Legal proceedings ongoing

St Andrew's Christian School cannot comment on the criminal proceedings against Frank Bailey, which are still before the Court for sentencing.

Presbyterian Church of Australia in NSW General Manager, Wayne Richards, said today it would not be appropriate to argue the facts or comment on allegations regarding the school or Mr Bailey in view of the possibility of further legal proceedings.

“The School, under its widely respected Principal, Mac Lindsay, takes its obligations for the welfare of its students and staff very seriously,” he said.

“In particular it takes its child protection responsibilities extremely seriously as does the Presbyterian Church in NSW, with its robust Breaking the Silence policy.”

Mr Richards said the Church remained very committed to St Andrew’s Christian School.

“The School last year celebrated its 10th anniversary and its focus remains on providing a committed and caring Christian education,” he said.

Presbyterian Church opposes Good Friday Gambling

$700,000 day respite centre opens in Walcha

A new $700,000 day respite centre for older people and people with dementia was officially opened at Apsley Riverview Hostel, 2e Hill Street, Walcha at February 25.

Presbyterian Aged Care NSW and ACT CEO, Paul Sadler, said the Willow Wing extension provided valuable additional space for residents of Apsley Riverview. It was also the venue for the day respite service three days per week, he said.

The day respite service commenced in April 2008, initially operating from the main hostel.  The dedicated centre allows PAC Apsley Riverview to expand the number of clients up to 15 people per day for three days per week.

Already this is proving to be a very important service for carers of older people or those with dementia in Walcha and the surrounding region.  It provides them with access to a support service that reduces carer burden and frees up the carers to undertake vital activities to maintain their health and wellbeing.

PAC was one of only 30 successful applicants around Australia for the demonstration program to operate day respite in a residential care facility.  Apsley Riverview was the only service to be funded in the New England.

Key features of the PAC Apsley Riverview Day Respite Service include:

• Day respite offered for three days per week, with links to other community care services or respite care in the hostel if needed.
• Capacity to provide extended hours to assist working carers and emergency respite where needed.
• A varied program for clients attending day care, including outings in the Apsley Riverview bus.

The Australian Department of Health and Ageing provides the funding for the day respite service from its National Respite for Carers Program.  In all, up to $1.1 million in operating funding will be provided for the PAC Apsley Riverview Day Respite Service from 2008 to 2011.

Construction of the Willow Wing extension cost around $700,000 and was funded from the Apsley Riverview reserves held by PAC.  Presbyterian Aged Care acknowledges a contribution of $75,000 to help set up the service from the Australian Government under the National Respite for Carers Program.

"The new day respite centre effectively completes the building program for Apsley Riverview," Mr Sadler said. "It exemplifies the commitment Presbyterian Aged Care has to extend and improve the service we provide to Walcha and surrounding districts.”

Church pushes for internet filtering

The Presbyterian Church of Australia has taken an uncompromising position on abuse of the Internet, coming out in support of the Federal Government’s proposal to filter internet sites featuring explicit x-rated pornographic material, preventing their inadvertent and unrestricted viewing by internet users.

Church leaders from throughout the country have added their signatures to a letter to the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Stephen Conroy, encouraging the Government to introduce ISP-level filtering.

In the letter, which has received a reply, the Presbyterian Church acknowledged the financial cost to the Government of such a policy, but said it believed any cost was outweighed by the potential saving of lives from moral corruption and sexual violence/abuse caused by the viewing of such material.

“We recognize the high efficiency and effectiveness of today’s filtering methods and note the relative ease of their operation as factors supportive of its implementation,” the Church said. “We assert that a wide cross-section of Australians, whether Christians or not, would join us in applauding this initiative. We believe that arguments comparing the government’s proposal to Chinese-style censorship are frivolous since it is only the most objectionable images which it is proposed to filter.”

Signatories included:  PCA Moderator General, Rt Rev Robert Benn; Queensland Moderator Rt Rev John Gilmour, Tasmanian Moderator Rt Rev David Jones, NSW Moderator Rt Rev Bruce Meller, Victorian Moderator Rt Rev Douglas Robertson, Western Australia Church and Nation Committee Convener Rev Ross Fraser, NSW Church and Nation Committee Convener Rev Peter Greiner, Victorian Church and Nation Committee Convener Rev David Palmer, Queensland Church and Nation Committee Convener Rev Les Percy, South Australia and Australian Church and Nation Committee Convener Rev Stefan Slucki and Tasmanian Church and Nation Committee Convener Rev Rod Waterhouse.