Charmaine Jones

Project Officer, Street Care, Public Interest Advocacy Centre

Charmaine has been involved in the NGO space for over 20 years primarily in the social housing and mental health sectors. Charmaine played a lead role in the development of the CADRE training program, furthering mental health work that had arisen from the devastation wrought in Banda Aceh, Indonesia from the 2004 Tsunami. The CADRE program aims to change the definition of a First Responder from Fire, Police or Ambulance to that of the whole community. Charmaine is passionate about clients being the experts in their own lives and therefore being best placed to work collaboratively with governments in developing solutions to failures in the social services systems. Charmaine is currently working with the Homeless Persons Legal Service supporting two lived experience committees advocating for changes to policy and practice, one for people who have experienced homelessness and one for the Housing and Mental Health Agreement.