Redress Support Services
Today - 1 July 2020 - marked a significant milestone for the National Redress Scheme.
On 1 April 2020, there were about 500 Redress applications on hold because they named institutions which had not joined the Scheme. Institutions were told explicitly that they had until 30 June to commit to joining the Scheme or they would face public naming and exclusion from Commonwealth funding.
Today, it was announced that a further 156 institutions have committed to join the Scheme, adding to the 224 non-government institutions that have already committed, and covering more than 51,000 sites such as churches, schools, homes, charities and community groups.
Six institutions failed to participate before the 30 June and have been publicly named. Their decision means 55 Redress applications submitted by survivors of institutional abuse are unable to be processed at this time. From now on, any institutions newly named within Redress applications will have six months to sign up to the Scheme, or face being publicly named and ineligible for Commonwealth funding.
The Minister for Families and Social Services, Senator the Hon Anne Ruston, has issued a media release on the naming of institutions.
The impact of the choice of 156 institutions to commit to joining the Scheme is profound for countless survivors. Some of our current clients have submitted Redress applications, with multiple applications relating to institutions that had failed to join the Scheme until this week.
Our Redress practitioners have been working with some of these clients for multiple years and hearing that the responsible institutions have finally signed up has offered our clients a sense of relief, after what had been a long battle of uncertainty. This news can be life-changing for our clients, as with their Redress applications now able to be processed, they will have access to free counselling, an apology from the institution and will be given a payment in recognition of the detrimental impact that this abuse has had upon their lives. Of central importance is the societal and public acknowledgement of the sexual abuse perpetrated against these survivors. For many who had never been believed, and not experienced a sense of justice, this can be significant in their healing.
Relationships Australia Victoria is proud to offer our Redress Support Services, and we encourage anyone who would like to find out more about or use the services, or any service that is supporting a client who may benefit from our services, to contact us.
For more information about our Redress Support Services, download our brochure or click here.
Contact Redress Support Services
- Call us on our dedicated number - 1800 052 674
- Email [email protected]