26 Catholic Diocese of Sandhurst Year in Review 2024 Agnes Sheehan ‘At CatholicCare Victoria, we empower people of all backgrounds to build resilience and thrive, so that they may go on to ‘live life to the full’ John 10:10. From In 2024 the CatholicCare Victoria (CCV) team provided care, support and guidance to 3,144 individuals within the Diocese of Sandhurst. The top three presenting issues for these individuals were Family and Relationships (76.46%), Mental Health (39.34%) and Family Violence (14.39%), with the majority of these individuals were aged between 25-44 and 0-18 respectively. CCV provides compassionate social services in the Diocese of Sandhurst from two main offices – Bendigo and Shepparton – but also provides outreach support and programs to families and individuals. These programs include counselling; Family Services (inhome support); family and property dispute resolution, focusing on children’s needs and wellbeing; parenting programs and workshops; school counselling and chaplaincy; Communities for Children program which funds local projects and services for families; youth justice programs; and a professional support network for practitioners working in the family law space. CCV is committed to contributing to and supporting local communities, and partnering with others is essential for this to build thriving communities. In 2024, CCV engaged at Executive level with additional key networks, including Goulburn Family Violence Executive and Goulburn Mental Health and Wellbeing Executive, to respond to the presenting issues we are witnessing from clients. CCV, via the Greater Shepparton Communities for Children program, co-funded the Goulburn Valley Family Violence Executive Committee training activities in 2024 as part of this commitment. Further to this and as part of our Family Law Pathways Network, CCV facilitated a Greater Shepparton Bendigo Family Law Pathways Conference to continually grow family law practitioners’ skills and knowledge in the region. CCV was successful in receiving a Connecting Carers grant of $40,000 which supported activities for our carers, and we also received a subcontract from VMCH for the delivery of Carer Support in Loddon, and further funding of Additional Respite. One example of the valuable work being done by the CCV team, is from the Children’s Contact Service (CCS) in Wangaratta. The CCS had received a referral for a closed Child Protection case, which they had been unable to progress. The mother had an extensive history of poor mental health, resulting in multiple hospitalisations due to poor medication compliance. As a result, her daughter was removed from her care and placed with her father. Over the course of 13 weekly contacts, staff were able to work with Chief Executive Officer CatholicCare Victoria
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