Department for Communities and Social Inclusion, $1,015,896,000

Administered Items for the Department for Communities and Social Inclusion, $190,374,000

Membership:

Ms Sanderson substituted for Ms Redmond.

Mr Bell substituted for Mr McFetridge.

Mr Duluk substituted for Mr Speirs.

Minister:

Hon. Z.L. Bettison, Minister for Communities and Social Inclusion, Minister for Social Housing, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Minister for Ageing, Minister for Youth, Minister for Volunteers.

Departmental Advisers:

Ms J. Mazel, Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms S. Wallace, Executive Director, Policy and Community Development, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Mr N. Ashley, Acting Executive Director, Financial and Business Services, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms N. Rogers, Director, Business Affairs, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Mr G. Myers, Principal Coordinator, Strategic Projects, Business Affairs, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms J. Kennedy, Manager, Community Engagement and Grants, Policy and Community Development, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

The CHAIR: I reopen the Department for Communities and Social Inclusion in part. I welcome back the minister in her role as Minister for Youth and invite her to introduce her new advisers and make a statement if she wishes.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Thank you. To my left is the Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion, Joslene Mazel, and to my far left Nick Ashley, Acting Executive Director, Financial and Business Services. To my right is Sue Wallace, Executive Director, Policy and Community Development. On the second table to the left is Greg Myers, Principal Coordinator, Strategic Projects Business Affairs. To the right is Nancy Rogers, Director of Business Affairs. In the third row is Justine Kennedy, Manager, Community Engagement and Grants Policy and Community Development.

The Office for Youth has an important role in supporting our government's efforts with young people. This is principally a strategic and policy role, including through youth sector support and advocacy, and events which promote and celebrate the contribution of young people. The conclusion of the 2010-14 youth strategy has provided the opportunity to review the strategic direction of the youth portfolio. This year I released new youth strategy, It Starts With YOUth, which takes a new approach with key issues being identified and responded to on an annual basis.

Each year a working group will be established to apply a concentrated focus to understanding and responding to the identified issues. The working group will be comprised of representatives from relevant sectors, including external to government. In 2015 the area of focus is homelessness, a significant issue for young South Australians and a key priority for this government.

The government has engaged the Service to Youth Council to form the South Australian youth homelessness working group, which includes representatives from the state government and leaders in property development, real estate, education and training, industry and social services. The working group's mandate has been to focus on the most effective ways to stop young people moving into homelessness and to support them to move out of it. It has also considered improving housing accessibility and affordability for young people in South Australia, as well as reducing homelessness.

The working group is currently developing a white paper, Pathways: Improving the economic and social participation for young people experiencing homelessness in South Australia. It is anticipated that the paper will be provided to me for my consideration in September 2015. To support this focus on homelessness we have also considered the transitions of young people from education to further education, training and employment. Successful Transitions is a new structured youth mentoring program that specifically supports vulnerable and severely disadvantaged young people to ensure they have access to a range of services that connect them to meaningful employment and learning in their local area.

The program funding has been targeted to five regions, which have large numbers of disengaged and unemployed young people. These are northern Adelaide, southern Adelaide, the Limestone Coast, Yorke and Mid North and the Adelaide Hills/Murray Mallee. The program is being delivered by five specialist youth services that have the necessary experience and knowledge to support vulnerable and marginalised young people.

Our government is committed to engage with young people, ensuring that their views are listened to, captured and acted upon. In order to facilitate new and creative methods of engaging with young people across South Australia, I have asked the Office for Youth to lead the development of a new model of youth engagement in partnership with the youth sector. The youth engagement steering group has been established to focus on building community engagement with young people and to provide advice on methods and tools that are most effective when engaging with young people. The advice of the steering group will influence the development of a guide to assist government agencies in effective youth engagement.

In 2013-14, the Office for Youth began the pilot of the leap program, a youth development program intended to support the youth sector to deliver site-specific programs and structured activities for young people. The aim of the leap program is to develop participants' skills, encourage them to engage with their community, and promote partnerships between young people and the youth sector. An evaluation of the program will be undertaken at the conclusion of the pilot in November 2015. The outcomes of that evaluation will determine the future of the program.

During 2014-15, the Office for Youth established a scholarship program to enable more young people from regional areas to participate in the 2015 Youth Parliament program. The Office for Youth provided the YMCA with an additional $10,000 in funding to ensure that a minimum of 25 per cent of the young people who participated in the 2015 Youth Parliament program were from regional areas. I look forward to working with the Office for Youth in undertaking its work in the areas that I have identified and working with young South Australians to determine the focus for action for young people in 2016.

The CHAIR: Thank you, minister. Member for Adelaide, do you have an opening statement?

Ms SANDERSON: No, I do not.

The CHAIR: We will go straight to questions.

Ms SANDERSON: Budget Paper 4, Volume 1, page 129, performance indicators. Point one is the number of young people involved in government and community decision-making processes. How does the minister feel about the closure of the Minister's Youth Council.

The CHAIR: I will let the minister answer this however she sees fit. I do not know that her feelings really enter into it, but we will see how we go.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The Minister's Youth Council meetings were discontinued after its meeting in July 2014 as part of the government's reform of boards and committees. This review identified that there were more contemporary and effective ways of engaging with young people and hearing from them about issues that matter to them. The review found that the council was not the best way to engage with young people. Modern engagement strategies, including the use of social media and online tools, will enable broader and deeper consultation and engagement with young people. Youth engagement is a key focus of the 2015 It Starts with YOUth strategy. As part of the strategy, the Office for Youth is currently developing a youth engagement strategy that assists government agencies in engaging with young people.

Ms SANDERSON: Was there a full assessment and evaluation before it was closed, and is that publicly available? Do you plan that it will be replaced and, if so, by what?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: As I have outlined in the strategy, going forward we are looking at a new youth engagement program. One of the other ways that I am adding to that is that I am actually going out myself and having youth forums. So, whenever we have a country cabinet or I am in a metro cabinet area, I am also holding a youth forum, engaging with people so that I can hear firsthand what their concerns are. I think we have a number of tools and techniques to engage people. I always attend the Netfest in February of each year—I think you may have joined me there in February—and make sure that I go out and hear face-to-face what people's concerns are. As I said, with the working group we have a particular focus on issues, and that has actually come from issues raised with me by young people during those metro and country cabinets.

Ms SANDERSON: My next question refers to Budget Paper 4, Volume 1, page 128, under expenses. Can the minister please break down the leap program expenditure of $430,000 for 2014-15 into the programs?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Member for Adelaide, are you asking about the expenses of the program or are you asking how much grant was allocated?

Ms SANDERSON: The grant allocations from the $430,000; how they were allocated.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: How did we allocate them?

Ms SANDERSON: To what programs, how many participants?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Certainly. Let me go through my list:

The Adelaide Secondary School of English: the project name was Healthy Lifestyles for Newly Arrived Young People and their Communities. It was to promote healthy eating and exercise to 20 newly arrived students and their communities. One of the key aspect of leap programs is that we ask them to have a 12-month program; 12 months of structured, regular activity that builds skills for a specific group of young people. This project was allocated $15,990 and it was located in the western and northern suburbs and Adelaide metropolitan area.

AJZ Productions Incorporated, project name True North Youth Theatre Elizabeth Scholarship Program. This was a professional, arts-based workshop for 16 young people delivered at The Platform in Elizabeth on Saturday each week for two hours during school term. Participants chose to deliver a short film, a theatre-based presentation, a piece of music or movement. That was allocated $15,000.

The Australian Refugee Association Incorporated and the project Different Journeys from Different Places: One People. That supported 20 young people from Woodville High School who expressed their opinions and had a voice within the community by making a short film featuring young people talking about their personal histories, journeys, cultures, experiences of racism and how they feel about contributing to society. They launched their film during Harmony Week at the school and during Refugee Week, and also at the Australian Refugee Association's event in 2015. That project supported youth primarily in the western region of Adelaide, and was $12,630.

Barossa Lower North Futures Incorporated, and the project Regional Youth Bus Social Media Internship Program. This had social media internships for 10 young people with staff from Social Media Monitors. The interns met fortnightly—either face-to-face or linking up through technology—on designated aspects of the program. It was a real-work environment which provided the opportunity for learning and a range of social media platforms, employability skills, basic corporate governance, leadership and marketing. They were provided at Nuriootpa, Kapunda, Mallala, Balaklava, Eudunda and Burra. Funding allocated was $15,000.

The Burra Community School project Get Jiggy With It Performing Arts Program, which provided an extra-curricular performing arts program. Burra Community School draws on various service providers such as Turning Point Dance School from Clare and AusDance SA's Dancers in Schools program. That supported Burra and the surrounding Goyder region, with allocated funding of $15,470.

I was really delighted with this, because we did to a country cabinet out to the Peterborough region, including Burra, and I held a youth forum there to hear some of their concerns. Being a country girl myself, I know that if football and netball are not for you you often feel a little bit as if you not part of the picture, and this was expressed to me. So it is groups like this, the performing arts program, and I think we have recently supported the development of a community gym through the Fund My Community program, that are some of the core things that help people to be less socially isolated and more engaged.

Carclew Youth Arts' project Subjects Matter: Portraits by Kids supported 15 young people aged 12 to 15 to develop social skills that improved their engagement with the broader community. An educator and artists work with young people to develop skills in face-to-face engagement, cross-generational interactions and active citizenship. They also participated in a portrait-sitting event in Rundle Mall and an exhibition event as part of Come Out. That supported Adelaide and North Adelaide with funding of $15,000.

The City of Port Adelaide Enfield and the Youth Engagement and Leadership Program benefits young people by building skills and opportunities, and identifying local issues within their communities. People across that council region have been invited to be supported and mentored as a youth leader in their community. That is the City of Port Adelaide and Enfield suburbs with funding of $15,000.

The City of Salisbury and the project Jibba Jabba TV. This is a mentored but youth-directed youth voice project using video production skills. It mentors 10 young people to produce a weekly 10-minute TV show focused on DCSI'S target group, youth. It is not only a youth-led project, building skills and empowering young people, it also gives a voice to other young people. That was in Salisbury for $14,910. Corporation of the City of Unley with the project Sport for the Mind—Science and Maths is Cool.

The Student Robotics Club of South Australia empowers 15 young men and women aged 13 to 18 to foster their interest in science and technology and create a functioning robot which they can take to competition. They will use teamwork and collaboration, learn skills in computer-aided designs, mechanical skills, use of tools, welding, pneumatics, electrical circuits and design. Their team goes wherever space is offered. UniSA has provided space, as well as Unley, St Morris and Seaton, and the project is funded for $15,000.

District Council of Lower Eyre Peninsula's Cummins Youth Advisory Committee. Ten young people aged 14 to 17 gain skills in project management, community consultation skills, funded for $5,500.

District Council of Tumby Bay, with the project Bunk Down and Boogie. As my advisers know, I do love a good hip-hop performance. We know that this included musical jam sessions, driver education, recreational activities and a meal a month with the RSL or Hospital Auxiliary. Transport was being provided for part of this, and we supported them with $7,630.

Ink Pot Arts Incorporated's Positive Connections for Wellbeing project. Fifteen Guardianship of the Minister participants formed a youth reference group to identify the needs of Guardianship of the Minister adolescents in the Adelaide Hills region. That is located at Mount Barker, and they were supported with $15,700.

Muslim Women's Association of South Australia's Young Muslim Girls Mentoring and Leadership Program. This program was to focus on youth 18 to 22 to increase their knowledge in running a group on their own and develop leadership qualities, in partnership with the YWCA. That was in Adelaide city, funded for $15,000.

Plaza Youth Centre Incorporated, with a peer education program. I had the opportunity to visit the Plaza Youth Centre, a key centre that provides support for young people who are looking for a place to hang out and also to do some induction and training and looking at people on their pathways to employment. That is in Whyalla, funded for $9,200.

Roxby Downs Community Board, with the Got Something to Say youth engagement project. That is supported by and facilitated by the Roxby Downs council, with funding of $11,310.

While I will not go through all of them, that gives you a brief overview, and you can see the diversity of the programs we have. As I have already mentioned, we will be looking to review the program coming up. I would like to see more people apply for the program and look at what are the barriers to applying. For example, at the moment we ask for 12 months of structured regular activities. That might be something that is a significant commitment and we might need to look at that. We will do that review.

Ms SANDERSON: Is it possible to have that list in a table format with the number of participants and the value, so that it adds to that $430,000?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We will take that on notice.

Ms SANDERSON: If that could be inserted into Hansard, that would be great.

The CHAIR: Member for Adelaide, it cannot be inserted into Hansard, but you can request it and it could be supplied by 30 October, if it is appropriate.

Ms SANDERSON: You mentioned then the assessment process. I am just wondering whether you could outline the assessment process that your department goes through that determines whether to continue or stop your programs. What is that evaluation?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Are you asking, what would the proposed review program—

Ms SANDERSON: What do you normally do? Taking youthconnect as an example, what was the process that was undertaken in review to determine whether that was a suitable program to continue?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I will ask Ms Wallace to detail that.

Ms WALLACE: The youthconnect grant program was a part of the 2010-14 youth strategy and so was designed, on an annual basis, to reflect the themes in the youth strategy. That came to an end in 2014. The evaluation of the leap program will be an assessment of organisation satisfaction with the program and the number of participants. It will be a combination of an evaluation of the outcomes of the program and views from the sector and organisations on its value.

Ms SANDERSON: Does it include outcomes? Do you have an objective for each of these programs that were listed and therefore you can evaluate whether they got jobs or improved their self-confidence, whether their grades went up at school, or whether they re-engaged with their community? Is there a proper evaluation like that?

Ms WALLACE: The leap program was designed to enable the young participants to identify the issue or the area that they wanted to develop a program around, so every program is slightly different.

Ms SANDERSON: So with the youthconnect, there was no evaluation, because it just came to an end? You did not consider whether it was worthwhile in the future; it just ended?

Ms WALLACE: The grants were linked to the themes developed through the youth strategy, so they reflected the various themes that had been identified in 2010. They were one-off annual grants.

Ms SANDERSON: And were they still evaluated, though, to know if that was a good use of money or was that a good topic? Would you do it again? Good outcomes?

Ms WALLACE: There would have been an evaluation of programs in terms of whether they met the objectives of the proposal.

Ms SANDERSON: Okay, thank you. Next question is from page 128, the FTEs. There are 11.1 full-time equivalents listed. Could the minister please outline the roles and responsibilities of each of these staff members making up the 11.1?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I think that is a question best answered by Ms Wallace.

Ms SANDERSON: Great.

Ms WALLACE: The 11.1 FTEs would support policy development, some community engagement, grant making and administrative support.

Ms SANDERSON: And how many actual people? Are there six full-timers and 10 part-timers or—?

Ms WALLACE: I do not have that breakdown with me, but I can provide that.

Ms SANDERSON: Great, thank you. Page 129, targets, It Starts With YOUth. Can the minister just elaborate a bit more about It Starts With YOUth—the working groups and who it is aimed at and who would be a participant?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Certainly! Obviously, this is something I am excited about, because as Minister for Youth one of the key things I saw with the previous strategy was that, while it was very detailed and covered a lot of topics—I think there were 63 points to the former youth strategy; not to say that any of them were not worthy—what I wanted to do was have a more focused way of operating. This is a similar thing that we rolled out in the area of the Office for Volunteers, looking at our partnership and our volunteer strategy going forward, where we identified particular areas and then had intensive working groups on that. That is what we wanted to do and the focus was homelessness, training and employment and youth engagement.

One of the key things we are doing is with the working group. We are developing the white paper, as I have already outlined. I have met with the group. It is quite a diverse group, including people who are traditionally involved in youth homelessness, but also someone from a major bank is involved, and I think there is a lawyer as well. So we are trying to bring in different views, different understandings of homelessness.

One of the things that we really want to understand is the triggers for youth homelessness. One of the key issues that we have here is that it is often under-represented. Someone might be coach surfing and we might not traditionally think of that as homelessness, but that is homelessness. Why has that person felt that they could not continue under what we would consider a traditional housing model? What are the triggers for that, and how can we identify it more readily and more easily?

The other area I might have talked about already is improving the economic and social participation for young people, and that is where Successful Transitions comes in. We were very disappointed when the commonwealth removed its funding for Youth Connections. It was highly valued in the community. What we see is that the majority of people who finish school go through a transition period, but they do either go on to further study or into a job; but there is a cohort of people who are struggling to finish school at the end point or do not find that transition particularly easy. What this is is an intensive case management service that wraps around them to look at the barriers that are preventing them from making that next transition.

I was pleased to see within the most recent federal budget that they are reinstating a similar type of program, and we look forward to having South Australian participation in that and how that will work.

It is interesting to note that the commonwealth also looked at the difficulties for new migrants who have come here as humanitarian or skilled migrants or have come as the children of skilled migrants and that they also need additional support transitioning from training into work, so we look forward to working with that.

I have talked about the youth engagement steering group and how that group will influence the development of the guide that we will use across government to assist agencies in effective youth engagement. A website platform has been proposed and other approaches are being considered to enable government to listen and act upon issues that affect young people. Central to the youth strategy, as I have already mentioned, is the holding of a number of youth forums. I will run them myself with the support of the department.

We are also developing a guide to assist departments engaging with young people. We know that the Department of the Premier and Cabinet have been very proactive on this on the yourSAy website, Citizens' Jury, Fund My Community and Fund my idea. We are open to looking at different ways of involving a wider cross-section of the community in this decision-making process. Just to put some numbers around it, Successful Transitions was for five different areas, looking at supporting a minimum of 150 vulnerable severely disengaged young people to make that transition.

Ms SANDERSON: What is the actual number of youth engaged throughout the 2014-15 year? I know the estimated result was 1,200 under the performance indicators on page 129. You will be supplying the breakdown for those involved in the leap program, but I am sure there are probably other programs as well that the Office for Youth—

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: So you are asking how many people were involved?

Ms SANDERSON: Yes, engaged, so that performance indicator.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: There were 366 young people in the leap program that were actively engaged, but you are asking for a breakdown in other areas?

Ms SANDERSON: Yes. The estimated result was 1,200. I am happy for that to be presented later and not tabled.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We will see whether we can get the actuals for 2014-15, but as an example, you were asking about the leap program. One of the other areas is National Youth Week where in 2014-15 we funded 49 organisations, including the state launch. There were 105 events, 1,200 young people involved in the planning of these events and activities, and 11,320 people who attended the events through National Youth Week.

Ms SANDERSON: Can the minister advise how many young people were consulted or involved in the decision-making process regarding the changes to the graduated licensing scheme? I assume that would have been through the office?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I do not have responsibility for that. It is best directed to the Minister for Road Safety, minister Piccolo.

Ms SANDERSON: Okay, sure. Just to be clear, if it is possible to get a listing, what I would like to know is all of the different funds that were given out through the Office for Youth. Leap was one of the main programs and National Youth Week was obviously one of the other programs. Your office sent me by letter a table for the previous year, so even if I could have an update of that table.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I think what I can do is read it to you now and then we will not have to do that. This is 30 May.

The CHAIR: Bearing in mind the time available, minister, but feel free. It is just a friendly reminder.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: There was $346,000 to support the It Starts With YOUth strategy; $61,714 for the Youth Network Grants program; $274,370 for the leap program; $148,000 to support National Youth Week, of which $90,000 was state funding and $58,000 was commonwealth funding; $50,000 in funding to the YMCA for the Youth Parliament program; $234,811 for the Youth Affairs Council of South Australia (known as YACSA); $215,210 to support the Port Augusta Social Vision program; $10,000 in funding to support the Feast Queer Youth Drop In project; and $16,500 in sponsorship, which includes the Young Achievers Award, SA Media Awards, the SACE Art Exhibition and the ANZAC Eve Youth Vigil. The total budget for grants and sponsorship was $1.85 million.

The CHAIR: Thank you, minister. With that, I declare the examination for the Minister for Youth complete. Thank you and thank you to your advisers and we will prepare for you as the Minister for Volunteers if you want to bring some advisers forward.

Departmental Advisers:

Ms J. Mazel, Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms S. Wallace, Executive Director, Policy and Community Development, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Mr N. Ashley, Acting Executive Director, Financial and Business Services, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms N. Rogers, Director, Business Affairs, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms K. Tattersall, Director, Screening, Procurement and Improvement, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Mr G Myers, Principal Coordinator, Strategic Projects, Business Affairs, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms J. Kennedy, Manager, Community Engagement and Grants, Policy and Community Development, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

The CHAIR: We will now proceed with the minister appearing in her role as the Minister for Volunteers, and I invite the minister to reintroduce her advisers.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Thank you. To my left is Joslene Mazel, the Chief Executive, and Nick Ashley, Acting Executive Director, Financial and Business Services, and to my right, Sue Wallace, Executive Director, Policy and Community Development. At the second table is Greg Myers, Principal Coordinator, Strategic Projects, Business Affairs, and to the right, Nancy Rogers, Director, Business Affairs. On the third row at the back is Kelly Tattersall, Director, Screening, Procurement and Improvement, and Justine Kennedy, Manager, Community Engagement and Grants, Policy and Community Development.

The CHAIR: Minister, do you have an opening statement?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The Office for Volunteers has a whole-of-government role to promote and facilitate volunteering in South Australia. It does this by: providing leadership in volunteer policy; providing information, resources and other support programs for volunteers and the volunteer sector; and also funding the volunteer sector through a number of volunteer grants programs.

This government continues to value the contribution that volunteers make to our community. During 2014-15, the many and varied contributions of South Australian volunteers were recognised through a number of programs including the South Australian Volunteers Day Concert held on the State Volunteers Day public holiday in June. I note that the member for Adelaide joined me at that concert and we particularly enjoyed some fantastic cabaret performances at that event.

Also the South Australian Volunteer Awards each year recognise an outstanding contribution by an individual, a group and a corporate entity; and certificates from the Premier and myself as the Minister for Volunteers that enable organisations to formally recognise their volunteers including those who have made a particularly significant contribution.

The government is strongly committed to the vision of the Volunteering Strategy for South Australia 2014-2020, a partnership-driven agreement which provides a practical blueprint for action over the next six years to address the diverse needs of our volunteers and their communities.

During 2014-15, the Office for Volunteers partnered with the Local Government Association, Volunteering SA & NT and Business SA to continue the implementation of the Volunteering Strategy for South Australia. A joint strategy between government and the community, the strategy's development was underpinned by a consultation process with input sought from a broad cross-section of the volunteering community. The implementation of this strategy is overseen by the Volunteering Strategy Partnership Board and in collaboration with four cross-sector working groups.

This has developed a three-year operational plan for the strategy's implementation. The first annual review of the strategy was undertaken at the Volunteer Congress in May 2015, and a further plenary session held in June. The focus of these events was on providing an opportunity for volunteers to give feedback on the strategy to making sure that the operational plan remains current, and exploring further the challenges and opportunities of cross-sector partnering.

Volunteering can provide a valuable pathway to employment and skills development, particularly for young people. That is why we are looking at innovative ways to engage young people by using technology and harnessing the involvement of employers. During the 2014 state election, our government announced a commitment to recognising the valuable contribution made by volunteers through a Volunteering Recognition Scheme. This scheme is being actioned under the Volunteering Strategy for South Australia.

A working group, including representatives from the Office for Volunteers, the Volunteering Strategy Partnership Board and Volunteering SA&NT, was established, and completed the scoping of a pilot project for the scheme in May. As a result, an innovative and creative scheme has been developed to deliver specific and tangible outcomes, with the key objective of increasing the participation of young people in volunteering and building pathways to employment.

The uniquely South Australian scheme is encouraging the next generation of volunteers to participate in their community; $1.2 million over four years was committed in the 2014-15 budget for the establishment of the scheme. The six-month pilot, managed by volunteering SA&NT, is now under way. These important initiatives to build the capacity of the volunteer sector and celebrate and affirm the vital role that volunteers play will be further progressed in 2015-16.

In closing, and in a most recent and telling example of the extraordinary dedication and generosity of volunteers, I would like to acknowledge the contribution of the CFS, our emergency services personnel, and all the volunteers, community groups and individuals who came together when needed to respond to the devastating effects of the Sampson Flat bushfires earlier this year. We were able to engage our spontaneous volunteering partnership agreement with Volunteering SA&NT and we had more than 1,400 people who put their hand up and said that they were interested in helping in response to the fires.

On behalf of the state government, the parliament and the people of South Australia, I truly thank our volunteers for the commitment they give to our community.

The CHAIR: Thank you, minister. Does the member for Adelaide have an opening statement?

Ms SANDERSON: No, thank you. Budget Paper 4, Volume 1, page 126, the income line. Can the minister please provide a breakdown of the use of funding for the Office for Volunteers distributed in both 2013-14 and 2014-15, and the organisations and programs that were funded? I am happy for that to be presented later if it is in a table format.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The Office for Volunteers expended $818,628 in grant funding to support volunteering in South Australia. The key programs were: Flinders University, Community Voices Program, $53,970; Northern Volunteering, $34,819, and the same amount for Southern Volunteering; the University of South Australia Sustainable Online Community Engagement Program, $54,920; the Volunteer Election Commitment, $300,000; Volunteer Support Fund, $147,900; Volunteer Training Grant, $98,500; Volunteering SA&NT, $69,000; and new volunteer scholarship awards, $24,700. That was for the 2014-15 financial year.

We also had many volunteer support fund recipients, and I will mention just a few: the Arthritis Foundation of South Australia, $1,000 to purchase a computer tablet for use by volunteers; the Australian Marine Wildlife Research and Rescue Organisation, $3,000 for foot protection, body protection and eye protection for use by volunteers; the Australian Red Cross for the purchase of equipment and resources for Building Community Resilience; and the Bower Progress Association, purchase of insect killer (large and small), and air-conditioning for use by volunteers.

The Brighton Surf Lifesaving Club received $1,250 for an infant manikin and associated equipment, Go-Pro camera, underwater housing and associated accessories. The Burnside Country Fire Service received $1,500 to purchase new chairs for their training room; the Burton Community Centre received $1,000 for the new desktop computer for use by volunteers—and there are many more. I am happy to provide this to the shadow minister.

Ms SANDERSON: Particularly regarding the Community Voices Program that you said there was $53,000 for the 2014-15 year, how many and which organisations took up the program in 2014-15 and how many students participated in the program?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I had the opportunity to go last year, and I could see how excited the students were to see their work put up. One of the great benefits was that some of the students then went on to volunteer with these volunteer organisations. Community Voices is a joint initiative of the Office for Volunteers and the Department of Screen and Media Studies at Flinders University. It builds capacity with the participating organisations to promote and market their activities, thus gaining greater support from the general public and increasing volunteer participation. One of the ads that I often see late at night is the Meals on Wheels ad, and that was part of the Community Voices program. It talks about what that community group does and puts out a call to volunteers to come aboard. It is the screen and media students who put together that package. I think it actually goes towards their degree.

They work with the organisation to produce short documentaries for promotion, training and recruitment and online video commercials to promote their work and attract volunteers. It has produced during its time 70 short documentaries to assist those organisations. In 2014-15, 10 online video commercials were produced from a total of 42 applications that were received. The five organisations that had online video commercials were Aldinga Community Centre, the Brain Injury Network of South Australia, Oaktree Foundation, Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute, and, Victim Support Service. The organisations selected to have short documentaries produced were the Adelaide Hills Natural Resource Centre, Eyre Peninsula Community Foundation, Hutt Street Centre, Milang and District Community Association, Northern Volunteering.

Ms SANDERSON: It was fairly difficult to work out from that how many organisations and how many students were involved. I do not know whether 70 documentaries means that there were 70 different organisations or—

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Ten online videos.

Ms SANDERSON: So there were 10 organisations in total for last year, so that is not plus the five organisations?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: No, it is 10 organisations.

Ms SANDERSON: And how many students?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I do not have that information.

Ms SANDERSON: Regarding the sustainable online community engagement, I am not sure if you mentioned the amount earlier, but what is the amount for 2014-15, and again how many students participated and how many organisations for the UniSA program?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The number of students who participated was 79 and the number of community groups were 41 in 2013-14.

Ms SANDERSON: Great, that is exactly how I need it.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: As I detailed before, for last year and this year, $52,020 was contributed to that allocation.

Ms SANDERSON: How much was allocated to the Corporates4Communities Program in 2014-15, how many businesses participated and how many community programs were assisted through this?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The budget was $40,650. Since 2008 more than 15,000 professional volunteer hours have been contributed. During 2014-15 the organisations that contributed were Capgemini Business Services Australia, Chain of Ponds Wines and Murray Safety Services.

Ms SANDERSON: So there were just two organisations?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Three.

Ms SANDERSON: I refer to page 126. What is the number and percentage of volunteers for the 2013-14 and 2014-15 years in South Australia, and are they all registered in a central database?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Can you repeat the number you used?

Ms SANDERSON: For the 2013-14 and 2014-15 years; so the total number of volunteers and the percentage as far as our population?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: From which budget line are you reading this?

Ms SANDERSON: This is from page 126. The heading is to do with volunteers.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: What I can provide you is: 68 per cent is the percentage of South Australians aged between 15 and 84 years who volunteer. The Volunteering South Australia survey is conducted every two years. We allocate $40,000 for that to go ahead. Obviously, you will be aware that South Australia's Strategic Plan includes a volunteering target: 'Maintain a high level of formal and informal volunteering in South Australia at 70% participation rate or higher'.

Ms SANDERSON: Was the 68 per cent for the 2014-15 year?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: In relation to this survey, it just says by calendar year. It covered a sample of 1,500 households and it was conducted in June 2014.

Ms SANDERSON: Thank you. My next question is: will the State Volunteer Congress be held in 2015 and, if so, how much funding has been allocated to that?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The budget in 2014-15: the Office for Volunteers allocated $32,000 in state government funding for the State Volunteer Congress and we have allocated $32,000 for the funding of the 2016 State Volunteer Congress. It was established in 2002 as a mechanism between grassroots volunteers and key stakeholders in the volunteer community and government. As we have already raised, the Volunteering Strategy for South Australia 2014-20 formally commenced in May 2014. A key action of the strategy's implementation plan is for an annual review to ensure it is relevant, addresses current trends and practice, and maintains partner and broader stakeholder and community support.

Ms SANDERSON: By that, I assume it is being held every year and it is $32,000. Do you know when that will be held?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: It was held on 13 May 2015. There was an opportunity for almost 200 delegates to attend and share their views, and they were from the volunteer sector, from not-for-profit organisations, the business sector, and from local and state government. The keynote speaker was Ian Dixon, and he delivered a presentation on the Art of Partnering and facilitated a workshop that engaged delegates in discussion around the benefits of cross-sector partnering. I am informed that the next congress will be in April or May 2016.

Ms SANDERSON: Page 126, expenses, the time exchange and recognition scheme. I think you may have mentioned in your statement a $1.2 million pilot. Just to be clear, can you advise the total and annual allocation to the budget for both the time exchange program and the Volunteering Recognition Scheme?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: There was a budget of $300,000 for the Volunteer Recognition Scheme in the 2014-15 budget and the same amount was allocated in 2015-16. We scoped the two schemes and the decision was to merge them into one program. After considerable research, as we looked at the different alternatives, what was already out there we felt was the best way to go forward.

Ms SANDERSON: The $300,000 for the Volunteer Recognition Scheme also includes the time exchange program?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Yes.

Ms SANDERSON: Will Volunteering SA & NT be responsible for the administrative costs associated with the implementation of both of those programs?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We are obviously going through the pilot at the moment and I think that will be part of the decision-making process going forward, about the best way for that to be managed.

Ms SANDERSON: If there is a pilot, does that mean that a cost benefit analysis was done prior, or will you do that after the pilot to determine whether you will implement this in the future?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We have a commitment to implement it. I can assure you that we will be implementing it. I guess what we are looking at is the different opportunities available to us. Having looked at the different systems now we are merging them together, what is the best and most efficient way for us to run that program?

Ms SANDERSON: Has there been a cost benefit analysis of whether the program is worthwhile, whether you get more out of it or the volunteers get more out of it than what you put in? How has that been measured?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I think the key thing about both these projects is targeting youth as pathways to employment, and recognising the way that volunteers are looking for recognition. Part of it is about us wanting employers to recognise the contribution of young people—or people of all ages—when they volunteer and to provide them with, I guess, documentation so that not only can they say they volunteered but they are also provided with verification of the volunteering they have done. There is that part of it and there is also the rewards aspect we have seen, like the Blue Dot program in the UK. I am advised that in November 2015 I will be presented with the results of the pilot and will assess the ongoing feasibility of the scheme; we will evaluate that.

Ms SANDERSON: Page 126, and the income line. Can the minister explain the $31,000 loss of income from the 2013-14 actual figures to the 2015-16 budget? Where is that money, that income figure, actually coming from? In 2013-14 it was $49,000 and it is now budgeted at $18,000.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We will have to take that one on notice.

Ms SANDERSON: Will you also come back with—or you may know this already—where the money, the income, comes from? Is that just a government allocation or—

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Where does the money come from?

Ms SANDERSON: Yes; the income. Is it just grant—

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: That would be from the Treasurer. It would be an allocation that is given to us.

Ms SANDERSON: It is not a grant that you apply for, it is not commonwealth funded, it is not from another department—

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: No; it is not commonwealth funded. That would be from the South Australian government Treasury. We would be happy to accept more, I just put that on notice to the Treasurer. If at any point he wishes to fund volunteers, youth, multicultural—

Ms SANDERSON: Regarding the FTEs on the same page, since 2013-14 the actual figures of FTEs have doubled. Can the minister explain this increase and the type of work that is now being undertaken by the new staff?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Are you referring to the 3.3 FTEs in 2013-14 increasing to 6.6?

Ms SANDERSON: Correct.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I will ask Ms Wallace to detail that.

Ms WALLACE: The FTEs that support the volunteer portfolio, again, provide policy support, program support and grant-making support. The increase of one FTE was due to a temporary vacancy in 2013-14. An increase in FTEs from 2014-15 from the original budget to the estimated result is primarily due to a reclassification of budget from grants to employee -related expenses, to appoint staff to manage the volunteer recognition scheme and the time exchange program.

Ms SANDERSON: So the doubling is because of the time exchange program and the recognition program? That is the extra staff?

Ms WALLACE: There is an additional staff member for the volunteer recognition—

Ms SANDERSON: So that is one.

Ms WALLACE: There is one vacancy within 2014-15. There were two positions for the volunteer recognition scheme, so that explains the 2014-15 increase.

Ms SANDERSON: I will go through that later and work that out. I note that the roles seem to be very similar to those in the youth area, yet there are half the number of staff. Could there be an explanation for that? Is there half the workload in volunteering compared to youth?

Ms WALLACE: No.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: There is half the budget. I think that answers the question.

Ms SANDERSON: Is that generally how you calculate your staff, based on the budget?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Yes; the budget relates to FTEs.

Ms SANDERSON: We might read out the omnibus questions.

The CHAIR: We had an omnibus before.

Mr BELL: Not in this session, though, Chair.

The CHAIR: I was assured that all questions had been asked, but if you have more, that is fine.

Mr DULUK: I have 10 questions, so hopefully I will get them all in time:

1. Will the minister provide a detailed breakdown of expenditure on consultants and contractors above $10,000 in 2014-15 for all departments and agencies reporting to the minister listing the name of the consultant, contractor or service supplier, cost, work undertaken and method of appointment?

2. For each department or agency reporting to the minister in 2014-15, please provide the number of public servants broken down into heads and FTEs that are (1) tenured and (2) on contract and, for each category, provide a breakdown of the number of (1) executives and (2) non-executives.

3. In the financial year 2014-15, for all departments and agencies reporting to the minister, what underspending on projects and programs (1) was and (2) was not approved by cabinet for carryover expenditure in 2015-16?

4. Between 30 June 2014 and 30 June 2015, will the minister list the job title and total employment cost of each position with a total estimated cost of $100,000 or more—(1) which has been abolished and (2) which has been created?

5. For each department or agency reporting to the minister, please provide a breakdown of attraction, retention and performance allowances as well as non-salary benefits paid to public servants and contractors in the years 2013-14 and 2014-15.

6. For each year of the forward estimates, provide the name and budget of all grant programs administered by all departments and agencies reporting to the minister and, for 2014-15, provide a breakdown of expenditure on all grants administered by all departments and agencies reporting to the minister listing the name of the grant recipient, the amount of the grant and the purpose of the grant and whether the grant was subject to a grant agreement as required by Treasurer's Instruction 15.

7. For each year of the forward estimates, provide the name and budget for each individual program administered by or on behalf of departments and agencies reporting to the minister.

8. For each year of the forward estimates, provide the name and budget for each individual investing expenditure project administered by or on behalf of all departments and agencies reporting to the minister.

9. For each department or agency reporting to the minister, what is the budget for targeted voluntary separation packages for the financial years included in the forward estimates by year and how are these packages to be funded?

10. What is the title and total employment cost of each individual staff member in the minister's office as at 30 June 2015, including all departmental employees seconded to ministerial offices and ministerial liaison officers?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Chair, I would just like to say that I am advised that 23 students participated in the Community Voices program; rather than our responding to you in writing, that is the information. I would like to take the opportunity to thank my ministerial staff and also my departmental staff. I would also like to thank all the participants in committee B; I am hearing from you how much you have enjoyed the last few days.

I would like to make mention of Joslene Mazel, my chief executive; Nick Ashley, Acting Executive Director, Financial and Business Services; Peter Bull, Executive Director, Youth Justice, Community Engagement and Organisational Support; Nancy Rogers, Director of Business Affairs; Sue Wallace, Executive Director, Policy and Community Development; and all the others who have participated, including Greg Myers, Principal Coordinator, Strategic Projects and Business Affairs; Justine Kennedy, Manager, Community Engagement and Grants, Policy and Community Development; and it would have been remiss of me to miss Mr Phil Fagan-Schmidt, Executive Director for Housing. I thank them for their support and their preparation for this time.

The CHAIR: Thank you, minister. It is now my sad duty to declare the examination of the proposed payments for the Department for Communities and Social Inclusion and administered items for that department, in part, completed. I lay before the committee a draft report.

Ms DIGANCE: I move:

That the draft report be the report of the committee.

Motion carried.

At 15:45 the committee concluded.