Child Welfare Newcastle say they are ‘paddling hard to keep their heads above water’ amid mounting costs.

This was highlighted at Child Welfare SA Newcastle’s annual general meeting held on October 21.

Chairperson Morris Gajoo said economic hardship had fuelled a surge in demand for welfare services.

Gajoo added that poverty, unemployment and child neglect correlated with each other.

“Poverty is an important risk factor for child neglect and abuse, resulting in high workloads that social workers are unable to manage.”

The financial audit shows that Child Welfare’s expenses surpass its income due to escalating costs of stationery, petrol and other miscellaneous costs required to carry out activities as prescribed by the Department of Social Development.

Manager and head social worker Farieda Mia reported that a total of 900 people called their offices from April 1 last year to March 31 this year.

Intake services were rendered to 74 cases, of which some were walk-ins, referrals from the court, other service providers or anonymous calls from the community.

Eight new foster care placements were made, bringing the total to 92 children placed in foster care already.

Supervision and reunification services were rendered to 288 children, biological parents and foster parents. A further 102 statutory reports were compiled and submitted to the children’s court, Department of Social Development and other organisations.

The statistics not only painted a picture of the hard work they did, but also proved how many people were in need of welfare services.

Despite these challenges, Mia and her team gave their best to ensure that the people receiving their services got the help they needed.

The committee for 2026 is as follows:

Farieda Mia – manager and head social worker, Morris Gajoo – chairperson, Anitha Lallie – deputy chairperson, Duleep Sing – treasurer, Karen Seager – secretary, and Sherika Lallie-Ramsaroop – assistant secretary.

Mia and the committee thanked all their well-wishers, the local press, volunteers, colleagues from the Department of Social Development, presiding officer Mbatha, clerks from the children’s court, as well as other stakeholder forums for their support and co-operation.

Child Welfare is also appealing to members of the public to assist them with much-needed essentials:

• Manilla folders;
• Staples;
• File fasteners;
• Black pens;
• Date stamps;
• Office A4 paper;
• Second-hand computer or laptop;
• Black permanent markers;
• Pritt;
• Toilet rolls;
• Hand wash;
• Office cleaning supplies;
• Paint materials;
• Refreshments for office, visitors and clients;
• Diaries;
• Desk calendars;
• Cash donations if possible.