Key evaluation questions The PIR addressed a range of evaluation questions that have been grouped into seven key areas: Implementation of the FASS What progress has been made by FASS in implementing effective support services for those affected by forced adoption? How consistent has the implementation been with the design outlined in the AIFS scoping study? How successful are services in implementing the principles of accountability, accessibility and effective and diversity of services identified in the Forced Adoption National Practice Principles? How are the variations in the services delivered by FASS by jurisdiction explained, and should they be more consistent? If so, what changes would be required to achieve better consistency and allow for flexibility? How long are clients engaging with FASS and is this expected to change over time? How has demand changed for the services? How have FASS adapted to meet any changes in demand? How well are services implementing a trauma-informed approach to service delivery? Access How well have FASS been accessed by the different target subgroups (mothers, adult adoptees, fathers, siblings and other extended family members, Indigenous Australians, people from CALD backgrounds, people with disabilities and other specific groups?) Which of the services provided by FASS have the different subgroups used (i.e. counselling, advocacy/support, information/advice/referral, intake/assessment, records search, outreach, community capacity building) and what are the reasons for this breakdown? Why have certain eligible client groups not accessed support from FASS? How satisfied are clients with the services provided? Working within the sector How well are FASS working with other services in the post-adoption sector and other relevant services (including use of warm referrals) to ensure a holistic and effective support system and to build capacity (including network opportunities)? Are services effectively complementing service offer of states/territories for this cohort or is there duplication/overlap? Small grants How useful has the small grants component been to build sector capacity and enhance group healing activities?
Services by jurisdiction The information provided in the following tables has been compiled from discussions with key jurisdictional personnel and represents an overview of the main services available in each jurisdiction. Table A1: Government and non-government post-adoption services by jurisdiction Jurisdiction Government dept Services receiving funding Services not receiving funding NSW Department of Family and Community Services Post Adoption Resource Centre - Benevolent Society Link Up (NSW) Catholicare Anglicare Salvation Army Special Search Service Origins NSW ACT Family Information Service, Child and Youth Protection Services Post Adoption Resource Centre - Benevolent Society Data not available Vic Family Information Networks & Discovery, DHHS VANISH Inc (Victorian Adoption Network for Information and Self Help) Catholicare Anglicare Uniting Care Connections Link-Up Independent Regional Mothers Group of Victoria Origins Victoria Inc Association Representing Mothers Separated (ARMS) by adoption
Qld Department of Communities, Child Safety and Disability Services Queensland PASQ Benevolent Society Salvation Army Special Search Service Link-Up Origins Qld ALAS Australia Inc (previously ALAS Qld: Adoption Loss Adult Support) SA Department for Child Protection Post Adoption Support Services (PASS), RA Link-Up Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement Inc. Data not available WA Fostering and Adoption Services, Department for Child Protection and Family Support Adoption Jigsaw (WA) Adoption Research and Counselling Service (ARCS) Association Representing Mothers Separated (ARMS) from their children by adoption International Social Service - Life Works (federally funded) Tas Adoptions Information Service, Department of Health and Human Services Data not available Data not available NT Territory Families Adoption Unit Link-Up n/a National Practice Principles
Qld State Apology 3rd anniversary $708 2015-16 Banners for Anniversary event Y Y Complete Australian DNA Hub $2,037 2016-17 DNA workshops (2) Y Y Complete Qld stakeholders group $3,382 2016-17 4th Anniversary event costs – banners, catering, guest speaker Y Y Complete Pat Zuber (artist) $723 2016-17 Co-ordinator/ curator for My Adoption Experience Exhibition N Y Complete Jo Sparrow (group facilitator) $939 2016-17 Constructing Identity after Adoption workshop N Y Complete Trish (group facilitator, Psychologist) $3,403 2016-17 Relationship workshop for adopted people N Y Complete Individual adoptees $1,071 2016-17 Funding for airfares for 3 people to attend ARTTT meeting in Victoria Y N Complete Qld stakeholders group for Memorial Plaques Project $4,716 2016-17 Funding for project worker to complete stage 1: engage and consult with stakeholders, develop design brief, obtain quotes, approach proposed sites Y Y Stage 1 complete Stage 2 in progress
Table D39: RA (Vic) Small Grants Organisation or recipient Grant amount (GST excl.) Funded period Description Build sector capacity Group healing activities Other Status Auspiced Individual (Group Facilitator) $5,000 Round 1 (closed 23.02.16) Understanding Adoption Peer Support Group Y Y Information sharing Complete VANISH & ARMS $5,000 Round 1 Victorian Regional Outreach Support Groups Y N N Complete ARMS $5,000 + $400 honorarium Round 1 Mildura Outreach and Advocacy Project Y N N Complete Anglicare $5,000 Round 1 Digitising of Anglicare’s Victoria’s catalogued photographs N N Y Complete Independent Regional Mothers $5,000 Round 1 “Cherished” Memorial N Y N Complete Adoptions Origins Victoria $5,000 Round 2 (closed 17.06.17) Origins Victoria Retreat N Y N Complete VANISH $4,000 Round 2 Metro and Regional Group Facilitator Training Y N N Not stated Anglicare $5,000 Round 2 Digitising of Anglicare’s Victoria’s catalogued photographs (Continued) N N Y Complete Connections UnitingCare $2,376 Round 2 Mental Health First Aid Training Y N N Complete Independent Regional Mothers $5,000 Round 2 “Cherished” Memorial (Continued) N Y N Complete Independent Regional Mothers $5,000 Round 3 (closed 25.11.16) “Cherished” Memorial (Continued) N Y N Complete
VANISH $5,000 Round 3 Art Therapy Course “Creative Expressive Program” N Y N Complete ARMS $5,000 Round 3 Self-healing Event N Y N Complete ARMS $3,440 Round 3 ARMS IT & Social Media Capacity Building Y N N Complete ARMS $2,460 Round 3 Support Group Facilitation Training Y N N Complete ARMS $3,584 Round 3 ARMS Publication N N Y Complete Adoptee Round Table Think Tank (ARTT) Organising Committee $5,000 Round 3 A two-day gathering of adoptees to discuss their particular support needs for the future. Event run June 24 2017 N N N Not reported VANISH $5,000 Round 4 (closed 24.04.17) Art Therapy Course Creative Expressions Two N Y N Complete ARMS $5,000 Round 4 Mildura Outreach and Advocacy Project (Continued) Y N N Ongoing
For the 110 respondents who had accessed the National Archives of Australia Forced Adoption website (Figure E7), the two main reasons for doing so was to: Read about others, or contribute their own experiences of forced adoption (n = 91) Learn about the impact on adopted persons, mothers, fathers, and families (n = 69). Figure E7: Viewed features of the National Archives of Australia Forced Adoption website The majority of those who had accessed the National Archives of Australia Forced Adoption website found it helpful to some degree (86.9%, Table E34), with 38.2% rating it either very or extremely helpful. There were no statistically significant differences between adoptees and mothers, however mothers had a greater proportion of respondents finding the website to be very helpful. Table E34: Helpfulness of the National Archives of Australia Forced Adoption website Respondent Not at all helpful Slightly helpful Somewhat helpful Very helpful Extremely helpful Missing Total Adoptee 6 (8.7%) 6 (8.7%) 31 (44.9%) 15 (21.7%) 8 (11.6%) 3 (4.3%) 69 (62.7%) Mother 1 (2.9%) 7 (20.6%) 10 (29.4%) 11 (32.4%) 3 (8.8%) 2 (5.9%) 34 (30.9%) Other 0 0 1 (20.0%) 2 (40.0%) 2 (40.0%) 0 5 (100.0%) Missing 1 (50.0%) 0 0 1 (50.0%) 0 0 2 (100.0%) Total 8 (7.3%) 13 (11.8%) 42 (38.2%) 29 (26.4%) 13 (11.8%) 5 (4.5%) 110 (100.0%) Exhibition awareness Respondents’ awareness of the ‘Without Consent: Australia’s past adoption practices’ exhibition by FASS target group category is shown in Table E35 and FASS usage status is shown in Table E36. While 40.2% of the sample were aware of the exhibition, almost half (48.8%) had not. A greater proportion of mothers knew about the exhibition when compared with adoptees, a difference that was statistically significant, χ2 (2) = 11.38, p < .01.
Table E37: Meaningfulness of the ‘Without Consent’ exhibition by FASS target group Respondent circumstance Not at all meaningful Slightly meaningful Somewhat meaningful Very meaningful Extremely meaningful Missing Total Adoptee 1 (5.9%) 4 (23.5%) 1 (5.9%) 4 (23.5%) 3 (17.6%) 4 (23.5%) 17 (41.5%) Mother 1 (4.8%) 0 4 (19.0%) 7 (33.3%) 7 (33.3%) 2 (9.5%) 21 (51.2%) Other 0 0 0 2 (66.7%) 1 (33.3%) 0 3 (7.3%) Total 2 (4.9%) 4 (9.8%) 5 (12.2%) 13 (31.7%) 11 (26.8%) 6 (14.6%) 41 (100.0%) Table E38: Meaningfulness of the ‘Without Consent’ exhibition by FASS usage FASS usage status Not at all meaningful Slightly meaningful Somewhat meaningful Very meaningful Extremely meaningful Missing Total Had used FASS 2 (7.7%) 2 (7.7%) 5 (19.2%) 8 (30.8%) 6 (23.1%) 3 (11.5%) 26 (63.4%) Had not used FASS 0 1 (7.7%) 0 4 (30.8%) 5 (38.5%) 3 (23.1%) 13 (31.7%) Don’t know 0 1 (50.0%) 0 1 (50.0%) 0 0 2 (4.9%) Total 2 (4.9%) 4 (9.8%) 5 (12.2%) 13 (31.7%) 11 (26.8%) 6 (14.6%) 41 (100.0%)