Members for Independent Advisory Council for Survivors of Institutional Child Sex Abuse Announced

Monday 6 February 2017 @ 12.14 p.m. | Crime | Legal Research

At the end of last year (16 December 2016), the Commonwealth Attorney-General announced that the appointment of members of the Independent Advisory Council for Redress for Survivors of Institutional Child Sex Abuse (the Council) had been appointed as well as a clarification of the terms of reference for the Council.

Terms of Reference

According to the Attorney-General's Media Release, the terms of reference for the Council are as follows:

"The Independent Advisory Council on Redress (the Council) is established as an advisory council to the Minister for Social Services (the Minister). Members of the Council are appointed by the Prime Minister for their relevant public policy expertise, demonstrated commitment to child protection issues and community representation.

The principal purpose of the Council is to provide independent advice to the Minister on policies and processes necessary to the design and implementation of the Commonwealth Redress Scheme. Ensuring the scheme is implemented with the needs of survivors as front and centre will be an important part of the Council's role."

In particular, the Council will provide advice on:

  • the governing principles that underpin the scheme;
  • elements of the scheme's design, that may include eligibility and the principles around the processes of application, assessment, psychological counselling and direct personal response;
  • how to best encourage state, territory and non-government institution participation in the scheme; and
  • how the Commonwealth scheme will interact with other redress schemes.

Members for the Council

The 15 member Council, appointed by the Prime Minister, includes survivors of institutional abuse and representatives from support organisations, as well as legal and psychological experts, Indigenous and disability experts, institutional interest groups and those with a background in government. The appointments include:

  • The Hon Cheryl Edwardes AM (Chair);
  • Professor Muriel Bamblett AM, Victorian Aboriginal Child Care Agency (Vic);
  • Mr Matthew Bowden, CEO, People with Disability (NSW);
  • Ms Caroline Carroll, Chair, Alliance for Forgotten Australians (Vic);
  • Ms Anne Cross, CEO, Uniting Care Queensland (Qld);
  • Professor Kathleen Daly, Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Griffith University (Qld);
  • Ms Prue Gregory, Principal Lawyer, knowmore (NSW);
  • Ms Shireen Gunn, Manager, Ballarat Centre for Sexual Assault (Vic);
  • Mr Gary Johns, writer and former Labor Minister (Qld);
  • Dr Cathy Kezelman AM, President/Director, Blue Knot Foundation (NSW);
  • Ms Helen Kroger, former Liberal Senator for Victoria (Vic);
  • Professor Patrick Parkinson, Professor of Law, University of Sydney (NSW);
  • Ms Leonie Sheedy, CEO, Care Leavers Australasia Network (NSW);
  • Mr Francis Sullivan, CEO, Truth, Justice & Healing Council (ACT); and
  • Mr Richard Weston, CEO, Healing Foundation (Qld).

The first meeting of the Council will be held in early 2017.

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