Cape York Welfare Reform: A Unified Framework
Unifying Organisations
It became obvious that the projects of Cape York Indigenous organisations needed to be complemented by additional policies and brought together into a unified framework.
Welfare Reform
The name "Welfare Reform" was chosen to emphasise that changes to Cape York's welfare economy were necessary, but the scope of the Cape York agenda is much wider than changes to the welfare system.
Cape York Institute
In 2003, Cape York leaders concluded that a new policy organisation exclusively dedicated to policy and design of a holistic agenda was necessary. Cape York Partnerships developed a business case for a policy development institute.
In 2004 Cape York Partnerships worked with regional leaders, Griffith University and the Queensland and Australian Governments to form the Cape York Institute, which opened in July the same year.
Cape York Agenda
In 2005, Cape York Partnerships collaborated with Cape York Institute to articulate the Cape York Agenda, which aims to ensure Cape York people "have the capabilities to choose lives they have reason to value".
Designing the Welfare Reform Project
In 2006, Cape York Partnerships and Cape York Institute began to design the Welfare Reform project.
Cape York Partnerships was responsible for the community engagement part of the work that led to the groundbreaking report 'From Hand Out to Hand Up'. On the basis of this report, the government-sponsored Cape York Welfare Reform commenced in 2007.
In partnership with the Cape York Institute, we have been driving the largest change to the Australian social welfare structure. Our main achievement has been the emerging realignment of the mainstream welfare system as well as Indigenous welfare, which is to move away from unconditional support to support that requires individuals to take responsibility so they and their children can move beyond passive welfare.