Latest News

Community Industry Group CEO Nicky Sloan comments on the 2023 Federal Budget in our recent Media Release The centrepiece of this year’s budget is a $14.6 billion cost of living package, but with inflation at record highs eating into the pay packets of workers and driving up the cost of essentials, much of the relief is targeted at specific segments of the population. For the regular Illawarra family, this means some of the benefits will flow through to their household budget, and some won’t. Read our Media Release or the full article – The Illawarra’s haves and haves-nots in 2023 federal budget

We are now offering our Become an Incredible Non-Profit Board Chair training online! After successful in person sessions we are excited to announce we have now opened two online sessions for our CIGroup Board Chair Training! One on Thursday 18 May at 5:30pm – 7:30pm, and, Wednesday 14 June 5:30pm – 7:30pm. This is a great opportunity to get FREE (for CIGroup members) training with our amazing trainer Judy Daunt. We hope you can make one of these sessions and enjoy it from the comfort of your own home! See the flyer with all information and booking – Board Chair Training | Online

Unacceptable Levels of Poverty in the Illawarra, Shoalhaven and South Coast Research by the University of Canberra’s National Centre for Social and Economic Modelling (NATSEM), commissioned by the NSW Council of Social Services, has analysed 2021 Census data to examine the extent of poverty throughout the state. See what our CEO Nicky Sloan has to say about the matter in our Media Release – Unacceptable Levels of Poverty in the Illawarra, Shoalhaven and South Coast.

Community Industry Group is pleased to announce that after an absence of 12 months, Nicky Sloan is returning to her role as Community Industry Group’s CEO. Nicky is back with new experiences and knowledge she gained from her time working as an executive on the formation of the new national peak body for aged care, Aged and Community Care Provides Association (ACCPA). While Nicky was away Community Industry Group was incredibly grateful to Anna for taking over at the helm of the region’s peak body. Anna has done an exceptional job of leading the team and the sector through many changes and challenges. From everyone at Community Industry Group we want to express our thanks to Anna for her devotion to the role, and her passion for the community services sector. Nicky is excited to be back and is looking forward to catching up with everyone in the community.

A report that highlights concerns of our community service organisations Our March 2023 Temperature Check Infographic is here! It is our largest survey response yet! We received 72 responses from 70 organisations that provide essential services to people in our communities. Thank you to everyone who filled out the survey, your responses have created a picture of what the key concerns of our community service organisations are. The sectors represented include children, youth and family, housing and homelessness, domestic and family violence, aged care, disability, mental health, culturally and linguistically diverse and Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations. The Temperature Check provides an overview of the areas that need support and where changes need to be made. Check it out here!

Last Thursday we were thrilled to be involved in the community forum discussing women’s issues with state candidates for the upcoming NSW election. Our interim CEO Anna Bacik was MC for the evening with our team at Community Industry Group and Women Illawarra organising and running the event. The Illawarra Mercury published an article about the night which you can read here.  

Join us for a Community Forum to hear our state candidates on women’s issues. Women Illawarra, Illawarra Women’s Health Centre, Housing Trust and Community Industry Group – Illawarra Forum will bring together candidates from Keira, Wollongong, Shellharbour and Kiama electorates for a discussion on their policies and how they impact women. MC’d by Anna Bacik, interim CEO of Community Industry Group. Submit your questions HERE. Click on the link HERE to book your free tickets (includes light refreshments). We hope to see you there!

2021-22 was another year of change and challenge for communities and organisations in Southern NSW and for the Community Industry Group. It was also very much a year in two parts. Read our full annual report here.

Community Industry Group is the peak body representing community service organisations in Southern NSW. We recently surveyed our members in order to fully understand the significant challenges they are currently facing. During October and November 2022, we conducted our second Member ‘Temperature Check’ (key issue survey) to find out what issues are most concerning to their organisations, their biggest challenges, and what support they need. Click here to read the infographic summary. To access our first ‘Temperature Check’ conducted in June 2022 Click here.

Community Industry Group would like to thank all of their members for the continued support throughout the 2021/22 Financial Year. As the peak body organisation for community service organisations in Southern NSW we are proud to be able to represent the sector on your behalf and we sincerely appreciate your ongoing support. We now invite existing members to renew their membership for the 2022/23 Financial Year and welcome applications for new membership. Renewing and applying for membership is quick and easy. To renew or apply online click here. To request an invoice please email our Finance Officer, Trish Cachia, here. If you have any questions regarding membership please contact our office on 02 4256 4333 or email info@cigroup.org.au The benefits of membership include: Significant discounts on personal development training opportunities. Invitations to contribute to regional responses to government submissions. Invitations to conferences, industry events and regional forums. Access to highly skilled and knowledgeable […]

If you are a member of Community Industry Group you can submit your events and positions vacant for inclusion in our newsletter by emailing them to info@cigroup.org.au with newsletter in the title. Check out our latest edition: http://communityindustrygroup.org.au/news/newsletters/ If you want to subscribe to our fortnightly newsletter sign up here: http://communityindustrygroup.org.au/subscribe/  

We invite you to attend the Community Care Collective meeting for Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) Service Providers and Regional Assessment Service Teams on Wednesday, 8 June 2022, 10:00am–12:30pm. The Ageing and Disability Commissioner, Mr Robert Fitzgerald, AM, will be in attendance to discuss the role and achievements of the NSW Ageing and Disability Commission. On the day we will also launch the new Aboriginal artwork posters and checklists for prevention and awareness of older person abuse. Book your place here. For the full agenda click here.

We are currently offering many professional development opportunities including: Difficult but Necessary Conversations, Wednesday 11 May 2022 at Port Kembla. Free for members, $50 for non members. Click here to book your place. How to ethically engage and support young people, Wednesday 15 June at Shellharbour Civic Centre. $25 members, $75 non members. Click here to book your place. Diversity and Inclusion Training, Tuesday 5 July online. Free for members, $25 for non members. Click here to book your place. Expression of Interest for Family Group Conferencing Facilitator Training. Click here for the form.      

The ReSoW project run by Community Industry Group and supported by Resilience NSW is offering free strategic planning sessions for not for profit and non-government community organisations in the Shoalhaven, Eurobodalla, Bega Valley, Snowy Monaro and Queanbeyan-Palerang areas. As part of this package, a report will be provided after the planning session to help organisations develop a strategic plan to clearly identify priorities and achieve strategic goals. Please contact Sam here for more information.

We have released a new issues paper – Care for Older People in Southern NSW. The number of Australians in need of aged care services is increasing. By 2061, one quarter of the population in NSW is projected to be aged 65 and over. Check out our issues papers here.

Community Industry Group wish to advise of a change in the current leadership at the organisation. Long term CEO, Nicky Sloan, has been granted a 12 month break in her employment in order to take on a contract as Executive Director Membership & Services/Executive Director NSW, ACT & Qld with Aged & Community Services Australia (ACSA) effective Friday 25 February 2022. The Board wish to recognise the experience and knowledge that Nicky will gain during this period will significantly benefit Community Industry Group and its member organisations upon her return. The Board are pleased to advise that Anna Bacik has been appointed as CEO for this period. Anna previously worked as the Director of Policy at NSW Council of Social Service (NCOSS) and brings a wealth of experience from both government and non-government sectors. Anna will represent Community Industry Group in all the current projects and initiatives and is looking […]

Community Industry Group is proud to present the CareForce Hub, a purpose-built website which is the ‘go-to’ place to find your next career in the disability, aged and home care sectors. The CareForce Hub features job vacancies, tools and tips for job seekers, resume templates, employer information and loads of information about the huge variety of roles available. “The CareForce Hub is an initiative of our Care Careers project,” said CEO of Community Industry Group, Nicky Sloan. “And to coincide with the launch of the CareForce Hub, we are also announcing our Care Careers Jobs Pledge. We were hoping to have employers pledge 150 jobs over the next 12 months, but we look like well and truly exceeding that number.” To check out the CareForce Hub click here. We will advertise the pledged jobs for free on our socials and here. If you are an Care Career employer and want […]

Social connectedness is important for our mental health and wellbeing, but for a lot of people, lifting of restrictions and increasing social activities might be cause for some anxiety. We’ve developed some tips and strategies to help yourself, and those you love, ease back into socialising and rebuild social connections in a way that keeps you feeling comfortable and safe. We have created a short video here and a printable fact sheet here with tips for reconnecting for yourself or to assist others.  

Check out our video about all the things we achieved during the 2020/21 financial year, despite COVID-19 restrictions.

Community Industry Group is proud to launch the CareForce Hub, a purpose-built website which will be the ‘go-to’ place to find your next career in the disability, aged and home care sectors. The CareForce Hub features job vacancies, tools and tips for job seekers, resume templates, employer information and loads of information about the huge variety of roles available. “The CareForce Hub is an initiative of our Care Careers project,” said CEO of Community Industry Group, Nicky Sloan. “And to coincide with the launch of the CareForce Hub, we are also announcing our Care Careers Jobs Pledge. We were hoping to have employers pledge 150 jobs over the next 12 months, but we look like well and truly exceeding that number. On the very first day, we have received pledges for 124 jobs across the region!” To check out our Media Release about the CareForce Hub and Pledges click here. […]

Our latest annual report is out now! Click here to check it out.

Community Industry Group is excited to offer the Resources entwined with Support of Wellbeing (ReSoW) project! Community service organisations played a vital role during and after the bushfire crisis leaving many management committees, staff and volunteers in a state of increased fatigue. Not for profit organisations in bushfire-impacted regions of Southern NSW will be able to access subsidised supports to build capacity and resilience in staff and volunteers to support them in supporting the community. We are offering a variety of opportunities to help your organisation and staff thrive such as training opportunities, external supervision, leadership development and more.  For more information click here.

The Care Career Project aims to raise the profile of careers in the aged, home and disability care sector. We want to engage with service providers to capture core competency requirements for a new employee before starting work in your organisation. We invite you to take part in this important research by participating in our short survey here. All information collected by the Care Careers Project provides a foundation for attracting people and designing effective employment pathways. We aim to ensure that care sector jobs and careers are well known and highly regarded across the Illawarra and the South Coast. To find out more about the Care Careers Project, please contact Tanya Southworth here.