An initial $3 million has been allocated for immediate relief efforts to the Red Cross, the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal and the St Vincent de Paul Society, with the remaining funding of $27 million to be allocated to longer-term recovery work with disadvantaged communities.

Immediate Relief

The $3 million allocated to immediate relief has now been disbursed.

The Red Cross recovery centres remain busy but they report demand is slowing. Given that the fire season continues, though conditions have eased, thousands of people are at various stages of recovery and are in need of different types of support. Major efforts are underway to target immediate funding to people with the least ability to recover.

The Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal has reassessed its grants program in response to the bushfire crisis. The grants offered by FRRR will remain flexible to respond to need. In particular, there will be a focus on preparedness and supporting community connectedness.

St Vincent De Paul has mobilised more than 1,000 volunteers, many of whom have been impacted by bushfires themselves. They have a particular focus on vulnerable communities including older people, First Australians and young children. The Society has been fortunately able to use its connections with the NDIS and homelessness services to better target its outreach.

The Paul Ramsay Foundation stands with our frontline partners the Red Cross, the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal and the St Vincent de Paul Society as they go about their important work.

We know that the challenges facing communities affected by bushfires will continue for years to come. It will take a national response with Governments, non-profits and affected communities working closely together to enable these communities can overcome the, at times, overwhelming challenges they face.

Ongoing relief efforts

The Paul Ramsay Foundation is committed to supporting those communities hardest hit by the bushfire crisis to restore resilience.

That is why the Foundation has established its own Bushfire Recovery Working group which is working with a range of Australian and international experts as well as organisations involved in major disaster recovery including that which followed the Queensland Floods, Black Saturday Bushfires and the Aceh Tsunami.

Roundtables have brought together these experts in disaster response in Melbourne and Sydney to better inform our priorities for the remaining funding allocated

The Foundation has met with officials from state and Commonwealth Governments to better coordinate our efforts.

Proposals will be developed throughout the next 18 months that fulfil our commitment to longer term recovery initiatives.

The post Bushfire Response Update appeared first on Paul Ramsay Foundation.

Foundation Chair, Michael Traill, said he was delighted that Mr Cuffe was bringing his depth of experience and expertise to the investment committee.

“Chris’ background as the former Chair of UniSuper and in a range of leadership positions in funds management will be invaluable to us.”

“Chris is also deeply aligned to the values of the Foundation. His role in establishing the pioneering Third Link Growth Fund and as Chair of ASX-listed Hearts & Minds Investments speak to his deep philanthropic commitment.”

Mr Cuffe said he was excited by the opportunity to be involved.

“The Paul Ramsay Foundation is remarkable in terms of its size and the quality of its people. I look forward to working with the investment committee to ensure we bring a thoughtful, long-term focus to investment allocation.”

The Foundation has also appointed private wealth manager, Koda Capital.

The investment committee, chaired by Michael Traill, is a sub-committee of the Foundation board and manages a corpus of approximately $800 million.

The appointment of Mr Cuffe follows the sell down of a 10.9% shareholding in Ramsay Health Care by the Foundation last September.

Contact: Kris Neill 0413 080 990; Michael Buckland 0401 089 932

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Today the Foundation set aside $30 million to support communities affected by the bushfires.

An initial $3 million will be provided to the Red Cross, the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal and St Vincent de Paul for immediate relief efforts with the remaining funding allocated to longer-term work with disadvantaged communities.

The CEO of the Paul Ramsay Foundation, Professor Glyn Davis AC said that these funds aim to assist communities to rebuild long after the initial crisis.

“We are in this together. The Foundation is acutely aware that it is those already vulnerable to entrenched disadvantage who will be hardest hit by the consequences of the current bushfires.”

Responding to these fires and rebuilding communities requires a national effort.

The Foundation will consult extensively with communities, government and our NGO peers to ensure these funds are most effectively allocated to rebuild our regional communities.

Contact: Kris Neill 0413 080 990, Michael Buckland 0401 089 932

Paul Ramsay Foundation

The Paul Ramsay Foundation seeks to identify and partner with individuals, communities and organisations working to create an Australia where people can overcome disadvantage and realise their potential.

The late Paul Ramsay AO established the Foundation in 2006 and, after his death in 2014, left the majority of his estate to continue his philanthropy for generations to come.

His commitment to good works has allowed the Paul Ramsay Foundation to support the for-purpose sector with grants of more than $200 million made since 2016 to more than 70 different partners, committed as we are to achieving lasting change.

The post Paul Ramsay Foundation: $30m For Communities Affected By Bushfires appeared first on Paul Ramsay Foundation.

The Paul Ramsay Foundation today announced development funding of $150,000 for each of five new initiatives to help tackle the cycle of disadvantage in Australia.
The funds are made available through the Foundation’s Peer to Peer program, run in partnership with Philanthropy Australia, which brought together ten innovative Australian not-for-profits to use problem solving methodology to help break the cycle of disadvantage.

Based on peer review, five of these proposals have received $150,000 each with further capability support to be provided over the next year to develop the remaining initiatives.
In total, almost $1 million has been allocated by the Foundation to support organisations taking on new and exciting projects in their early stages of development. The five organisations are:

• Hands Up Mallee is working in Northern Mallee, Victoria seeking to bring together local leaders and services to improve health and education outcomes for young families in the area.
• Burnet Institute is seeking to help address the issue of recidivism and work with key sector stakeholders including people with lived experience to design programs that address the root causes of re-offending.
• Good Cycles is a social enterprise that provides employment to young people in Liverpool, NSW at risk of entrenched unemployment and contact with the criminal justice system.
• The Benevolent Society will co-design and implement a program to provide parenting support to vulnerable young parents who have been in out of home care.
• The Fitzroy Legal Service and the University of Melbourne will create a new model for supporting the decision making of people with disability to improve their participation in the justice system and achieve greater control and agency in their lives.

The CEO of the Paul Ramsay Foundation, Professor Glyn Davis AC, said that this new approach is just one of the ways in which the Foundation will help break the cycle of disadvantage.

“The Foundation is committed to working with grassroots organisations large and small to help break the cycle of disadvantage in Australian communities.

We are in the early stages of a new focus on supporting under-resourced communities in the most effective way possible,” Professor Davis said.

The Paul Ramsay Foundation’s Peer to Peer Program is a devolved form of philanthropy that involves peer organisitions in decision making. Watch below to hear from the organisations themselves in a short video with more information about this exciting new project.

Media contact: Michael Buckland, Paul Ramsay Foundation 0401 089 932

Paul Ramsay Foundation

The Paul Ramsay Foundation seeks to identify and partner with individuals, communities and organisations working to create an Australia where people can overcome disadvantage and realise their potential.

The late Paul Ramsay AO established the Foundation in 2006 and, after his death in 2014, left the majority of his estate to continue his philanthropy for generations to come.

His commitment to good works has allowed the Paul Ramsay Foundation to support the for-purpose sector with grants of more than $260 million made since 2016 to more than 70 different partners, committed as we are to achieving lasting change.

The post Five New Approaches To Breaking The Cycle Of Disadvantage appeared first on Paul Ramsay Foundation.

The Paul Ramsay Foundation and Philanthropy Australia have today announced the ten organisations that will participate in the final round of an innovative form of peer to peer philanthropy where organisations work together on projects and successful grantees are determined by the applicants themselves. 

This has been developed in collaboration with our partners, the Social Impact Hub, who ran the Solve It Australia Masterclasses that preceded this program. The masterclasses presented the problem solving framework to develop these projects. 

In an Australian-first, Creating Partnerships for Potential – A Peer to Peer Initiative will bring together ten organisations with ten new well-formed ideas to help break the cycle of disadvantage. The participating organisations are: 

1. Asthma Australia 
2. Burnet Institute 
3. Campbell Page Limited 
4. Fitzroy Legal Service 
5. Good Cycles Limited 
6. Hand Up Mallee 
7. Neami National 
8. Star Health 
9. The Benevolent Society 
10.  The Smith Family 

After a two day residential program during which they will collectively develop and evaluate each proposal, the organisations themselves will determine the five ideas that receive funding. 

Proposals cover a diverse range of communities and systems of disadvantage including: 

• Building the capacity of health professionals to decrease hospitalisations from asthma 
• Parental, mental health related and youth employment issues 
• Early childhood development factors including single parenting, socioeconomic disadvantage and out of home care 
• Supporting the legal decision making of people with disabilities 
• Improving culturally relevant approaches for education access for Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islander students 

Chief Capabilities Officer Jo Taylor said; “We know that we don’t have all the answers here at the Foundation. 

“We are experimenting with new ways of working; enabling the Paul Ramsay Foundation initiatives to be led by the expertise of the individuals and organisations working deep in communities all over Australia.” 

This new initiative enables leaders with ‘hands on experience’ to be at the centre of decision making in this initiative. 

CEO of Philanthropy Australia, Sarah Davies said; “We are thrilled to have the support of the Paul Ramsay Foundation to deliver this pioneering approach to philanthropy.” 

“We will continue to look for ways to make philanthropy in Australia as inclusive, collaborative and effective as possible.” 

All organisations and their proposals have undergone rigorous pre-assessment to ensure the highest standards. The peer to peer evaluation process is based on an evidence based methodology built over ten years by US pioneers Village Capital. 

Media contact: Michael Buckland, Paul Ramsay Foundation 0401 089 932 

Paul Ramsay Foundation 

The Paul Ramsay Foundation seeks to identify and partner with individuals, communities and organisations working to create an Australia where people can overcome disadvantage and realise their potential. 

The late Paul Ramsay AO established the Foundation in 2006 and, after his death in 2014, left the majority of his estate to continue his philanthropy for generations to come. 

His commitment to good works has allowed the Paul Ramsay Foundation to support the for-purpose sector with grants of more than $200 million made since 2016 to more than 70 different partners, committed as we are to achieving lasting change. 

Philanthropy Australia 

As the peak body, Philanthropy Australia serves a community of funders, social investors and social change agents working to achieve positive social, cultural, environmental and community change by leveraging their financial assets and influence. 

Informed, independent and with reach and credibility, Philanthirpy Australia gives our members a collective voice and ability to influence and shape the future of the sector and advance philanthropy. 

The Philanthropic community comes together through Philanthropy Australia to build its collective voice; research and leadership; networks and collaboration; professional learning and resources and; information and data exchange. 

Our membership consists of approximately 700 trusts, foundations, organisations, families, individual donors, professional advisers, intermediaries and not-for-profit organisations. 

Social Impact Hub 

The Social Impact Hub helps change agents accelerate their impact. Through advice, thought leadership, collaboration, education and the mobilisation of capital, the Social Impact Hub catalyses, empowers and enables those creating a world where people and the planet thrive. 

The Social Impact Hub is a trusted partner for a broad range of bold, forward-thinking organisations including social enterprises, purpose-driven businesses, not-for-profit organisations, corporates, foundations, funders, impact investors, film makers and universities. 

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