like to think that if I’m ever in a home there would be people that will do exactly the same for me.”

Gary honoured in awards

Wesley House Aged Care volunteer Gary West was recently named the 2023 Charles Sturt Council Senior Citizen of the Year.

Gary works tirelessly with the West Lakes Rotary Club and is always on hand to help at Wesley House Aged Care too.

He fundraises every year to buy calendars for residents and makes board games.

One of his much-loved roles is dressing up as Father Christmas for onsite celebrations.

In the past, Gary has also been an integral part of UnitingSA’s Bright Hour gatherings for older people, where he would help cater for the group’s Christmas lunches.

A big thank you to Gary for all his support and congratulations on the award!

“To sit and listen to those stories is priceless. All they need is time.”

SUE

PICTURED: Left – Resident Bessie and volunteer Sue share some quality time. Right – Senior Citizen of the Year Gary West. Below – Volunteer Julie with resident Carliene and hairdresser Susie.

Aunty Ingrid wins award

UnitingSA Aboriginal Family Worker and Narungga artist Aunty Ingrid O’Loughlin has been recognised for her significant contribution to the arts in the Port Adelaide community.

Aunty Ingrid was named the winner of the ‘Contribution to the Arts’ award at the recent Port Adelaide Enfield Council Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Awards, which aim to recognise and celebrate First Peoples and their community contribution.

Aunty Ingrid is a much-loved member of UnitingSA’s Child, Youth and Family Services team and Reconciliation Action Plan Committee.

UnitingSA CEO Jenny Hall says she is delighted to see Aunty Ingrid recognised for her life-long passion for keeping Aboriginal culture alive through visual arts projects.

“UnitingSA is so fortunate to have Aunty Ingrid in our team, and to see the community impact she creates by weaving her creativity with community engagement in the Port Adelaide area, where she has lived for many years,” Jenny says.

“As part of our Connected Families, Minya Ones and Taperoo Community Centre school holiday programs, Aunty Ingrid shares cultural and traditional knowledge.

“Importantly, her art projects also educate non-Aboriginal community members about First Nations people and culture, providing a stepping stone to a more welcoming, inclusive and reconciled society.”

UNITINGSA ON HOUSING SECURITY TASKFORCE

It’s a sobering fact. In just one decade, the number of older women experiencing homelessness has jumped a massive 44 per cent.

Experts say 240,000 women aged 55 or older are now at risk of homelessness, with the figures likely to worsen as Australia’s ageing population doubles in the next 30 years.

Recently, UnitingSA CEO Jenny Hall was invited to join South Australia’s first Housing Security for Older Women Taskforce.

Established by Human Services Minister Nat Cook and made up of 16 South Australians representing government, not-for-profit organisations and universities, the Taskforce is now working together to find ways to improve housing security for women, primarily aged 55 and over.

“Lower lifetime incomes due to the gender pay gap, less access to superannuation, relationship breakdown, and a lack of financial assets due to informal child care responsibilities have left women in this age group particularly vulnerable,” Jenny says.

“Single women are even more vulnerable, with less financial protection than those who may be sharing housing and living expenses with a partner.

“Women living with a disability, Aboriginal women and women from diverse cultures face even more barriers.

“The establishment of this Taskforce is an important step toward defining the causes of housing insecurity and finding real and impactful solutions.”

Susan, a former UnitingSA Housing tenant, has been appointed to the Taskforce to provide a lived experience perspective to ensure the taskforce

looks at the real life challenges older women are facing.

Susan escaped years of domestic violence in her Riverland home at the hands of her now ex-husband. When she moved to Adelaide, she had no rental history, no superannuation and had lost her family and the work and income she had previously had in their family-owned business.

She spent many months in Catherine House who helped her through the early days of separation and some hard times, eventually finding her way to an affordable home provided by UnitingSA Housing. Over the following years she studied, retraining in disability support, and she now works in the support sector.

The housing security provided by UnitingSA enabled her to concentrate on her study, regaining her confidence and rebuilding her life.

Susan was eventually able to build her own home, and was then able to leave the UnitingSA unit so someone else could get this life-changing support.

Susan says she is honoured to be able to be a voice for older women on the Taskforce.

“Providing a voice for lived experience advocates on the Taskforce is important because women like me, who have been in that situation, know the barriers, the things that work and what is needed in future to help battle these challenges,” Susan says.

PICTURED: Above right – UnitingSA CEO Jenny Hall (right) with Susan. Below – Aunty Ingrid (left) with City of Port Adelaide and Enfield Mayor Claire Boan.

PEPPERTREE PLACE… A SAFE PLACE TO CALL HOME

Tucked away in the northern suburbs of Adelaide are eight small units providing a sanctuary for homeless families desperate for a place to call home.

Peppertree Place is a new pilot program providing an alternative to expensive and unsuitable emergency hotel accommodation many families are finding themselves in.

It’s an issue the State Government is eager to fix. Over the past five years, the cost of providing emergency accommodation to homeless families has jumped from $4 million to $11 million – a direct result of the State’s ongoing rental and housing affordability crisis.

Here, among the 100-year-old pepper trees, around 32 families each year will be helped back on their feet, through the support of the Adelaide North West Homelessness Alliance (ANWHA) and funding from the South Australian Housing Authority.

UnitingSA CEO Jenny Hall says each unit has its own kitchen, so families can cook nutritious meals, unlike a hotel room where no cooking facilities are available.

“There are two bedrooms, a bathroom and a living area, and although these

units aren’t large, there is also outside area where their children can run and play safely,” Jenny says.

“Hotels are no place for children. At Peppertree Place families in crisis now have their own space to be able to get outdoors.

“Residents at Peppertree Place take on a three month lease, pay a reduced rent, and are responsible for keeping their properties neat and tidy.

“Paying the rent and establishing a rental history will also help them when applying for more permanent housing.”

Opened by the Human Services Minister Nat Cook in January this year, the eight units at Peppertree Place were filled within weeks.

Minister Cook says every night, hundreds of South Australians are in hotels because of the housing crisis.

“While so many organisations do amazing work to support those requiring crisis accommodation, we know families experiencing the stress of homelessness aren’t best served in motel rooms,” Minister Cook says.

“Peppertree Place provides an opportunity to trial a residential crisis accommodation model for families. It’s a remarkable place.

“Vulnerable families need their own space to stabilise, to enhance dignity and prepare themselves for longer-term accommodation.”

MORE INFORMATION

ANWHA supports people experiencing or at risk of homelessness across Adelaide’s north-west and is a collaboration between Aboriginal Sobriety Group, AnglicareSA, Centacare, SA Housing Authority, St John’s Youth Services, The Salvation Army, Uniting Communities and UnitingSA.

“Peppertree Place is all about helping families find a pathway to a permanent place to call home, instead of getting stuck in a motel room, with no better alternatives.”

UNITINGSA CEO JENNY HALL

CURIOSITY LEADS DEANE AND JAN TO WEST LAKES

He was one of the most recognised faces on Australian TV, with guest appearances on Hey Hey It’s Saturday and regular segments on radio and television. But it was his time as host on The Curiosity Show that captivated fans in every corner of the country. Deane, 82, and his wife Jan have been married for nearly 60 years, and while no longer at the dizzying heights of fame, they are feeling right at home in their new apartment at the very top of the new five-storey Uniting SA West Lakes Aged Care complex.

They are among more than 20 residents who now live with beautiful views while having access to UnitingSA West Lakes’ residential and respite care if and when they need it.

And while Deane has settled into retirement and a life out of the spotlight, he’s still an A-grade celebrity to the many residents in the Residential Aged Care floors below, where he now presents a regular science show. Their view from the top floor overlooks what has always been a familiar neighbourhood. While Deane’s incredible run on The Curiosity Show took him to other parts of the world, the couple have spent most of their

lives in the local area, and only recently sold their beachfront home at nearby Semaphore Park.

Deane was born in Semaphore and went to Largs Bay Primary School and Adelaide Technical High School. His father was a well-known local photographer with a shopfront on Semaphore Road. He and Jan later raised their three children at Semaphore Park.

It was when Deane was a science teacher at a local high school that he took his first steps into the world of TV.

“I did my first television work with the ABC. At first I did a series of five programs and they asked me to do more. I thought there was too much red tape, and I turned them down,” Deane says.

“Channel 9 had seen the programs and contacted me and asked if I would be interested in doing a weekly science segment.

“They said “You can do whatever you like… you do the scripts… you decide.”

Deane appeared on Here’s Humphrey, presenting science for pre-schoolers, and special editions for school-age children.

In fact, The Curiosity Show was originally called Humphrey’s Curiosity Show.

Deane won a scholarship to study Visual Perception at Indiana University, where he completed a PhD.

“Dr Rob Morrison was selected to continue my role as the Science Adviser and Presenter on The Curiosity Show, and when I returned from overseas, I joined forces with Rob Morrison as co-hosts,” Deane says.

Over the next 18 years The Curiosity Show became one of the most watched children’s programs in the nation.

“It went to 30 stations in Australia and five other countries and won the international Prix Juenesse award for children’s television,” he says.

Deane, who is well-known for his iconic 70s moustache, was recognised everywhere. So when Deane decided to shave off his moustache it caused a funny reaction.

The producer was unhappy. He told Deane to grow it back, pronto. They had filmed dozens of segments with Deane with a moustache, and it was going to cause problems as they sewed segments together to make an episode.

“I said, “It’s my face, and I don’t want the moustache,” Deane says.

“The then the producer insisted that I have a professionally made moustache.

“But it would always be consistently there, or not there, each program.”

The script would always say “Moustache needed”, or “No moustache needed”. However, sometimes things got confused. One night Deane turned up without his prosthetic moustache when it was needed.

They had to send a taxi to Deane’s address to fetch it from where it lived in the top drawer of his bedside cupboard.

The next time it happened, co-host Rob cut Deane’s hair and created one using double-sided tape.

“They just didn’t get any close-ups of me talking that episode,” Deane says.

Despite his stardom, Deane and Jan said they led a pretty normal life.

“People would ask our kids… “What’s it like having a dad who is famous?” And the kids used to say, “It’s no different, really”,” Jan says. “Until one day our daughter brought home a friend from school to do some homework together.

“She and her friend came into the kitchen and Deane was standing on an upturned plastic bucket, with one hand holding the on/off switch on the electric cooker, and the other hand on a thing called the Van De Graff generator, and he was shooting sparks from his pointed finger to light the stove.”

The Van De Graff generator is what is known as an electrostatic generator and is often seen at science shows and causes people’s hair to stand on end. It also generates an electric spark, which Deane was using to light his stove that day.

The Curiosity Show ran from 1972 to 1990 and during that time Deane and Rob travelled the world with a Channel 9 crew filming segments such as the geothermal segments in Rotorua in New Zealand and the geothermal energy of Singapore’s hot springs.

Together, Deane and Rob published many books.

In 2023, The Curiosity Show lives on with a dedicated YouTube Channel with millions of viewers.

Deane spent many years travelling to and from Melbourne to film Hey Hey It’s Saturday, and he was a much sought after speaker and presenter. He later toured the country, presenting science shows in schools.

Deane and Jan moved into UnitingSA West Lakes Vista Apartments in 2022.

“Our house was getting a lot to manage”, Jan says.

When Jan had to have a knee replacement recently, Deane was able to access the Residential Aged Care downstairs for respite care for five weeks while she recovered.

“We’ve lived in this area nearly all of our lives. A lot of our relatives and friends are nearby,” Jan said.

“And everything is within walking distance. It’s very convenient to a lot of things. And if we need any help, it’s not far away.”

“For the next year or so, the moustache is sometimes there one episode, and then not there the next.”

JAN

CHRISTMAS APPEAL MEETS INCREASED DEMAND

Thank you to everyone who donated generously to UnitingSA’s 2022 Christmas Appeal.

This year, the campaign raised a record $48,000 in financial donations, ensuring we were able to meet the significant rise in demand for our Emergency Relief services.

UnitingSA was able to put a meal on the table and gifts under the tree for nearly 1,000 people at Christmas, as cost of living pressures saw more people present to UnitingSA for financial support than ever before.

We were grateful to see many new donors join with those who continue to give generously every year. In 2022, we tripled our number of financial donors, from 53 in 2021 to 165, and our financial donations soared by 65 per cent.

More than 2,700 donations of food and toys were also received.

WALK OF AWARENESS

Apristine morning with a beautiful Port River looking like a sheet of glass greeted hundreds of people taking part in the Walk of Awareness in Port Adelaide in February.

The event marks the moment in 2008, when then Prime Minister Kevin Rudd made the historic National Apology to the Stolen Generations, acknowledging the harm caused to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island peoples and their families.

Although normally held annually, the event has been cancelled for the past two years due to Covid-19.

Around 300 people walked over the historic Birkenhead Bridge to a smoking ceremony and to commemorate the event with speeches on the eastern wharf.

$15 MILLION

PROSPECT DEVELOPMENT OUR LARGEST EVER

Works on UnitingSA’s largest community housing project in its 100-year history have begun and will include a mix of affordable, social and Specialist Disability Accommodation apartments.

UnitingSA marked the commencement of works on the project in January with a traditional smoking ceremony to cleanse the site and welcome its new purpose.

UnitingSA CEO Jenny Hall says the 40-unit project will provide much-needed homes for South Australians facing housing insecurity due to the state’s ongoing housing shortage.

“Instead of the six outdated properties that were on the land, the new development will provide more than

30 new affordable rental homes for people who really need them, with rent capped at 75 per cent of market value or 25 per cent of a tenant’s income,” Jenny says.

“It will provide a fresh new start for South Australian families, couples and singles who are on low incomes or receiving government income support, many of whom just can’t compete in today’s ultra-competitive rental market.

“The inclusion of two, high needs specialist disability apartments will also provide vital accommodation to this vulnerable group who find sourcing appropriate housing almost impossible.”

Seven three-bedroom townhouses included in the project will be sold privately to help fund the development,

Donations

which is expected to be completed by mid-2024.

The Prospect project is the latest in a string of affordable housing developments by UnitingSA, including an award-winning community of eight two-bedroom dwellings which now provides safe, affordable accommodation for women aged 55 and over experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

A further small development of five, three-bedroom townhouses is currently under construction in Kidman Park and is expected to be completed in mid-2023 along with a number of other significant projects entering major planning phases.

Jenny says the new Prospect project would be solely funded by UnitingSA.

“While we’ve fully funded this project, we look forward to the opportunity to source more funding for our future projects through the National Housing Accord and the $10 billion Housing Australia Future Fund so more South Australians can have a secure roof over their heads.”

The development forms part of UnitingSA’s Community Housing portfolio which incorporates 600 properties spread right across the metropolitan area, as well as in a small number of regional centres.

Storm and her owner Dean are regular visitors to our team at the UnitingSA Family Centre on Dale Street, Port Adelaide.

Thanks to our pawsome supporters, Animal Rescue Cooperative (ARC) and Safe Pets Safe Families, Storm is able to take her pick of donated dog food and treats. Storm is always by Dean’s side. They go everywhere together in a specially built bike trailer. She provides Dean with unconditional love and is always there for him when times get tough.

It’s great to be able to provide support to both Dean and Storm and we couldn’t do it without the kind donations from ARC and Safe Pets Safe Families, and our regular donors.

To donate to support people in need, visit unitingsa.com.au/donate

gratefully received!

“I did a lot of research and found out that unfortunately there are not many services for men and even less for fathers,” Fabio says.

“Then I started to think about what makes a good father. How can we give people the skills or the capacity to become a better person?”

Fabio enlisted the help of community leaders like Uncle Lewis O’Brien, who shared stories of parenting in Aboriginal culture, and international baseball player turned Youth Worker Tom Brice, who shared his own challenges of dealing with change.

“I realised that the best thing to do is put people together,” Fabio says.

“This is part of who we are. Our ancestors used to sit around the fire and talk.

Using connection to help men become great fathers was at the heart of a new program recently piloted by UnitingSA.

Dad Circle brought fathers and male carers from across Adelaide’s west together to socialise, connect and share parenting experiences in an informal, welcoming environment.

DAD CIRCLE: THE POWER OF CONNECTION A PERFORMANCE WITH HEART

Hosted at Junction Community Centre in Ottoway, the fortnightly sessions were free and included a guest speaker, light meal and chance for participants to chat and learn from each other.

UnitingSA Communities for Children project officer Fabio Boniardi says the Dad Circle program grew out of an identified need for better supports for fathers in the western suburbs.

“When we sit in a circle as human beings, we start to talk about footy or the latest TV show and our conversation eventually turns to values or religion… a lot of different things.

“When people can link, the magic happens.”

Fabio says the structure and core ideas of the Dad Circle pilot program will now be retained and applied to future opportunities as they develop.

Members of the talented Kumangka Karrarendi Poetry and Performance group have been at it again, displaying their skills and entertaining audiences at Taperoo Community Centre.

In November, the group presented their ‘Coming Together’ show, featuring original poetry combined with a touch of karaoke to get the audience singing along.

A huge congratulations goes to all of the poetry writers, performers and behind the scenes crew who helped to make the performance such a success.

A big thank you also goes to Uncle Fred Agius, who provided such a warm Welcome to Country and smoking ceremony.

As these photos show, it really was a special event full of heart, courage, skill and incredible vibrancy.

To find out more about Taperoo Community Centre, including the range of classes open to the community, visit unitingsa.com.au/taperoo-community-centre

REGENCY GREEN COMES ALIVE AGAIN

The tranquil gardens at UnitingSA’s former Regency Green Aged Care once provided years of sanctuary to the elderly residents that lived there.

The aged care site was closed last May and residents were moved into a new wing at UnitingSA’s Westminster Village Aged Care home in nearby Grange.

The grounds fell quiet, but not for long. Today, the gardens are filled with the laughter of families gathering and children playing, and the feeling of hope for a better life.

It’s part of a new collaboration between UnitingSA and refugee resettlement organisation AMES Australia that has now seen dozens of refugee families from all over the world find safety and security at Regency Green.

AMES Australia CEO Cath Scarth says Regency Green has become a welcoming first home in Australia for newly arrived refugees.

“But more than this, the facility is opening doors and creating opportunities for our clients. It has given them connections into the local community and also to the broader Australian society,” Cath says. “The support we have seen from the local community has been remarkable – from visits organised to the local library, to the provision of play equipment for the children and also trips to sporting events – there has been an amazing amount of proactive support.”

Coming from faraway lands like Burma and Afghanistan, refugee children are attending local schools, and community groups are taking families under their wings, creating opportunities for refugees to join in local activities.

It’s not just refugees who are finding a safe new home at Regency. The other half of the site has also been repurposed to help accommodate NDIS participants who would otherwise be stranded in hospital due to a lack of access to suitable or affordable housing.

UntingSA CEO Jenny Hall says the projects are temporary solutions to help bridge gaps caused by the housing crisis.

“Development plans for an affordable housing precinct at the Regency Green site are also still in the pipeline,” Jenny says.

“But that will take time, and we are pleased to be able to support NDIS participants, AMES Australia and the families they will help through this accommodation solution in the interim.”

“Regency Green is a safe and welcoming place for people who have fled conflict or persecution to begin their journeys to a new life in Australia.”

CATH SCARTH

The 2021 census identified mental health challenges as Australia’s most commonly diagnosed long term illness.

More Australians are now affected by mental health conditions than those with arthritis or asthma.

That’s why the support provided by community mental health workers like Eddie is so important.

He is just one of UnitingSA’s mental health workers helping South Australians face the everyday challenges of their mental health condition through UnitingSA’s psychosocial support programs.

The programs offer people with a mental illness essential one-on-one support to help them manage their day-to-day lives and remain living in their own home and community.

Without this support, people like Lyndon would battle alone – often ending up back in the health system.

Did you know?

y In the 2021 census, mental health challenges were identified as Australia’s most commonly diagnosed long-term health condition (2,231,543) closely followed by arthritis (2,150,396) and asthma (2,068,020).

y Each year in South Australia there are around 20,700 mental health presentations to emergency departments, with 9,200 acute admissions to hospital beds.

MENTAL HEALTH: BEING THERE FOR PEOPLE LIKE LYNDON

“Eddie has been someone I could really talk to. He would check up on me once a week,” Lyndon says.

“I lived by myself. He was someone who was consistent, and someone, eventually, that I could trust.

“He became someone I could rely on.”

UnitingSA has been offering psychosocial support to South Australians for more than 20 years. Eddie currently works in the GP Access program, which is a free rehabilitation and recovery support service for people living with a mental illness who see a General Practitioner (GP) for their clinical needs.

Eddie says UnitingSA’s psychosocial support programs offer tailored, one-on-one support to people who need someone to help them to sort through a range of complex matters, including trauma, stress, money worries, health issues, housing instability and social isolation, all of which can contribute to their mental health declining into crisis.

y Around 15 per cent of those people are readmitted within 28 days of being discharged, simply because they need support in their community to cope with the challenges of everyday life to stop them from spiralling back into the acute system.

y The current average costs to provide care in the hospital setting in South Australia are higher than the national average. Across Australia, the average cost per inpatient bed day in a psychiatric hospital (non-acute wards) was $953, compared with a cost per day of $1,554 for South Australia.

“These are often people who are always in crisis, because they can’t emotionally regulate. They will spiral and often attempt to commit suicide, and they will call ambulances all the time,” Eddie says.

“They’ll go to hospital when they’re feeling really distressed and sit there for hours on a weekly, or even daily basis.

“Without psychosocial support, they go from crisis to crisis, and around and around in circles.”

Lyndon had found himself in need of support following years of family trauma and alcoholism that led to a nervous breakdown.

“Lyndon needed someone to talk to –someone who wasn’t judgemental or wanting something from him,” Eddie says.

“He and I can really discuss things, and I can just help him get some clarification on the way he is thinking. I can help him sort things through.”

“Having someone I could trust and rely on was so good,” Lyndon says.

“I haven’t really got anyone in my life.

“I had been in hospital two or three times, sometimes for 21 days.

“I haven’t been back in a long time.”

“Psychosocial support keeps them from spiralling into crisis, and subsequently, keeps them out of ambulances and hospital beds.”

EDDIE

OUR HOMELESSNESS SERVICES RELOCATE TO DALE STREET

UnitingSA’s Homelessness Services in Port Adelaide have relocated to a new location on the ground floor of 64 Dale Street, Port Adelaide.

UnitingSA’s Homelessness Services are delivered as part of the Adelaide North West Homelessness Alliance (ANWHA) – a collaboration of eight agencies providing a range of homelessness and housing supports.

The upcoming move means our Homelessness Services now sit alongside UnitingSA’s suite of other support services on Dale Street, including Emergency Assistance, Financial Counselling, Family Services and Community Housing.

CEO Jenny Hall says the co-location is allowing our teams to better collaborate to deliver a range of wrap-around

supports to help people address life’s challenges and achieve their goals.

“We are excited to take this new step as a service, and welcome the opportunity to continue to evolve and innovate in response to client need,” she says.

Find out more about the Adelaide North West Homelessness Alliance at anwhahome.org.au or by contacting 1800 569 086 or support@anwha.org.au

70 Dale Street • PO Box 3032, Port Adelaide, SA 5015

P. (08) 8440 2200 E. unitingsa@unitingsa.com.au

W. unitingsa.com.au @unitingsa

Photography: Catherine Leo at cathleo.com.au

Cover photo: Andrew Beveridge, asbcreative

Editorial enquiries or feedback: (08) 8200 9213

© Copyright 2023 UnitingSA

UnitingSA acknowledges the traditional owners of country throughout South Australia, their spiritual heritage, living culture, and our walk together towards reconciliation.