Brave Foundation Welcomes the Move to Abolish ParentsNext

Brave Foundation welcomes the Federal Government’s move to abolish ParentsNext and establish a more flexible program to support vulnerable parents.

While the announcement is promising, there is opportunity for continued discussion in a number of areas particularly regarding the importance of the transition period to maintain support for our most vulnerable families.

Brave CEO Jill Roche said the decision was a positive start, but it was critical for any future program to have a voluntary and holistic focus to support the specific needs of young parents and respond to their lived experience.

“We see young parents participating voluntarily in our program because they have prioritised an investment of time and effort in their own future for the benefit of their family,” she said.

“A co-designed program is non-negotiable, with a priority to directly draw on the contributions, ideas and voices of those with lived and living experience.”

“I believe Brave is in a position, with an existing program ready to scale and through a careful process of engagement, to be able to support the inclusion of teen parents in any future program design.”

We note the Workforce Australia Committee’s interim report recommendation (released in March) to design and implement a specific service for teenage and young parents. This follows a submission by Brave to the inquiry in late 2022 and appearance by CEO Jill Roche at a public hearing in January. Brave was pleased to note points it raised during this engagement process in the report. “We look forward to continuing to work proactively with government to support young parents and their children.”