Anglicare offers a hand up

Anglicare WA South West Service Manager Cathy Mills is passionate about empowering people by giving them a hand up.
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AnglicareWA is one of the largest not for profit organisations in WA, with approximately 550 employees and 230 volunteers.

Cathy manages Anglicare programs throughout the South West from her office at Hudson Road Family Centre.

“Currently we have Financial Counselling, Parenting Connection WA, Supporting Tenancy Education Program, the Children’s Contact Service, and the Mums and Dads Forever program,” Cathy said.

“In the Parenting Connection program we work out what’s currently being delivered in the local area for parents and where the gaps are, and we fill those. We work with local groups already running parenting sessions to build their capacity – we have a big parenting program,” she said.

The Mums and Dads Forever Program is about teaching parents who are separated how to move past conflict in relationships, and how to communicate and become child-focused in their parenting.  This program is endorsed by the Family Court of Western Australia and is run about eight times per year. There is also the Children’s Contact Service, which works with the Family Court of WA to help parents to become self-managed instead of relying on the Family Court, and provides supervised visits and changeovers. 

The Financial Counselling program is based in Bunbury with offices in Busselton and Collie as well as offering outreach to Harvey. This crucial program aims to empower people to make smart financial choices, budget well and teach people how to maintain their own independent financial stability.

The Supporting Tenancy Education Program (STEP), run in partnership with the Department of Housing, works with people at risk of losing their tenancy.
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“In this space what we’re doing is supporting and educating tenants living in public housing who are in danger of losing their tenancy. This program is designed to help with immediate problems as well as equip them with living skills to move towards maintaining their tenancy independently,” Cathy said.

“The message is about supporting people in their journeys and moving from surviving to thriving. That’s our goal, capacity-based support and assistance.”

Cathy said Anglicare staff worked very closely with Hudson Road Family Centre to support what they are doing.

“We’re very happy to be in that type of partnership with them,” she said. “We are very involved with the Wednesday morning ladies and other user groups. We love working out of Hudson Road alongside the community - one of my favourite things about coming to work is I’m part of a community-based centre. Whilst we might not directly have these people as our clients, we see them each week, walk alongside them and help them; it’s really lovely for Anglicare to be based out of Hudson Road.”