23 December 2004

Government supports HELP sexual abuse service

ACC Minister Ruth Dyson today welcomed a $200,000 contract between ACC and the Auckland Sexual Abuse HELP Foundation for a one-year ‘pilot’ approach to services targeting sexual abuse.

ACC will work with the foundation to support crisis counselling and telephone support. Outcomes will be closely monitored. “The ACC contract will contribute towards HELP’s long-term viability, and its work in addressing the impact of sexual abuse on communities,” Ruth Dyson said.

"ACC worked with HELP earlier in the year to organise its finances so it could continue to provide services. This 12-month contract is a tangible contribution towards this outcome, but the foundation may still require assistance from other organisations."

ACC will track the foundation’s viability over the next year, to determine whether the pilot approach can be extended to other community organisations.

"Now that HELP has secured its future for the period of the contract, it must make decisions and implement changes that determine the way its services are delivered in the Auckland region," Ruth Dyson says.

ACC has also provided indirect assistance to the foundation by increasing the level of payments made to individual counsellors by 36 per cent from 1 April 2004.

"ACC’s support for HELP is in line with the whole-of-government implementation of the Safer Communities Action Plan To Reduce Community Violence and Sexual Violence, released in June 2004," Ruth Dyson says.

ACC is working with other crown agencies and community organisations through an inter-agency steering group to identify gaps in current services. The agencies include the Ministry of Justice, CYFS, Police, the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, Te Puni Kokiri and the Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs.

ENDS

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