Change to BGF service structure
Bobby Goldsmith Foundation (BGF) clients will be asked to take more responsibility for their own finances under changes to services in the new financial year.
As of July 1, existing BGF clients will be asked, where possible, to take more personal responsibility for the daily costs of bills, electricity and rates.
Financial assistance will be prioritised to provide emergency assistance and short-term support for people in periods of financial stress.
The organisation will continue to help cover medication costs and the Medicare gap for HIV-related procedures. No-interest loan schemes will still be offered, as will supported accommodation.
“We’re not stepping away from financial assistance, but we do want to re-focus it towards helping people with their HIV health,” BGF CEO Bev Lange told Sydney Star Observer.
“We want to encourage clients to look to the future rather than rely on assistance. It’s a development that gives clients more options in terms of returning to work and study, while making sure we have a catch-all for people who need our assistance more.”
People receiving ongoing financial assistance will be encouraged to access financial management services and programs to help clients return to work and study.
One BGF client, who agreed to speak anonymously, said the cuts to financial assistance would force some clients to cut down on essentials like food.
“I think most of the people who will be affected will have to find ways to cut their costs — they’ll have to cut down on their food bills, something which is essential to staying well. Or they’ll choose to wear a big jumper this winter, rather than pay to use the heater.
“BGF have offered to pay for medications, but that isn’t really a major cost anyway, and you can get that through ACON, so they’ll be doubling up. Keeping up with insurance on your house, rates, gas, etc is hard, and you don’t want to have to move out of your house.”
Lange said all clients would be treated on an individual basis and caseworkers would work closely with people to ensure they understood how the changes would affect them and connect them to other assistance programs.
She said anyone concerned about the changes should contact BGF.
info: For more information or to contact BGF, visit www.bgf.org.au or call 9283 8666 or 1800 651 011.
? Can we please ask BGF to review its decision ?
As an example :
One of my best friends has been receiving financial assistance from BGF for a few years now, as he`s receiving a foreign pension from his country of birth.
This means no concessions and rebates for gas , water electricity & council fees( available to eligible Centrelink clients only )
How he`ll cope mentally & financially after the introduction of changes , is beyond my understanding.
? Can we please ask BGF to review its decision ?
P L E A S E
What would Bobby, think of all this? “His closest friends said that they thought he would be extremely proud,” I think what people need to remember is that the situation now is very different to the situation 64 years ago, patients are expected to live longer, and be healthy, relatively speaking, for a longer period of time, and I think that the Bobby Goldsmith Foundation has done the right thing by recognising this change and adapting to it.
Also I have to point out that “Lange said all clients would be treated on an individual basis”, all that they’re doing is reducing the aid of people that don’t need as much so that they can better help the people that do need it.
Hey K8,
The official response will be that they cannot give out the information due to privacy concerns… To the very people who used to donate?
Vale all organisations involved
Can we have a public report from BGF on Mark’s case and, on verification, a statement as to how he can be further assisted? how many others like Mark exist out there?
I thinks this matter requires a proper investigation!
I have been a client of BGF since around 2003, I first was diagnosed HIV+ in 1992 and continued to work until i suffered from Renal Failure in 2003 and spent five (5) years on dialysis with very little support except for some small assistance payments from BGF (amounting to less than $1000/year) and social Assistance from Ankali & home assistance from CSN. During this time I suffered Aschemic Heart Failure and had six (6) bypasses in 2007 and a Kidney Transplant in 2008, being a unique individual in the HIV world. I have also had two stomach surgeries in 1983 and 2005 for Carcinoid Syndrome. BGF currently assists me with Electricity (150/qtr), Supplements ($65/month, limit $200/yr), HIV Meds ($16.20/month) and telephone ($15/month) Total $1174.40. And on occasions have nearly had to beg for help (eg vet expenses etc). I am grateful for this small amount and it has helped, but am I, with my medical history and age 48 expected to after nearly seven years of critical life threatening illness expected to find work?? I try to take as much responsibility for myself – I do not smoke, drink or take drugs and cannot afford to go to any gay functions or lifestyle events due to lack of finances; I find it a struggle to pay for my other nearly 15 scripts/month, vitamins and food, I am always close to broke & live on credit. What am I going to do without the small assistance that amounts to only $22.58/week from BGF, do you people out there begrudge me this small assistance??????????????
There is a lot more to me and my upkeep than this allows. many people in the Industry will know exactly who I am from my unique circumstances, but people need to know of community members that are in desperate need and require help, we are not all bludgers!!!!!
As a long time donor to BGF, it upsets me more that there has never been a means test on the financial assistance that has provided for so long. The fact that clients can have and, indeed, expect to receive endless financial support is appalling. The client service changes are long overdue and BGF must accept responsibility for allowing this to go on for so long, building dependence on its overly generous support. The anonymous source above is a perfect example of the unrealistic expectations of BGF clients. The source states:
“Keeping up with insurance on your house, rates, gas, etc is hard, and you don’t want to have to move out of your house”.
This indicates that this client owns a home and a car!! I’ve been earning $100K a year and I cannot afford a house in Sydney, nor do I own a car. It’s time to face reality, if you own your own home and your own car, you should not be receiving cash handouts from a charity. Sell your car, downsize your house or go back to work. Simple.
There seems to be a vicitm mentality among select BGF clients.
Re: the financial statment, it needs to be read in conjunction with the impact statment. BGF spends nearly $480K in direct financial assistance – that’s cash handouts with no means testing. This figure does not include the cost of service development and delivery which is reported elsewhere and should, perhaps, be included in the financial statment as “client care and support” which currently only includes direct financial assistance.
The reality is that hiv is no longer ‘trendy’ — and the ACON and BGF administrators are entrenced in the socio-ecomomic hierachy of selfish Sydney — fat cats exploiting the system!
Faye – Perhaps you should consider that some people commenting are within the industry, are donors to the above organisations, and have an intimate knowledge of what they are commenting on.
ACON, the AIDS Trust and BGF need to drastically modernise, and stop thinking they are living in the 1980s with bucket collections, and event fundraising with the worst return on investments. Wake up to the science of fundraising and employ people who can support the organisation’s key mission instead of withdrawing services.
Should this community still have to expect inept management, ineffective boards and a reduction in services to those who need it most simply because of our sexuality, while other issues are serviced by outstanding organisations like The Benevolent Society, The Cancer Council and the RSPCA? We shouldn’t, and won’t expect any less.
BGF is meant to be accountable – if the year showed a running loss of 783,401. then there should be some transparency concerning the $1.3 million (1,334,966) which has simply been written off in the Income Statement as ‘Other Expenses’ .
If BGF expects to rely on the community for donations, then the community should be able to expect accountability for those donations.
“I suggest you take a day out and volunteer for organisations such as ACON and BGF, and start valueing the work they do”?
I suggest you take a history lesson and start valuing why you have a job.
Fay, take a reality check, please, you’d be surprised how many of the sentiments you criticise are actually from community members who have spent decades giving their voluntary services to orgs like BGF.
Just remember that before the current generation of HIV industry employees, who were fortunate enough to have industry positions to step into, some of us had to lobby long and hard to build that sector – only to then be told by ignorant johnny-come-latelys to “take more responsibility for yourselves” and “take a day out and volunteer for organisations such as ACON and BGF, and start valueing the work they do.”
It is to this generation commentators like you should be grateful, not patronsing and disdainful. The total lack of respect is disgusting.
(I also remember who was responsible when the Gay Games had the very same financial issues.)
Some of the comments above are truely appalling, and lack complete merit. As with any charity/organisation you need to move with the times, changing nature/face of HIV and the way clients are supported.
Bev Lange, and the tremendous colleagues, supporting the clients whilst establishing a better framework for the organisation is inspirational. Yes, it does take at least 28 paid staff to offer the services/assistance in place, plus a plethora of volunteers (in all areas)to do what they do. Continueing and building on the Bobby’s wonderful legacy.
Yes, the employees are paid a salary (nothing new, and so do you). I can also assure you these same employees put in long hours they don’t get paid for, and believe in the organisation they represent.
I suggest you take a day out and volunteer for organisations such as ACON and BGF, and start valueing the work they do.
I think we’re about to see the true legacy of both Bev Lange & Stevie Clayton! R.I.P
My point was that BGF should have cut-back not on client services (which is its raison d’etre) but on staff and other expenses which, combined, totalled more than the revenue.
It doesn’t require 28 paid staff (costing 1,453,312) and questionably necessary ‘other expenses (costing 1,334,966.) to administer 400K to clients.
This place has become an industry like ACON, out to serve itself.
David, if those figures are correct then that’s about only 20% of the income going to the actual reason why the foundation was set up in the first place???!!??? If a charity collector comes to my door and I find out they get a commission – i don’t donate! If other charities can claim that only 10% of funding goes towards admin costs and the rest directly to the reason the charity was set up, then BGF should be able to do the same thing! this is appalling!
Perhaps BGF could, like all HIV/AIDS organisations, realise that fundraising is a science and employ capable people to perform the most important role that supports the entire organisation’s work.
I did notice that tickets to this year’s BGF Glamourbar and Glamstand were double the price of last year, perhaps so NMG could get the full $70/$100 a ticket that had their eyes on.
After privately telling clients to “take more responsibility for yourselves” BGF held off for three months from putting anything in the gay media admitting to potential donors of its client service cut backs – a move allowing massive Mardi Gras season fundraising events Pink Stiletto, Glamstand parade night, etc to rake in hundreds of thousands of dollars – given with HIV suffers in mind but to instead cover BGF’s ever expanding payroll and non-itemised “other expenses”, and compensate for the financially mismanaged previous year which saw a running loss of 783,401.
The charity’s last Income Statement (see page 4 of its Annual Report) shows total annual revenue 2,521,612. Out of that the largest spending was Employee Benefits Expense 1,453,312 followed by ‘Other Expenses’ 1,334,966.
Only 469,333 was spent on Client Support and Care.
As a former beneficiary of BGF’s assistance at a time I found difficult to cope with I’ve found the whittling down of services more an more appalling. 24 hour care at Bobby Goldsmith House has been eliminated. 2 meals per week, prepared by House staff were eliminated. The notion of independent living under the critical gaze of BGF hierarchy became intolerable. I was left with no doubt that when availing myself of BGF charity I’d truly reached the end of the line. In other words, ‘Be grateful for any little crumb that’s thrown your way’. I’ve seen, I’ve experienced. Bobby Goldsmith would certainly turn in his grave now.
Love from Hell xoxoxo
BGF has provided various types of support over many years. As the organisation has evolved, they have had to meet the ongoing challenges of catering for a diverse client base.
There are many organisations who can help people with energy payments, yet some people refuse to go anywhere near them.
Perhaps Bobby Goldsmith would turn in his grave at the rate of HIV conversions that still continue to happen, even though ACON, BGF, and other organisations continue to advocate responsible sexual behaviour.
Perhaps if Sydney metro didn’t have the highest percentage of population of people with HIV in Australia, then BGF would be able to go back to offering diversional therapy items such as Art Supplies, Pet grooming/veterinary assistance, and white goods (as they have in the past).
Perhaps the clients that are considered on a case by case basis, might find that they are still able to live without drastic impact.
Perhaps, it really is about BGF just being a bit more responsible and allowing people to rort the system less.
” asked to take more responsibility for their own finances ” ???
Bev Lange …what a laugh…..if it wasn`t such a sad affair.
Bev Lange should take more responsibility in that job she was asked to do,
not trying to cut corners so her fat CEO paypacket won`t suffer.
Bobby Goldsmith would turn in his grave