Mary Robinson Lunch

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Mary Robinson
Our 35th Anniversary celebratory luncheon took place on 22 May 2007 in St. Patrick’s Hall, Dublin Castle. Founders Maura O’Dea Richards and Annette Evans Hunter were delighted to meet up with former board member Evelyn Forde and former administrator, Nuala Feric. The highlight of the afternoon was an inspirational speech delivered by our  former President. Guests included Senators David Norris and Feargal Quinn, Mary Banotti MEP, Ivana Bacik as well as many former and current board members, staff, clients and supporters.
Mrs Robinson was presented with a bespoke bracelet at the lunch, which was designed and created by internationally renowned jewellery designer, Melissa Curry. The bracelet was enclosed in a bespoke satin and velvet pouch crafted by textile and accessory designer, Helen James who attended the event.

braclet

Melissa Curry’s inspiration for the bracelet came from Mary Robinson’s unfailing support of vulnerable women and families throughout the years. The bracelet consists of a string of freshwater pearls punctuated with 18ct pink gold beads and a trio of hearts, which align to form a silver locket. The first silver heart in the trio includes an emerald, (Mary Robinson’s birthstone), while the second heart is a pink gold stencil of the One Family logo, (an adult and child reaching up to a star symbolising the supportive and aspirational qualities of the charity). The third silver heart includes 35 stipples, (inspired by the Ardagh Chalice), representing the 35 years of the charity, as well as the former name of the charity, Cherish, engraved on the front.

This Election – Fair Deal for One-Parent Families

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There’s More to this Election than Stamp Duty –
We Still Need a Fair Deal for One-Parent Families
One Family today presented its Election Manifesto to Minister for Children, Brian Lenihan, TD.

At the launch Karen Kiernan, Director of One Family, called on all parties to commit to the development of Child & Family Contact services throughout Ireland.

Senator Mary Henry, President of One Family, said “I call on my colleagues to ensure the best for all families regardless of circumstances. I urge the next government to give expression to such a commitment by funding One Family to pilot an innovative Child & Family Contact Centre and the delivery of One Family Futures Programmes for lone parents wishing to participate in the labour market. “

Karen Kiernan, Director, added, “As an organisation which has worked closely with one-parent families in a period of enormous change in the social fabric of this country, we are uniquely well positioned to further develop a range of supports for such families. With funding from a government that has bursting coffers due to Ireland’s welcome prosperity, we know that we can affect enormous positive change in the attitudes, experiences and lives of the growing number of one-parent families in Ireland”.

In its manifesto One Family reminds all politicians that over one in 5 families with children under 20 in Ireland today are now one-parent families (Census 2006). These families are four times more likely to live in poverty than the population as a whole, while many fall short of achieving their potential in terms of education or employment.

One Family’s Election Manifesto also calls on the next government to commit to:

-ending poverty among one-parent families through raising state supports for families that need them, introducing a range of educational initiatives and providing positive employment opportunities for lone parents based on agreed and binding rights and responsibilities.

-addressing the inequalities experienced by children in one-parent families through ensuring that all children have the opportunity to reach their full potential.

-supporting the diversity of one-parent families and ensuring respect and equality for all family types in the Irish constitution and in relevant legal and policy developments.

Candy Murphy, One Family’s Policy & Campaigns Manager said,
“One Family calls on all politicians engaged in the election to ensure that the needs of one-parent families are prioritised in the next programme for government.”

ENDS

Full copies of the One Family Election manifesto are available by calling
01 662 9212 or from our website: www.onefamily.ie

For further information please contact:
Karen Kiernan, Director, One Family at 01-6629212 or 086-850-9191

_____________________

Notes to Editors

This launch forms part of One Family’s election campaign. We have already advised all politicians and political parties of the content of our manifesto and have sent copies to all members of can*, our campaign and advocacy network, along with suggested questions for them to ask their local candidates.

One Family Futures is part of the holistic One Family services model that specifically supports lone parents to move towards education, training and employment.

One Family’s planned Child and Family Contact Centre will provide a space to support quality relationships between children and their parents, particularly after divorce and separation.

Photo of Minister Lenihan being presented with the Election Manifesto by Karen Kiernan, Director and children Tilly and Louie Lyons and Laoise O’Connell is available.

Children’s Voices Must be Heard in Divorce Process

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Leading one-parent family organisation One Family today held a seminar on children’s rights in the divorce process. On the tenth anniversary of divorce in Ireland, the seminar is a real opportunity to increase our understanding of children’s experience of divorce and how their needs can best be reflected in the legal process of divorce. ‘Families must be supported before, during and after divorce if we are to ensure the best outcomes for children’ said Candy Murphy, One Family’s Policy & Campaigns Manager.

The recently appointed Family Court Reporter Carol Coulter and the well-known barrister Inge Clissman SC will speak from their different perspectives about how children have experienced divorce in Ireland to date. This will open the debate about glaring gaps in the current system and the failure to enforce and resource legal protections for children.

One Family calls on the Government to ensure that the right of children to be heard in the divorce process is genuinely respected and that adequate resources are committed to ensure that the child’s right can be effectively realised. In particular, resources are required to ensure that the guardian ad litem service proposed in Section 28 of the Guardianship of Infants Act 1964 (as amended by the Children Act 1997) will be available to represent the independent interests of children in divorce cases. [i] Although the child has a theoretical right to be heard in such cases, the procedures and resources necessary to realise this right remain lacking.

‘Without the necessary commitment to ensure children’s voices are heard’ said Candy Murphy, One Family’s Policy & Campaigns Manager, ‘such legal protection remains empty rhetoric. This seminar will provide the legal professionals and policy makers of today and of the future with the opportunity to hear from Scottish legal expert Rachael Kelsey about how Scotland has worked to ensure that children’s voices are genuinely heard.’

The seminar will also show how the radical effect of EU regulations on divorce in Ireland must be urgently addressed. ‘Having children’s rights is not sufficient, they must be capable of being enforced’ says Geoffrey Shannon, Government-appointed Special Rapporteur for Children. ‘Under the Brussels II Regulation, access orders handed down in one member state may only be recognised and enforceable in another member state if the child is heard in the country of origin. At the moment, no formal procedure or supports have been put in place to enable the Irish courts to implement this obligation. So, for example, an Irish access decision would only be recognised in Austria if the Irish judge held a hearing with the child in person.’

Commenting on the seminar One Family Director Karen Kiernan said, ‘I am delighted that the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice, Equality & Law Reform has demonstrated his commitment to our seminar and the opportunity it provides to debate the issues surrounding divorce and children in a way that will inform future policy in this area.’

Ms Kiernan went on to say ‘we call on the Government to ensure that this commitment leads to real change for children and families going through divorce. A key step would be to fund One Family to use its 35 years’ of experience working with families to expand its services and develop a child contact centre which will work to support children in their right to have access to both parents.’[ii]

ENDS

For further information or a copy of the full submission contact:
Ruth Coleman, Communications Manager 01 662 9212/086 174 2315
Candy Murphy, Policy & Campaigns Manager 01 662 9212

[i] The right of children to be heard is also enshrined in Article 12 of UN Convention on the Rights of the Child:
‘1. States Parties shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child, the views of the child being given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child.
2. For this purpose, the child shall in particular be provided the opportunity to be heard in any judicial and administrative proceedings affecting the child, either directly, or through a representative or an appropriate body, in a manner consistent with the procedural rules of national law.’
[ii] The right to know and, as far as possible, be cared for by both parents is enshrined in Article 7 of UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
‘1. The child shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have the right from birth to a name, the right to acquire a nationality and. as far as possible, the right to know and be cared for by his or her parents.

2. States Parties shall ensure the implementation of these rights in accordance with their national law and their obligations under the relevant international instruments in this field, in particular where the child would otherwise be stateless.’

Budget Fails to Address Child Poverty in Poorest Families

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National one-parent family organisation One Family today were disappointed with the dismal increase in the top-up payment targeted at those with children dependent on social welfare – the first increase to the Child Dependent Allowance (CDA) for 12 years.

Commenting on the increase Candy Murphy, One Family’s Policy Manager said ‘while we welcome a move away from an exclusive focus on general Child Benefit to one which specifically targets the families most in need we are concerned about the lack of real difference this will make. The nature of the increase means that children in one-parent families who are the poorest family type, will only receive a paltry €2.70 increase in Child Dependent Allowance per week. We are also disappointed that the Budget does not include a top-up for all low-income families. The long-term key to breaking the cycle of poverty is a targeted top-up payment for all low-income families, irrespective of whether they are claiming social welfare or working in low-paid employment.’

The additional support for low-income families with school going children in the form of increases in the Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance is welcome. However, the low take up rates for this and the Family Income Supplement mean that this support will fail to reach many of the families who need it most. Such payments should be made automatically to all families who are entitled to them.

One Family are disappointed that this Budget once again failed to recognise that supports are vitally needed for families going through separation and divorce. The organisation had asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs to make provision for the establishment of a number of pilot child and family centres to provide information and support to the families and children experiencing such a difficult time.

‘While we welcome individual moves such as the long-awaited increase to the top-up payment for families dependent on social welfare’, said Ms Murphy, ‘we are disappointed that this Budget fails to present a coherent strategy to address the interlinking reality of family change and financial hardship facing many one-parent families in Ireland.’

Download a copy of One Family’s Pre-Budget Submission here or call 01 662 9212

Budget must not forget poorest families

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National one-parent family organisation One Family today called on the Government not to forget that in a time when the coffers are full, many one-parent families continue to struggle in a vicious cycle of poverty.

Commenting on tomorrow’s Budget, One Family’s Policy & Campaigns Manager, Candy Murphy stated that ‘poverty is no longer an issue of there not being enough to go around, it is a denial of basic human rights. While overall poverty levels have decreased marginally one-parent families were almost a third more likely to have been without heating during 2005, than in 2004, and the number of one-parent families unable to afford a warm waterproof coat almost doubled during that time (EU-SILC, 2005).’

This Budget looks to be focusing on issues of stamp duty and higher-level taxation, rather than focusing on the poorest families and children. ‘In order to lift vulnerable families and children in Ireland out of consistent poverty’, Ms Murphy continued, ‘the Government must provide a coherent package of targeted supports for one-parent families and other low-income families. The key to breaking the cycle of poverty is a targeted top-up payment for all low-income families, irrespective of whether they are claiming social welfare or working in low-paid employment. As this is unlikely to be part of tomorrow’s Budget, it is vital that the Child Dependent Allowance, which is the top-up payment currently available to families on social welfare, is increased to €40 a week if it is to have any real effect on the poverty experienced by many one-parent families.’

One Family are also hoping to see the significant increases in the One Parent Family Payment, the Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowances, the Fuel Allowance and the Family Income Supplement, as well as free medical cards for all children.

Budget 2007 must also address vital issues for families, including:

* providing adequate supports to assist families experiencing family breakdown and new family formation;
* recognising and supporting the role of parenting and shared parenting in one-parent families; and
* commissioning research on the rights and needs of non-marital families.

Download a copy of the One Family Pre-Budget Submission here or call 01 662 9212

ENDS

For further information or a copy of the full submission contact:
Ruth Coleman, Communications Manager 01 662 9212/086 174 2315
Candy Murphy, Policy & Campaigns Manager 01 662 9212