Separation and divorce needs a national conversation

Last night we officially launched the State of Separation Impact Report hosted at Deloitte.?

It was gratifying to see such a broad group of people impacted by this problem all together in one room and invested in making positive change for the way people experience a separation and divorce in the future.

Thank you to ABC newsreader and journalist Tamara Oudyn for hosting our panel discussion with:

Psychologist, SEEK Ambassador and Human Cogs podcast host Sabina Read

Mediator, Barrister and filmmaker Darren Mort

JustFund CEO and Founder Jack O'Donnell

Founder of FamilyProperty and family law evangelist at Smokeball Australia Fiona Kirkman

I am very grateful to each of you for your time and passion about the work we are doing.

The launch of this impact report has helped more people understand the complexity of the problem we are collectively trying to solve. It’s a big one, estimated at $101 billion every year in Australia alone.

While I’m claiming the event last night as a huge success, I know there is so much more to be done and I wouldn’t have a continuous improvement mindset if it stopped there!

The overwhelming sentiment from the room was that we need to have the government involved in this conversation. Our Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is our first ever Prime Minister to experience a divorce. He will understand the impact this significant life event can have. It is my hope he will join us in influencing change to help us solve it.?

As the Impact Report highlighted, this problem is complex and needs our national attention now. It intersects every level of government and spans many different departments all doing their part to solve a small part of the broader problem. It requires a full-ecosystem and full-government approach to solve it and I strongly believe that means a combined private and public approach.

I call upon groups to come together to help solve this significant Environmental and Social Governance issue facing our country, and every country around the world for that fact. We can do better.

Together, let’s create a movement for change to make the hope of a good separation a reality for more Australians. We can do that by creating a united legal, financial and wellbeing system that is consumer-focused, efficient and supportive, leveraging technology and embracing new approaches to enhance access to justice for all.

And for those of you who missed yesterday – here are some of the key themes :

• Early education is crucial
• Individuals AND society have better outcomes if people have access to the right advice
• Separation is more than just a personal problem, it is a societal problem. In fact, in economic terms, those affected downstream are impacted the most.

• Recognition that people's journey through this shouldn’t start with the law, it starts with emotional support and mindset so both parties are in the best frame of mind and given the right toolkit to start positive conversations
• That people experience better outcomes if they have a blend of emotional, financial and legal support
• How technology has a positive role to play in helping consumers and professionals to minimise cost and improve the pace to reach agreements faster
• We need ways to remove the barriers for people being able to access education and advice - and how resources such as The Separation Guide should be shared far and wide (I added that part, but it’s true!!)
• Money is often a barrier for many people when it comes to seeking the holistic support they need and accessing fair outcomes that recognise their short-term and long-term needs
• The societal impacts of separation and divorce are so broad, including mental health such as anxiety and depression, physical health, family violence, suicide, addiction, crime, intergenerational impacts on children, financial poverty and homelessness, productivity and absenteeism in the workplace. With a bad divorce, all of these are amplified.

• Those affected by the downstream impact can help minimise this trend of ‘bad divorce’ in the future by sponsoring the ‘missing middle’ to access the support they need - government, health funds, superfunds and employers - we are talking to you!

You can read a full copy of the report here.

#divorce #separation #children #financial poverty #access to justice #family violence #women #productivity #crime #suicide #addiction #homelessness