People and structure

Over the past 20 years I have had the good fortune to work in a role that aligns with what I believe in, alongside some remarkable people doing incredible work in our community.

As Executive Director of Centacare since 2001, I’ve witnessed some humbling moments. I’ve seen our support workers walk alongside people dealing with mental health issues, those needing assistance as they age and people with a disability as they challenge ‘what’s expected’ and genuinely share the joy when their clients realise their goals; prison chaplains who offer support and companionship without judgement or agenda; and domestic and family violence workers who shoulder enormous stress with professionalism, calm and genuine care as they seek to support women and children in high risk situations. And the list goes on.

During my time in this role, we’ve seen important, positive changes across the community services sector. Among the most notable of these is of course, the introduction of consumer-directed funding. Providers, including Centacare, have and continue to make changes across our operations as we recalibrate to meet the needs of the evolving marketplace. And it’s critical that we get that right, so our clients can make the most of the new funding and service landscape, and also, to make sure Centacare remains a vibrant, thriving, values-based alternative to the many other providers people now have to choose from.

Centacare is unique in the breadth of services we offer to the community – including early education and care through Catholic Early EdCare and high intensive support for children with a disability through Xavier. With our range of expertise and involvement across so many areas of concern to our community, we have a wonderful opportunity to help shape a fair and just society, and to be there with the right support at the right time, for people who need it most.

Along with the many others who do good work to support our frontline, I’m pleased to be able to make my contribution to the services that make up Centacare in the form of organisational strategy, financial management and systems which will enable us to stay true to our vision and values, and give us the capacity to demonstrate to all those around us that ‘Care is our calling’ every day.

In addition to his role as Executive Director of Centacare, including Catholic Early EdCare and Xavier, Peter is a director of St Rita’s College Limited and the chair of the Advisory Council for Marist college Ashgrove. He is a former director Catholic Social Services Australia Ltd, a former director and audit committee chair of the Australian Catholic Superannuation & Retirement Fund, a former director of Mercy Health and Aged Care Central Queensland Limited as well as a former director of Yourtown. Peter was the Chair of the Marist Ashgrove Finance Committee for more than 10 years and formerly on equivalent committees at All Hallows School.

I am motivated by working for an organisation which is people focused, both from a service delivery perspective and also from the perspective of valuing its’ employees.

My passion lies in making our workplaces safer to support our employees so that they are able to deliver services to support the clients and children, who rely upon them on a daily basis.

As the WHS Director for the Archdiocese of Brisbane, I am responsible for leading the Work Health and Safety team who support Centacare. My role is to develop and deliver the strategy to address the health and safety opportunities and risks within our diverse organisation. In my role I am responsible for ensuring that we have an effective safety management system in place.

My passion for assisting others to achieve optimal health and safety commenced at university where I studied Physiotherapy and started my career working as a Physiotherapist. This provided me with a strong foundation for my current work in Health and Safety and Injury Management. I also hold an Advanced Diploma in Work Health and Safety, and a Diploma in Business Management.

Having worked across both for-profit and not-for-profit roles, Centacare brings to my world an enchanting mix of different offerings of services in a rich Catholic environment. My work gives me a deep satisfaction which comes from knowing our clients are the essence of why we exist.

I am passionate about assisting Centacare to develop and maintain a strategic understanding of its operating environments within a relevant, recognised governance system that supports our various stakeholders – client, employee and volunteer groups.

I assist the team in Centacare to deliver a whole of organisation approach to governance, policy, risk, quality and internal audit.

During my career I have obtained a diploma (TAASys), Bachelor of Business (HRM), Graduate Certificate in Risk Management and Graduate Certificate in Catholic Identity and Leadership. I hold professional membership with Risk Management Institute of Australasia, Institute of Internal Auditors – Australia and Institute of Managers and Leaders Australia and New Zealand.

Working for an organisation that is truly about making a difference in the community, alongside people who believe in what they do is what makes my role so meaningful.

As director of Catholic Early EdCare (CEEC) I have the privilege of supporting the CEEC team and seeing the great outcomes they achieve every day for both families and the children they entrust to us for care and education.

Being passionate about creating safe, supportive learning environments enables us to nurture creativity and allow each individual child to grow in their own way, while extending possibilities for the whole group.

As a senior leader within our organisation, I am also an educator, and believe that every day brings fresh possibilities for us all to lead and learn. Collaboration across the early education and care sector is an essential part of my role, drawing on the latest research and best practice insights to continually improve the services we offer. As a qualified teacher, I value every opportunity to learn, and seek to extend that opportunity to others wherever possible.

As a migrant to Darwin Australia, I experienced a prolonged sense of alienation and marginalisation from the predominantly Anglo population. Coupled with a commitment to Gospel informed social justice, these experiences have given me a keener insight into social disorientation and marginalisation and empathy for people who find themselves there. This has driven me to work in organisations like Centacare across my career.

I am passionate about many areas of our sector, too many to mention; although I do gravitate to areas of unmet need. At present, how we as a society respond to increasing social loneliness across a range of different age groups is an interest.

The key task of my role as Director of Mission and Formation is supporting the organisation to align its client and back of house services with the organisations’ vision, mission and values.

I served as the CEO of three NSW/QLD faith based NGOs between January 2008 – October 2019. I have been registered as a psychologist for 20 years working across diverse psychological settings. I served as a Minister of the Word with the Uniting Church for 18 years, I relinquished my ordination and was received into the Catholic Church in 2011. Consequently, I have post graduate qualifications in psychology and theology.

I am really proud to be part of an organisation which is so embedded in serving the local community. Our support workers, counsellors, and child care educators do so much good for so many. It’s an honour to be able to support them in their work.

We are called to help others when they feel most vulnerable. This is at the heart of what Centacare does. I’m most passionate about our family counselling services, domestic violence assistance and prevention programs, and our mental health services. Those teams are so devoted to helping clients feel safe and healthy.

Our Communication & Engagement Team which I lead promotes the good stories happening each day within Centacare and connects clients to wider services. We also raise funds for areas of need which are not government funded but critical to supporting our clients to the fullest.

I have a master’s degree in Philanthropy & Development and a CFRE certification in fundraising. I also work closely with the parishes in the Archdiocese of Brisbane and other local Catholic charities.

As Director of Accounting & Finance for Centacare my role is to provide financial support and services to Centacare, drawing on extensive financial and systems experience gained across a varying range of industries.

What really motivates me in this role is the opportunity to support the business to operate with greatest efficiency, and to make sure we use the financial resources we have available to provide the best care and achieve best outcomes we can for the recipients of that care, in particular the most vulnerable members of our community.

Although mine is very much a ‘back office’ role, I really enjoy the opportunities I have to visit our services, meet our clients and see the wonderful work our teams do, first-hand. Those experiences are a great reminder of the important work we all have an opportunity to contribute to.

I am a current member of the Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand and have held various finance manager and director positions with organisations in commerce and Industry.

I’ve spent 25 years in information technology roles in higher education, and mining, energy and agribusiness industries, and it’s very gratifying to be able to apply my digital experience and skills in business engagement, to improve the services we are able to offer the community.

As the Director Information & Technology for the Archdiocese of Brisbane, a key focus is looking at the way technology can help us improve service provision and communication with Centacare clients, and support innovation in our service delivery. Making sure we have the right information technology strategies, plans and processes in place means better support for the good people who work on our front line, so they can maintain their focus on the thousands of clients, children and families we support every day.

The primary responsibilities of my team encompass a wide variety of strategic technology issues, including:

• governance and policy
• enterprise architecture al leadership
• resource allocation and service provision
• information technology project and program delivery protocols
• strategic business partnering and alignment
• support for all technology, delivery of IT infrastructure and services, information security systems and compliance, administrative systems, and client and customer support services.

My qualification include both a Bachelor of IT and Bachelor of Education as well as teaching undergraduate and post graduate qualifications.

Having been formed really all my life through a Catholic education and being raised in the Catholic tradition it is second nature to desire to work in some way in support of the Church’s mission. After working in Catholic schools and Catholic hospitals and in many areas of volunteering, it was an easy decision to accept the offer of employment with Centacare to work in such a hands on role growing and supporting the work of pastoral ministries.

I know from experience in the area of providing pastoral care in hospitals how powerful and how important this dimension of care is, both temporally and spiritually in the lives of people. The most powerful driver for my work in Centacare is working among people of faith on the coal face of service to the sick, the suffering, the imprisoned and those seeking mental well-being. In a nutshell it is participating intentionally in the Mission of God, and supporting the many pastoral carers and chaplains who share in this work.

My role as Director, Pastoral Ministries is very hands on with the chaplains and pastoral carers in recruiting, training, and providing ongoing formation and support for their work in hospitals, prisons and the mental health hub. It also involves a very close working association with Centacare’s post release prisoners’ support service. Other pastoral activity directed by this role includes the Stella Maris Mission to Seafarers and administrative support to Murri Ministry.

I have completed post graduate study in education, theology and pastoral care which contribute to the role. It has also been necessary to gain a Certificate IV in workplace training and assessment to teach and assess the accredited pastoral care training course soon to be delivered via the Archdiocesan RTO. I have ongoing and active connection with Public and Uniting Care hospitals, Queensland Corrective Services, The State Chaplaincy Board and Queensland Multifaith Healthcare Council.

I’ve experienced significant diversity in the course of both my working and personal life. From growing up in remote parts of Papua New Guinea, to going to boarding school in Australia, college in Switzerland, and operating and managing vast areas of remote cattle and sheep properties whilst raising and educating four children in the Australian outback, to a professional life in journalism, communications and senior political advisory roles in Sydney, Canberra, the Middle East, Korea, SE Asia – and now in Brisbane, I’ve been blessed to meet and learn from many, many different people and situations.

And each of these experiences have in some way enhanced my appreciation and understanding of social justice principles as the foundations for wellbeing, prosperity and the opportunity to pursue something more, for people from all walks of life.

My current role as Director of Government Relations for Centacare, allows me to pursue that passion for social justice through advocacy to government. I make the most of my extensive long standing relationships across all three levels of government and thorough understanding of political processes, public policy and government decision making that impact Centacare operations, to increase Centacare’s sphere of influence on policy making and programs for the better, and to the benefit of our many stakeholders and clients.