Latest News & Information
Free weekend travel for carers
Carers can now travel for free every weekend on public transport anywhere in Victoria
Dear Carers,
This is a new program of support for cares in Victoria. We hope you take full advantage of this.
Cheers,
Anne McLeish, OAM
Director
KCV podcast – Support for young people exploring their biological identity
In 2024, GPV/KCV developed a statement reflecting its views. At its heart is a simple but powerful principle – that every child and young person has the right to know as much as possible about their biological family and personal history.
Supporting children and young people through this journey – with honesty, care and emotional safety – is an important part of the role many kinship carers hold.
In this episode, we speak with Dr Michelle Blanchard, CEO of VANISH, an organisation that supports people affected by past adoption practices, as well as care leavers and donor-conceived individuals.
Victoria’s kinship carers are perplexed by the lack of support for vulnerable children
Press Release – Friday, 20 February 2026
Loneliness
A GPA/GPV/KCV Occasional Paper
Dear Readers,
Late last year a number of GPV/KCV Board members attended the national Ending Loneliness Together conference in Melbourne. As a result, the Board decided to highlight the problem and the need for each one of us take some action to address this world-wide issue.
This paper is food for thought and ends with some helpful tip sheets drawn from the Ending Loneliness Together website.
I recommend it to you all.
Cheers,
Anne McLeish, OAM
Director
New social media rules for under 16s in Australia
Dear Reader,
The debate about the adverse effects of social media on children and young people has been raging for some time now. The adverse effects are now well documented and talked about across our networks.
The end point of the debate is that the Australian Government has passed laws restricting access to social media based on age. The implementation of these restrictions is one more strategy designed to protect our children and young people from physical and/or emotional harm.
There will, no doubt, be some teething problems. However, the onus is on the media companies to do the right thing by our children and young people and implement the laws.
This statement issued by the Australian Government will assist you to understand the detail.
Cheers,
Anne McLeish
Director
GPV/KCV support the right of children and adults to know their biological identity
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
A few years ago, GPV/KCV became aware of the increasing numbers of children and young people in out-of-home care seeking to know about their biological family. At the same time, we became aware of children who had been adopted wanting their birth certificates to reflect their biological family information. The following statement was drafted by the Board to reflect the views of the Board on these matters. Recent stories indicate that it is time to reflect again on these matters.
Cheers
Anne McLeish
Director
New resources for grandparents
Grandparents Victoria (GPV) is pleased to announce the availability of written, podcast and video resources in the support of grandparents, parents and carers. We urge grandparents to regularly visit these resources and to alert their families and friends of support that may be suited to their circumstances and needs.
Become a GPV Member Today
Grandparents Victoria (GPV) is a statewide non- profit organisation of grandparents working together to shape a positive future for all children in Victoria.
