Lotus Services
As we approach the 15th anniversary of the National Apology to Forgotten Australians, a key message we keep hearing from people with lived experience is the need to continue acknowledging the lifetime impacts of abuse in institutional settings. While much work has been done, much more is required to narrow the significant policy and service gaps that still exist.
Care Finder Co-location and Integration
One living example of trauma-informed principles and service integration is the co-location of our Care Finder program, run by Micah Projects’ Inclusive Health Partnerships Cluster. Two Care Finders have been embedded within Lotus Place, dedicated to helping Forgotten Australians, with a focus on assisting ageing people with a history of institutional abuse to access appropriate services. The Care Finder team and Lotus Place staff work collaboratively to ensure that people are not at risk of experiencing abuse in their later years, in the same way they did as children.
Key figures
71 people
supported by Care Finders at Lotus Place
1,222 sessions
of care provided
Find out how care finders work across our other services
Inclusive Health Partnerships
Disability Royal Commission Closes
The Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability closed in late 2023, after making 222 recommendations.
With the completion of the Disability Royal Commission and Micah Projects' support services ended in December 2023.
The Disability Royal Commission team contributed to 222 recommendations aimed at targeting laws, policies, structures and practices. Many of those supported by the DRC team identified an ongoing need for practical assistance.
Lotus Place contributed to the transitional support of individuals as they finalised their journey through the Royal Commission.
Key figures
130 people
were supported by Micah Projects’ Disability Royal Commission Team to have a voice and contribute to broad systems reform in the disability sector
Continuing Support
The Redress team continued to support applicants and were successfully re-funded for an additional three years to bring support up until the final year of The Scheme in 2027. Thanks to the regional Lotus Place collaboration with a Redress worker located in each Lotus Place across the State the waitlist for redress services have reduced to an 80-90 people waitlist.
Find & Connect
Find and Connect has experienced challenges relating to record searching as the National Redress Scheme has added significant burden to institutional record departments across the Country.
Key figures
258 brokered sessions
of counselling were provided to 172 Individuals
362 people
were assisted with records searching and genealogical family tracing
“Lotus is a beautiful place and the staff there are beautiful’. “They have helped me so much for so long”
- Michael Hogan
Key figures
6 events
for Remembrance Day were hosted across the Queensland
48 art groups
facilitated for Forgotten Australians
42 craft groups
facilitated for Forgotten Australians
Key figures
1,037 people
people received the quarterly newsletter communication
Micah Projects' Lotus Services
