Fairfield Seniors Network
Fairfield City Council, New South Wales
Background
Fairfield's population has a high degree of cultural diversity which is reflected in the city motto: 'Celebrating Diversity'.
Over half (53.5%) of Fairfield's population are born overseas which consist of both longer term and recent arrivals to Australia - 133 nationalities are represented. Sixty four percent of local residents speak a language other than English at home.
Fairfield is also characterised by a growing number of older residents, now 8.4% of the total population, aged 65 years and over, a growth of 22.9% since the last census.
Initiative
The Fairfiled Seniors Network is a non-profit network of senior volunteer groups and workers working with older people in the local Fairfield area. The Network is co-convened, supported and resourced by the Fairfield City Council, in partnership with Canley Heights Community Centre, Fairfield Migrant Resource Centre and The Parks Community Network.
The Network provides leaders of senior citizens groups with an opportunity to voice their concern on issues affecting them, share information and to support each other. It also provides an opportunity for the seniors community to channel information to workers supporting the network about their needs, concerns and preferences for the coordination of major activities for the area.
The FSN has a range of multicultural groups which include the following:
- Armenian /seniors Group
- All Nations Group
- Chinese Seniors Group
- Fairfield Seniors Citizens
- Fairfield Maltese Seniors Group
- Friday Group (Spanish)
- Gentle Exercise Group
- Italian Senior Citizens and Friends
- Lao Seniors Group
- Polish Seniors Group
- Rosa Italian Seniors Group
- St. Hurzmid Seniors Group (Assyrian)
- Spanish Heart and Diabetes Association
- Timorese Seniors Group
- Western Sydney Italian Seniors
Other groups are represented through the community workers participating in the Network. These include:
- Amigas Unidas
- Canley Vale Seniors Group
- Chaldean Seniors Group
- Chinese Seniors Group
- Bonnyrigg Seniors Group
- BrittWise Seniors Group
- Las Mimosas (Spanish Mature Aged Group)
- Spanish Seniors Group (Canley Vale)
- Vietnamese Seniors Group
The Network has local contact with nursing homes and Day Care Services and many seniors groups in the area, which attend major activities through different interagencies operating in the community.
Achievements
The group has been working on local issues for 11 years and has developed and organised many local initiatives. These include:
- Safety for Seniors Citizen workshops
- Capacity Building Camp for Seniors Leaders
- The annual Seniors Lunch and Concert to celebrate and acknowledge the work done by many residents of the Fairfield community
- Seniors Week events such as the Health Expo, Information Expo, Healthy Activities Day, Heritage Tour of Fairfield.
The Network also provides input into the Healthy Lifestyles Network which promotes a range of healthy living programs such as 'gentle exercise', aquarobics, tai-chi, yoga or even belly dancing.
Council has produces a Seniors Services Directory which is a booklet designed to help seniors find services available to them in Fairfield.
Contact for further information
- Yolanda Encina
- Community Life
- CPO - Aged and Disability
- Fairfield City Council
- Ph: 02 9725 0231
- Email: yencina@fairfieldcity.nsw.gov.au
