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News and Media

Here you’ll find news, announcements, and media releases from ACTCOSS and the Gulanga Program, along with major community sector news.

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12 December 2019 Learn more
Media release

COSS media release: Political inaction on climate change is hurting our most vulnerable, worsening poverty and inequality

Joint Councils of Social Service media release. Original post on ACOSS website. In the midst of unprecedented bushfires and international climate talks in Madrid, the Councils of Social Service are calling for urgent government action on climate change to support those hardest hit by its impacts – people on low incomes or experiencing disadvantage. In […]

10 December 2019 Learn more
Media release

COSS media release: Dangerous and outrageous – Councils of Social Service condemn proposed funding cut to national voice for First Nations women on domestic violence

Joint Councils of Social Service media release. Original post on ACOSS website. The Councils of Social Service across the country have joined together to urge the Morrison Government to reinstate funding to the National Family Violence Prevention and Legal Services Forum (NFVPLS) the national peak body for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander victims and survivors […]

27 November 2019 Learn more
Media release

Joint media release: ACTCOSS and WCHM call on ACT Government to act on Healthy Prison Review recommendations

The ACT Council of Social Service (ACTCOSS) and the Women’s Centre for Health Matters (WCHM) have welcomed the Healthy Prison Review of the Alexander Maconochie Centre 2019 report from the ACT Inspector of Correctional Services, released on Tuesday, and await the ACT Government’s response to the recommendations. In February 2019, the Office of the ACT […]

21 November 2019 Learn more
Media release

Media release: Fifty ambitious community Budget priorities

The ACT Council of Social Service (ACTCOSS) has outlined fifty priorities for the 2020-21 ACT Budget. ACTCOSS’s submission calls on the ACT Government to set out a responsible and progressive foundation for the future and to address unfinished business since the 2016 ACT election. The overarching theme of the ACTCOSS Budget Priorities is the need […]

12 November 2019 Learn more
Media release

Media release: Shattered myths about prosperity for all in Canberra

Today the ACT Council of Social Service (ACTCOSS) will release a new report, Shattered Myths, charting 20 years of ACTCOSS work on poverty. Susan Helyar, Chief Executive Officer of ACTCOSS said, “In 1999, ACTCOSS and the ACT Government started the Poverty Task Group, beginning a concerted effort to quantify poverty in Canberra and highlight its […]

22 October 2019 Learn more
Media release

Media release: ACTCOSS celebrates success over past seven years and begins search for new leader

The ACT Council of Social Service (ACTCOSS) has today announced the resignation of Susan Helyar, who has led the organisation since the beginning of 2013. Susan Helyar said, “After almost seven years at Executive Director and now CEO of ACTCOSS, I have learned a lot, enjoyed seeing our advocacy campaigns deliver good outcomes for people […]

18 October 2019 Learn more
Media release

Joint media release: Limited progress on reducing inequality in ACT labour market

Joint media release, Women’s Centre for Health Matters and ACT Council of Social Service. On Thursday 17 October, the Women’s Centre for Health Matters and the ACT Council of Social Service released an analysis of ACT labour market data and future trends, focusing on wages, levels of qualification and growth across major industries. The report […]

11 October 2019 Learn more
Media release

Media release: Anti-Poverty Week kicks off in Canberra – Show solidarity and learn something new

Next week, 13-19 October is Anti-Poverty Week and the ACT Council of Social Service (ACTCOSS) and the Australian Red Cross – ACT/SE NSW have been working with organisations across the community sector to intensify our advocacy against poverty. A vibrant calendar of events has been created to build public awareness and encourage people to take […]