3 Overview of monitoring data
Coordination
Community engagement workshops were held with representatives of the originally identified 73 NTER communities before the end of 2007. The workshops assisted understanding of the various NTER measures and their implementation among Indigenous communities.
As at 30 June 2008, the Commonwealth Ombudsman had received 489 complaints from Indigenous communities. 340 have been, or are being, investigated. Main concerns were around lack of information in language, income managed and discretionary funds, CDEP transition payments, store licensing and more recently, the role of GBMs.
GBMs report the aspects of the NTER that are perceived to be working well relate to improvements in communication and coordination services, whereas aspects that are perceived to be less successful relate to barriers to information sharing between agencies and concomitant problems in service provision.
In the vast majority (90%) of communities, some form of burden is placed on community members through visits by government officials or agencies to the community.
Although some believe this burden is inevitable, others feel that the load can (broadly) be reduced through better coordination and organisation across agencies. On a positive front, it is believed that the level of understanding of the GBM role is relatively good. There is a notable increase in the availability of visitor accommodation (in one-quarter of communities).
Levels of communication and engagement with the community vary, although those communities displaying high levels of involvement in their own management, display positive characteristics of leadership, as well as involvement/ integration, education, literacy and closeness of the community.
On rating the impact of key NTER measures, the measures most extensively endorsed by GBMs (apart from the introduction of GBMs) are:
- fixing problems with existing housing
- the introduction of income management
- community clean-up programs
- child health checks and follow-up services.
Those measures seen as having the least impact, primarily due to lack of existing facilities or services at the time of reporting, are:
- expanded safe houses
- extra drug/ alcohol rehabilitation services
- additional child protection workers
Overall, GBMs trust that the communities have a good (if not excellent) understanding of the aims of the NTER and why it was launched, as well as an acceptance thereof.