The power of advocacy

December 9, 2024

Pregnant, homeless and terrified that the Department of Communities & Justice (DCJ) would remove her unborn child, Lana called CatholicCare Case Worker, Naomie. Lana’s two year old son had already been removed, and she was determined not to let it happen again. 

Lana knew she needed somewhere safe to live if she wanted to keep her baby, but refuges would not take her due to her history of drug use. “She was desperate,” said Naomie. “She wasn’t the obvious fit for our crisis program, but I pushed and pushed until we had a place for her. I looked at her and thought, she’s never had anybody back her. Had we not backed her and fought every step of the way, that baby would have been removed.” Today, Lana is thriving as a mother. 

“Lana has been referred to our service twice, initially because she was homeless and a victim of domestic violence,” says Naomie. “We found out during the first service period that she was pregnant. She already had a little boy who was two, and a 12 year old son in kinship care with her sister. He had been removed due to violence.” Eventually, her two year old son was also removed as they had been staying with the perpetrator. 

A few months after Lana was discharged from CatholicCare for the first time, she called Naomie out of desperation. “She needed somewhere to stay but she had a terrible rental history because the perpetrator had damaged properties. They also hadn’t paid their rent,” Naomie said. “Lana had been to hell and back. She lost her mum a year before, and she had no family support.” Lana ended up being accepted into CatholicCare accommodation at Jo’s Place. 

It became clear to Naomie and the team that following the birth of the baby in December, the best place for them would be the Flourish Women & Children’s Program. The service is for women and children under age 6 where there are significant mental health concerns. “We had to advocate with DCJ to back Lana’s referral because it’s a highly sought after program,” Naomie says. “We called DCJ many, many times and had case conferences to really push for DCJ’s backing. I kept insisting that DCJ just needed to meet Lana and get to know her.” 

Eventually someone from DCJ did meet with Lana, and this was the catalyst for Lana’s acceptance into the Flourish Program. “Lana has engaged so well at Flourish,” says Naomie. “Initially, when she and her baby moved in, she participated in programs four days a week including counselling. She had a Case Worker and people would check in with her every day. She basically had supports 24/7 and Lana now gets to have longer periods of contact with her two year old and they are working towards restoration over a period of two years.”

Lana has recently transitioned from Flourish’s 24/7 contact program to a transitional program. “She has really good boundaries now,” Naomie says. “She no longer sends the perpetrator money or answers his calls,” Naomie says. “She prioritises her children, and the restoration goal is testament to her hard work. When we last spoke Lana said to me … ‘If you didn’t believe in me and stick with me, I wouldn’t have any of my kids right now.”

Naomie says that in some cases, like Lana’s, you need to trust your gut feeling, “Her case wasn’t a natural fit for our program, but I knew we had to help her. The three little ones are Aboriginal, so another motivating factor for me was that we don’t need more Aboriginal children in care.” 

Lana’s story is testament to the power of advocacy and the ability of a person to turn their life around with the right support. 

Domestic and family violence is any behaviour that is used to gain or maintain power and control over someone else. This could be psychological, emotional, physical and/or sexual abuse, financial, social or spiritual control, stalking or intimidation, including the use of technology.

We provide a range of services to assist women and children experiencing domestic and family violence, plus supports for fathers who have caused harm to their family through violence, or the use of coercive controlling behaviours, and advocate for those who are affected.

For more information:
P: 1800 324 924
E: info@catholiccaredbb.org.au