Australia's welfare 2007 conference speakers

Thursday 6 December, The Marque Hotel, 102 Northbourne Avenue, Canberra

Dr Ken Baker

Chief Executive Officer, National Disability Services

Dr Ken Baker has been the Chief Executive of National Disability Services since 2000. In that role he provides advice to governments and information to service providers on a broad range of disability policy matters. Among other groups, he is currently a member of advisory committees to the Federal Minister for Workforce Participation and the Minister for Ageing. He has worked in areas of social policy development and public affairs for more than 20 years and, for three years, was Chief of Staff to a State Minister. He received a Centenary Medal for work in relation to disability services. He lives in Canberra.

National Disability Services (formerly ACROD) is the peak industry body for non-government disability services. Its purpose is to promote and advance services for people with disability. Its membership includes more than 600 not-for-profit organisations, which collectively support people with all forms of disability.

Professor Helen Bartlett

Foundation Director, Australasian Centre on Ageing, University of Queensland

Professor Helen Bartlett was appointed Foundation Director of the Australasian Centre on Ageing, The University of Queensland in 2001.

She has an international reputation in gerontology research. Since 1986 she has held research and lecturing positions in social policy and health care in UK, Western Australia and Hong Kong. From 1995 to 2001 she was Professor of Health Studies and Deputy Head in the School of Health Care at Oxford Brookes University where she also established and was director of the Oxford Centre for Health Care Research and Development. In 1989 she was one of the founding Co-Directors of the Oxford Dementia Centre.

Her research has focused on quality and policy issues in community and aged care, including service evaluation. She is currently involved in projects on ageing policy, healthy ageing and residential aged care, many of which involve partnerships with government or industry. She has published extensively in ageing and aged care journals and has authored several books on aged care.

Currently, Prof Bartlett is Associate Editor of the Australasian Journal on Ageing and on the editorial board of the Hong Kong Journal of Gerontology, Quality in Ageing and the Journal of Integrated Care. She has been influential in shaping the ageing research agenda in Australia through membership of the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing Building Ageing Research Capacity Project (BARC) and the management committee of the ARC-NHMRC Research Network in Ageing Well, for which she convenes the Independent Living and Social Participation theme, and the Queensland State and emerging researchers' initiatives.

Monsignor David Cappo

Commissioner for Social Inclusion, South Australia

A Catholic Priest, Monsignor David Cappo is currently the Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Adelaide and as such is the deputy to the Archbishop of Adelaide. He was appointed Commissioner for Social Inclusion in May 2006 by Premier Mike Rann and has been Chair of the Social Inclusion Board since March 2002.

Monsignor Cappo is a member of the Economic Development Board and the Board of the National Beyond Blue Initiative, and is a qualified social worker. He has made a major contribution to national debates in social policy development and has been directly involved in national strategic planning and implementation of social programs. Monsignor Cappo has held positions such as National Director of the Australian Catholic Social Welfare Commission, in Canberra. This Commission is an influential national body commenting on social policy and engaging in public debate. He has also been the Chairman of Centacare Australia, the national peak body of the Catholic social welfare agencies.

Dr Owen Donald

Former Director of Housing, Victoria

Dr Owen Donald is one of Australia's most eminent speakers on housing policy and research. He was the Director of Housing in Victoria until July 2007. In this role he managed some 78,000 properties valued at over $12 billion and accommodating some 150,000 people, 1000 staff and an annual budget of around $900 million.

He was previously the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute that funds and manages the great bulk of Australia's housing research in all states and territories.

He has over 30 years experience in policy development and review at commonwealth and state levels. He chaired the Commonwealth-State Housing Ministers Advisory Committee for three years and has been a consistent advocate for the development of innovative approaches to the delivery of housing assistance in Australia.

Dr Donald has a PhD from the Urban Research Unit at the Australian National University. He is a member of the Australasian Housing Institute and was a member of the Board of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare until July this year.

Tracie Ennis

Housing Assistance Unit, AIHW

Tracie is the Head of the Housing Assistance Unit at the AIHW. She joined the then Disability Services Unit of the AIHW nearly ten years ago and worked with them for a number of years before moving into the housing area. Earlier this year she was promoted to the Head of the Housing Assistance Unit as part of the development of the Housing and Homelessness Cluster within the AIHW.

Anne Giovanetti

Supported Accommodation and Crisis Services Unit, AIHW

Ms Giovanetti is the Head of the Supported Accommodation and Crisis Services Unit at AIHW and Manager of the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP) National Data Collection Agency. She has worked in the homelessness area for over 8 years, including periods as Unit Head and senior analyst in the SACS Unit, as a manager and policy analyst in FaCSIA. She has extensive experience in the development, collection, analysis and reporting of data for program and policy analysis and evaluation.

The Supported Accommodation and Crisis Services Unit produces national statistics and analysis relevant to homelessness in Australia, as well as annual reports for each state and territory. Ms Giovanetti and her staff also produce a series of thematic publications, on topics such as domestic violence and homelessness, mental health, alcohol and drug issues and homelessness and on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders who are experiencing homelessness. Demonstrating a strong commitment to the grass roots staff who provide the data used in these reports, the Unit produces reports for each of the 1,300 service providers that participate in the SAAP National Data Collection.

Jenny Hargreaves

Economics and Health Services Group, AIHW

Jenny Hargreaves joined the AIHW in 1996, When she began leading the Institute's work to develop, collate, analyse and disseminate statistical information on Australia's hospitals. Since 2001, she has been responsible for the AIHW's mental health services work program. This has included the development of a major data collection on the resources and expenditure of specialised public mental health services, and of data collections on residential and community mental health care.

Ms Hargreaves currently leads the AIHW's Economics and Health Services Group, responsible for developing, compiling and disseminating statistical information on Australia's health and community services expenditure, hospitals, mental health services, the safety and quality of health care, summary measures of health and health care services, ant the health and community services workforces.

Dr Ken Henry

Secretary to the Treasury

Born in Taree NSW, Dr Ken Henry completed a first class honours degree in economics at the University of NSW in 1979. He completed his PhD in 1982. In September 1984 he accepted a position in Treasury's Taxation Policy Division and was a member of the Treasury team that put together the Government's Draft White Paper on Tax Reform (published in June 1985) and contributed to the development of the Government's tax reform package (Reform of the Australian Taxation System, September 1985).

From September 1986 to June 1991, Dr Henry worked as a senior adviser to the Treasurer. At the end of June 1991 he returned to the Treasury as head of the Microeconomic Modelling Unit. In July 1992 he took up the position of Minister (Economic and Financial Affairs) in the Australian Delegation to the OECD in Paris.

Dr Henry returned to the Treasury in January 1994 as head of the Taxation Policy Division. In August 1997 he was appointed Chairman of the Government's Taxation Task Force, responsible for providing advice to the Government on tax reform options. In October 1998 he was promoted to the position of Executive Director (Deputy Secretary) of Treasury's Economic Group, and a member of the Treasury Executive Board. In that role he had executive responsibility for domestic macroeconomic policy advice, domestic economic forecasting, and advice on international economic issues (including Australia's relationship with the multilateral international financial institutions).

On 27 April 2001, Dr Henry commenced his appointment as Secretary to the Treasury.

Professor Ilan Katz

Director, Social Policy Research Centre, UNSW

Professor Ilan Katz joined the Social Policy Research Centre at the University of New South Wales in January 2005. After qualifying as a social worker in South Africa he started his career as a social worker and manager, working in several local authorities and Non-Government Organisations in London. He was head of practice development and research at the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. He moved to the UK Department for Education and Skills where he was Head of the Children in Need and Family Support Section. He returned to research to become Deputy Director of the Policy Research Bureau, an independent research centre.

His main research interests have included evaluations of government interventions relating to families, development of neighbourhood indexes, community and social capital, child protection, international comparison of child welfare systems, parents with mental health problems, youth justice and race and ethnicity. He was an investigator on the National Evaluation of Sure Start, and of the Families and Neighbourhoods Study.

His current research projects include the evaluation of the DoCS Early intervention Program, the national evaluation of the Commonwealth Government's Stronger Families and Communities Strategy, and Private and Public expenditure on early childhood, Child Protection in China, Measuring changes in community strength.

Cynthia Kim

Children, Youth and Families Unit, AIHW

Cynthia Kim is the joint head of the Children, Youth and Families Unit at the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Cynthia's tertiary training is in Econometrics and Public Policy. Since joining the Institute, she has contributed to chapters in Australia's welfare 2005 and Australia's health 2006, and more recently co-authored the Children, Youth and Families chapter in Australia's welfare 2007. She played a major role in the production of the recently released Australia's young people: their health and wellbeing, and has been a leading figure in the Institute's recent contributions to national Headline Indicators work in relation to children. Cynthia also works on child protection and family support statistics, and has recently co-authored two international conference papers in this area with colleagues from Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and France.

Prior to joining the Institute in 2005, Cynthia had a 15 years career at the Australia Bureau of Statistics where she worked in several distinctly different areas including econometrics and time series analysis, National Accounts, International Trade, labour statistics, quarterly business surveys, statistical coordination, the Statistical Clearing House and as the ABS outposted officer to the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing.

Sushma Mathur

Children, Youth and Families Unit, AIHW

Sushma Mathur is the joint head of the Children, Youth and Families Unit at the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Sushma has a Bachelor of Mathematics, majoring in Statistics. Sushma has been at the Institute for 10 years and has worked in Ageing and Aged Care, Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes Monitoring Unit and joined the Children, Youth and Families Unit mid last year. Since joining the Institute, she has authored and co-authored more than 10 publications and contributed to chapters in various editions of Australia's Welfare and Australia's Health, and more recently co-authored the Children, Youth and Families chapter in Australia's Welfare 2007. She was also co-editor of the 2007 edition of Australia's Welfare. Over the last year Sushma has been heavily involved in the production of the following reports-Young Australians: their health and wellbeing 2007, Adoptions Australia annual reports, and a ground-breaking data linkage study Educational outcomes of children on guardianship or custody orders: a pilot study. She also works on child health and wellbeing projects and has been leading the work for the next report on A Picture of Australia's Children due for publication in 2009.

Since joining the Institute Sushma has focused her attention in providing statistical expertise and leadership on highly complex and sensitive projects.

Ann Peut

Ageing and Aged Care Unit, AIHW

Ms Peut is a sociologist and gerontologist who is the current Head of the Ageing and Aged Care Unit at AIHW, a position she has held since late 2003. She has extensive experience in policy analysis, research and evaluation of education and social policy issues in Australia. She also has considerable experience in the development, collection and analysis of data.

The Ageing and Aged Care Unit produces statistics and analysis relevant to ageing and aged care in Australia, publishing an average of six major national reports on ageing and related issues each year, including the publication Older Australia at a glance, which is now in its 4th edition.

Professor Peter Saunders

Australian Professional Fellow, Social Policy Research Centre, UNSW

Professor Peter Saunders has been the Director of the Social Policy Research Centre (SPRC) at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) since 1987. His research interests include poverty and income distribution, household needs and living standards, social security reform, comparative social policy and ageing and social protection in China.

His recent books include The Ends and Means of Welfare. Coping with Economic and Social Change in Australia (Cambridge University Press, 2002), The Poverty Wars, Reconnecting Research with Reality and (with James Walter) Ideas and Influence. Social Science and Public Policy in Australia (both published by UNSW Press in 2005).

He was elected a Fellow of the Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia in 1995, and is currently an Australian Professorial Fellow working on the concepts and measurement of poverty and inequality, and on deprivation and social exclusion in Australia. He has worked as a consultant for a range of national and international organisations, including the Economic Planning Advisory Council (EPAC), the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, the OECD, the IMF, the Asian Development Bank, the International Social Security Association, and the Royal Commission on Social Policy in New Zealand.

He is a member of the Board of Governors of the Foundation for International Studies on Social Security (FISS), the Research Advisory Committee of the International Social Security Association and the Executive Committee of the Luxembourg Income Study Project. He was appointed a Sciential Professor by UNSW in 2006, in recognition of his research contribution and eminence.

Dr Chris Stevenson

Functioning and Disability Unit, AIHW

Chris Stevenson is an epidemiologist and biostatistician in the Health and Functioning Group of the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. He trained as a statistician and epidemiologist at the University of Melbourne and the Australian National University, completing his PhD in epidemiology and population health at the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health in 2001. Prior to joining the AIHW, he worked at the Australian Bureau of Statistics, primarily on sample survey design and analysis.

He is currently head of the AIHW Functioning and Disability Unit, where he heads a team which is responsible for monitoring disability and the use of disability services and the use of alcohol and drugs treatment services in Australia. He is also a Visiting Fellow at the Australian National University Medical School, where he lectures in Population Health.

Ms Jill Whitehorn

Senior Advisor, Social Inclusion Board, South Australia

Ms Jill Whitehorn has worked in human services in South Australia over a number of years. She has held positions and provided consultancy advice to Ministers, senior officials and central agencies in government. As Director of Policy and Development in Family and Community Services in the mid-90's, Jill worked closely with the then AIHW Director, Professor Richard Madden and AIHW Head of Welfare, Dr Ching Choi on negotiating the first Community Services Information Management Agreement and developing the inaugural plan.

One of Jill's specialties is the interface between community services and the health sector. She was responsible for the design and management of the Care21 Co-ordinated Care Trial which was the only trial in Australia to emerge from a community services rather than a health agency.

For the last two years, Jill has been working as a senior adviser to the Social Inclusion Board in South Australia providing leadership to the homelessness and mental health references. Her work has provided the Board with strong paradigms for understanding homelessness and the frameworks for developing and evaluating effective 21st century responses.