Justice, Opportunity and Shared Wealth for all South Australians

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Media

Read our latest media releases, catch up on anything you missed from the our radio program Small Change, and comment on issues and ideas in our blog. 

SACOSS Regional Roundtable for Yorke and North region: spotlight on digital inclusion, housing and services

6 April 2022

The South Australian Council of Social Service (SACOSS) met with service providers and community leaders from across the Yorke and North region for its latest Regional Roundtable, held yesterday in Kadina.

SACOSS Report Card Shows Renters Still Big Losers in State Election

15 March 2022

MEDIA RELEASE: The South Australian Council of Social Service today released its pre-election report card on how well SA political parties are “covering the basics” in their election policy pitches.

Ambulance ramping: What happens when you can’t afford to even get on the ramp?

7 March 2022

MEDIA RELEASE: As ambulance ramping takes centre stage in the SA state election campaign, key community service groups are highlighting the problem of the cost of ambulance call-outs, with many people not calling an ambulance when they need one because of fear of the costs. 

Protecting the Basics report highlights insurance gaps

28 February 2022

MEDIA RELEASE: SACOSS is releasing a new report: Protecting the Basics: Insurance access for people on low incomes at risk from climate emergencies.

New Report Highlights Rental Affordability Problems in SA

22 February 2022

The South Australian Council of Social Service (SACOSS) today released its latest Cost of Living Update, which highlights problems of rental affordability in South Australia.

Drawing on data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the South Australian government, the report shows that the increasing cost of renting has coincided with a decline in the provision of public housing and concludes that greater investment in public housing will boost supply and help all renters.

The data in the report shows that:

SACOSS welcomes policy commitments at forum with Peter Malinauskas

22 February 2022

SACOSS today held its “On the Couch” forum with Labor leader Peter Malinauskas and welcomed a number of his policy comments and commitments. The forum was held in the SACOSS offices and largely viewed online by leaders and staff from the social and community services sector right across the state.

SACOSS policy prescriptions for SA election 2022

17 February 2022

Public housing, digital inclusion & fixing water supply in regional and remote communities headline SACOSS’ “Cover the Basics” state election policy platform

SACOSS is today releasing its ‘Cover the Basics’ policy platform document, which outlines a series of policy prescriptions for SA political parties in the lead-up to the next SA state election and beyond it.

State Government's digital skills announcement a welcome step - but more to do

3 February 2022

South Australian Council of Social Service (SACOSS) welcomes the state government’s announcement today of funding to provide support and equipment for students to develop their digital skills. In particular, we congratulate the government on committing $23 million to providing internet connectivity and devices to low-income families who might otherwise be locked out of access to digital technology. 

Insurance costs exclude too many

22 December 2021

The 20th of December marked the two-year anniversary of when the Black Summer bushfires hit Cudlee Creek, killing one person, and destroying 72 houses and 227 cars. Fires continued into January, when Kersbrook and Kangaroo Island burned. The independent review into that bushfire season found that “A significant proportion of properties and businesses were underinsured or uninsured”. For these people, the effects of losing their homes or their vehicles must have been anything up to catastrophic.

SACOSS opposes mandated prepayment for energy bills

20 December 2021

Australian Energy Regulator's (AER's) work on Better Bills for customers is likely to be helpful, but the real focus should be on its draft Consumer Vulnerability Strategy - which has real merits but probably still won't help protect remote SA communities from being forced onto repayment requirements.

SACOSS welcomes today's release of the Australian Energy Regulator’s Draft Consumer Vulnerability Strategy for consultation.