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The Advertiser
3 days ago
- Business
- The Advertiser
'Fed up': minister slams Allambi Care as property scheme laid bare
HUNTER-based Allambi Services has been caught out funnelling money away from desperately needed out-of-home care and child protection services funds for more than a decade. The so-called not-for-profit organisation has been running a scheme through which senior executives, and in some cases their partners, bought homes and rented them back to the service at 20 per cent above market value. A forensic audit of the out-of-home-care (OOHC) provider revealed that senior staff, including chief executive officer Simon Walsh, bought 12 properties that Allambi rented back to itself with a guaranteed 20 per cent market premium funded by the NSW OOHC program. the report says the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) was also erroneously charged for general repairs, new hot water systems, air conditioning, blinds and carpet, as well as storm water upgrades, water charges, and rates in relation to those investment properties. Greens MLC Sue Higginson said that Allambi has admitted these costs should have been borne by the property owners, but offered no explanation why OOHC funds were misused. The report has also uncovered significant undeclared financial conflicts of interest, unapproved subcontracting arrangements, and instances where Allambi failed to provide information to support the audit or assess compliance, Ms Higginson says. In a letter to Allambi dated July 1, the minister said it was of concern to her to learn that "funds intended for residential and therapeutic services and supports for vulnerable people have, instead, been applied to give significant financial benefits to senior staff in your organisation". While Allambi has been representing itself as being in 'deficit,' they were likely in surplus, and separately, $30 million in term deposits were identified by the audit team, the audit report says. Allambi says that the review raised no concerns about the treatment, safety or welfare of children and young people in their care, and that remained their "absolute priority". "We disagree with many of the tabled findings of the audit and strongly reject any suggestion that Allambi Care employees acted inappropriately or that there has been any misuse of public funds and that children and young people have been in any way disadvantaged," a statement from Allambi said. "We welcome the DCJ's work in providing new policy guidance in a range of areas that were the focus of the audit. This provides clarity of expectations to our organisation and the wider sector." Allambi, which is one of the largest out-of-home-care residential service providers in the state, receives more than $70 million per year to help the most vulnerable children, removed from their families due to neglect and abuse. This year alone, it was set to receive $76 million in funding, the Minister for Families and Communities and Port Stephens MP Kate Washington told the Budget Estimates Committee today (August 19). "I'm honestly fed up, I am fed up that we have a system, we inherited a system, where funds that are intended and supposed to support vulnerable children haven't been going where they should be," Ms Washington said. Allambi had its humble beginnings in the Hunter, starting out in 1981 as a youth refuge in Redhead supporting children and young people at risk of homelessness and their families. It now operates throughout the Hunter as well as northern NSW, Gippsland and Victoria. Ms Higginson, Deputy Chair of the Budget Estimates Committee for Families and Communities, said in their annual report of 2023-24, Allambi claimed that 'times are tough and the demand for our support is greater than at any time in our 40-year history'. In the same document, Allambi reports having nearly $65 million in equity of its assets worth $88 million, with an operating surplus of $137,000. As well as a staff property investment scheme, Allambi funnelled money away from the kids who needed it and into their own pockets through a variety of other means, Ms Washington confirmed. "Significant funds" were also used to set up properties later used to house children with government funding, including $20,000 to paint a house, and to pay bills, including water rates and council rates, all out of funds that should have been going to children, the minister said. When asked if there was evidence of the denial of care or negligence in care, where children may have been in a position where they had gone without because of Allambi's rorts, the minister implied that this was the case. "This is why I am particularly exorcised by what we found," Ms Washington said. "I'm fed up and angry that there are funds that ought to be going to vulnerable children that are being used in other ways." The department was taking steps to ensure these kinds of schemes and purchases weren't being continued elsewhere, Ms Washington said. "We've got contract variations that have been issued to all providers, and we are asking for some fairly simple financial accountability and transparency measures to be inserted into the contracts which are on foot until mid-2027," she said. "I don't accept that we have to wait until the end of those ... contracts. We are doing everything we can to prevent this from occurring elsewhere." The former minister Natasha Maclaren-Jones' questions to the minister included about a child left overnight at a police station due to the failure of the Department of Communities and Justice's after-hours response team to intervene, and how many children the subject of a risk-of-significant-harm report (ROSH) had gone without a face-to-face assessment. HUNTER-based Allambi Services has been caught out funnelling money away from desperately needed out-of-home care and child protection services funds for more than a decade. The so-called not-for-profit organisation has been running a scheme through which senior executives, and in some cases their partners, bought homes and rented them back to the service at 20 per cent above market value. A forensic audit of the out-of-home-care (OOHC) provider revealed that senior staff, including chief executive officer Simon Walsh, bought 12 properties that Allambi rented back to itself with a guaranteed 20 per cent market premium funded by the NSW OOHC program. the report says the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) was also erroneously charged for general repairs, new hot water systems, air conditioning, blinds and carpet, as well as storm water upgrades, water charges, and rates in relation to those investment properties. Greens MLC Sue Higginson said that Allambi has admitted these costs should have been borne by the property owners, but offered no explanation why OOHC funds were misused. The report has also uncovered significant undeclared financial conflicts of interest, unapproved subcontracting arrangements, and instances where Allambi failed to provide information to support the audit or assess compliance, Ms Higginson says. In a letter to Allambi dated July 1, the minister said it was of concern to her to learn that "funds intended for residential and therapeutic services and supports for vulnerable people have, instead, been applied to give significant financial benefits to senior staff in your organisation". While Allambi has been representing itself as being in 'deficit,' they were likely in surplus, and separately, $30 million in term deposits were identified by the audit team, the audit report says. Allambi says that the review raised no concerns about the treatment, safety or welfare of children and young people in their care, and that remained their "absolute priority". "We disagree with many of the tabled findings of the audit and strongly reject any suggestion that Allambi Care employees acted inappropriately or that there has been any misuse of public funds and that children and young people have been in any way disadvantaged," a statement from Allambi said. "We welcome the DCJ's work in providing new policy guidance in a range of areas that were the focus of the audit. This provides clarity of expectations to our organisation and the wider sector." Allambi, which is one of the largest out-of-home-care residential service providers in the state, receives more than $70 million per year to help the most vulnerable children, removed from their families due to neglect and abuse. This year alone, it was set to receive $76 million in funding, the Minister for Families and Communities and Port Stephens MP Kate Washington told the Budget Estimates Committee today (August 19). "I'm honestly fed up, I am fed up that we have a system, we inherited a system, where funds that are intended and supposed to support vulnerable children haven't been going where they should be," Ms Washington said. Allambi had its humble beginnings in the Hunter, starting out in 1981 as a youth refuge in Redhead supporting children and young people at risk of homelessness and their families. It now operates throughout the Hunter as well as northern NSW, Gippsland and Victoria. Ms Higginson, Deputy Chair of the Budget Estimates Committee for Families and Communities, said in their annual report of 2023-24, Allambi claimed that 'times are tough and the demand for our support is greater than at any time in our 40-year history'. In the same document, Allambi reports having nearly $65 million in equity of its assets worth $88 million, with an operating surplus of $137,000. As well as a staff property investment scheme, Allambi funnelled money away from the kids who needed it and into their own pockets through a variety of other means, Ms Washington confirmed. "Significant funds" were also used to set up properties later used to house children with government funding, including $20,000 to paint a house, and to pay bills, including water rates and council rates, all out of funds that should have been going to children, the minister said. When asked if there was evidence of the denial of care or negligence in care, where children may have been in a position where they had gone without because of Allambi's rorts, the minister implied that this was the case. "This is why I am particularly exorcised by what we found," Ms Washington said. "I'm fed up and angry that there are funds that ought to be going to vulnerable children that are being used in other ways." The department was taking steps to ensure these kinds of schemes and purchases weren't being continued elsewhere, Ms Washington said. "We've got contract variations that have been issued to all providers, and we are asking for some fairly simple financial accountability and transparency measures to be inserted into the contracts which are on foot until mid-2027," she said. "I don't accept that we have to wait until the end of those ... contracts. We are doing everything we can to prevent this from occurring elsewhere." The former minister Natasha Maclaren-Jones' questions to the minister included about a child left overnight at a police station due to the failure of the Department of Communities and Justice's after-hours response team to intervene, and how many children the subject of a risk-of-significant-harm report (ROSH) had gone without a face-to-face assessment. HUNTER-based Allambi Services has been caught out funnelling money away from desperately needed out-of-home care and child protection services funds for more than a decade. The so-called not-for-profit organisation has been running a scheme through which senior executives, and in some cases their partners, bought homes and rented them back to the service at 20 per cent above market value. A forensic audit of the out-of-home-care (OOHC) provider revealed that senior staff, including chief executive officer Simon Walsh, bought 12 properties that Allambi rented back to itself with a guaranteed 20 per cent market premium funded by the NSW OOHC program. the report says the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) was also erroneously charged for general repairs, new hot water systems, air conditioning, blinds and carpet, as well as storm water upgrades, water charges, and rates in relation to those investment properties. Greens MLC Sue Higginson said that Allambi has admitted these costs should have been borne by the property owners, but offered no explanation why OOHC funds were misused. The report has also uncovered significant undeclared financial conflicts of interest, unapproved subcontracting arrangements, and instances where Allambi failed to provide information to support the audit or assess compliance, Ms Higginson says. In a letter to Allambi dated July 1, the minister said it was of concern to her to learn that "funds intended for residential and therapeutic services and supports for vulnerable people have, instead, been applied to give significant financial benefits to senior staff in your organisation". While Allambi has been representing itself as being in 'deficit,' they were likely in surplus, and separately, $30 million in term deposits were identified by the audit team, the audit report says. Allambi says that the review raised no concerns about the treatment, safety or welfare of children and young people in their care, and that remained their "absolute priority". "We disagree with many of the tabled findings of the audit and strongly reject any suggestion that Allambi Care employees acted inappropriately or that there has been any misuse of public funds and that children and young people have been in any way disadvantaged," a statement from Allambi said. "We welcome the DCJ's work in providing new policy guidance in a range of areas that were the focus of the audit. This provides clarity of expectations to our organisation and the wider sector." Allambi, which is one of the largest out-of-home-care residential service providers in the state, receives more than $70 million per year to help the most vulnerable children, removed from their families due to neglect and abuse. This year alone, it was set to receive $76 million in funding, the Minister for Families and Communities and Port Stephens MP Kate Washington told the Budget Estimates Committee today (August 19). "I'm honestly fed up, I am fed up that we have a system, we inherited a system, where funds that are intended and supposed to support vulnerable children haven't been going where they should be," Ms Washington said. Allambi had its humble beginnings in the Hunter, starting out in 1981 as a youth refuge in Redhead supporting children and young people at risk of homelessness and their families. It now operates throughout the Hunter as well as northern NSW, Gippsland and Victoria. Ms Higginson, Deputy Chair of the Budget Estimates Committee for Families and Communities, said in their annual report of 2023-24, Allambi claimed that 'times are tough and the demand for our support is greater than at any time in our 40-year history'. In the same document, Allambi reports having nearly $65 million in equity of its assets worth $88 million, with an operating surplus of $137,000. As well as a staff property investment scheme, Allambi funnelled money away from the kids who needed it and into their own pockets through a variety of other means, Ms Washington confirmed. "Significant funds" were also used to set up properties later used to house children with government funding, including $20,000 to paint a house, and to pay bills, including water rates and council rates, all out of funds that should have been going to children, the minister said. When asked if there was evidence of the denial of care or negligence in care, where children may have been in a position where they had gone without because of Allambi's rorts, the minister implied that this was the case. "This is why I am particularly exorcised by what we found," Ms Washington said. "I'm fed up and angry that there are funds that ought to be going to vulnerable children that are being used in other ways." The department was taking steps to ensure these kinds of schemes and purchases weren't being continued elsewhere, Ms Washington said. "We've got contract variations that have been issued to all providers, and we are asking for some fairly simple financial accountability and transparency measures to be inserted into the contracts which are on foot until mid-2027," she said. "I don't accept that we have to wait until the end of those ... contracts. We are doing everything we can to prevent this from occurring elsewhere." The former minister Natasha Maclaren-Jones' questions to the minister included about a child left overnight at a police station due to the failure of the Department of Communities and Justice's after-hours response team to intervene, and how many children the subject of a risk-of-significant-harm report (ROSH) had gone without a face-to-face assessment. HUNTER-based Allambi Services has been caught out funnelling money away from desperately needed out-of-home care and child protection services funds for more than a decade. The so-called not-for-profit organisation has been running a scheme through which senior executives, and in some cases their partners, bought homes and rented them back to the service at 20 per cent above market value. A forensic audit of the out-of-home-care (OOHC) provider revealed that senior staff, including chief executive officer Simon Walsh, bought 12 properties that Allambi rented back to itself with a guaranteed 20 per cent market premium funded by the NSW OOHC program. the report says the Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ) was also erroneously charged for general repairs, new hot water systems, air conditioning, blinds and carpet, as well as storm water upgrades, water charges, and rates in relation to those investment properties. Greens MLC Sue Higginson said that Allambi has admitted these costs should have been borne by the property owners, but offered no explanation why OOHC funds were misused. The report has also uncovered significant undeclared financial conflicts of interest, unapproved subcontracting arrangements, and instances where Allambi failed to provide information to support the audit or assess compliance, Ms Higginson says. In a letter to Allambi dated July 1, the minister said it was of concern to her to learn that "funds intended for residential and therapeutic services and supports for vulnerable people have, instead, been applied to give significant financial benefits to senior staff in your organisation". While Allambi has been representing itself as being in 'deficit,' they were likely in surplus, and separately, $30 million in term deposits were identified by the audit team, the audit report says. Allambi says that the review raised no concerns about the treatment, safety or welfare of children and young people in their care, and that remained their "absolute priority". "We disagree with many of the tabled findings of the audit and strongly reject any suggestion that Allambi Care employees acted inappropriately or that there has been any misuse of public funds and that children and young people have been in any way disadvantaged," a statement from Allambi said. "We welcome the DCJ's work in providing new policy guidance in a range of areas that were the focus of the audit. This provides clarity of expectations to our organisation and the wider sector." Allambi, which is one of the largest out-of-home-care residential service providers in the state, receives more than $70 million per year to help the most vulnerable children, removed from their families due to neglect and abuse. This year alone, it was set to receive $76 million in funding, the Minister for Families and Communities and Port Stephens MP Kate Washington told the Budget Estimates Committee today (August 19). "I'm honestly fed up, I am fed up that we have a system, we inherited a system, where funds that are intended and supposed to support vulnerable children haven't been going where they should be," Ms Washington said. Allambi had its humble beginnings in the Hunter, starting out in 1981 as a youth refuge in Redhead supporting children and young people at risk of homelessness and their families. It now operates throughout the Hunter as well as northern NSW, Gippsland and Victoria. Ms Higginson, Deputy Chair of the Budget Estimates Committee for Families and Communities, said in their annual report of 2023-24, Allambi claimed that 'times are tough and the demand for our support is greater than at any time in our 40-year history'. In the same document, Allambi reports having nearly $65 million in equity of its assets worth $88 million, with an operating surplus of $137,000. As well as a staff property investment scheme, Allambi funnelled money away from the kids who needed it and into their own pockets through a variety of other means, Ms Washington confirmed. "Significant funds" were also used to set up properties later used to house children with government funding, including $20,000 to paint a house, and to pay bills, including water rates and council rates, all out of funds that should have been going to children, the minister said. When asked if there was evidence of the denial of care or negligence in care, where children may have been in a position where they had gone without because of Allambi's rorts, the minister implied that this was the case. "This is why I am particularly exorcised by what we found," Ms Washington said. "I'm fed up and angry that there are funds that ought to be going to vulnerable children that are being used in other ways." The department was taking steps to ensure these kinds of schemes and purchases weren't being continued elsewhere, Ms Washington said. "We've got contract variations that have been issued to all providers, and we are asking for some fairly simple financial accountability and transparency measures to be inserted into the contracts which are on foot until mid-2027," she said. "I don't accept that we have to wait until the end of those ... contracts. We are doing everything we can to prevent this from occurring elsewhere." The former minister Natasha Maclaren-Jones' questions to the minister included about a child left overnight at a police station due to the failure of the Department of Communities and Justice's after-hours response team to intervene, and how many children the subject of a risk-of-significant-harm report (ROSH) had gone without a face-to-face assessment.
Business Wire
01-05-2025
- Health
- Business Wire
Endeavor BioMedicines Announces Upcoming Presentations at the 2025 American Thoracic Society International Conference
SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Endeavor BioMedicines ('Endeavor'), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing medicines with the potential to deliver transformational clinical benefits to patients with life-threatening diseases, announced that two posters have been accepted for presentation at the American Thoracic Society 2025 (ATS 2025) International Conference. ATS 2025 will take place May 16-21, 2025, in San Francisco. Following are details about the Endeavor poster presentations at ATS 2025: Title: Deep Learning-based Disease Severity Biomarkers on CT; Posthoc Analysis in a Phase 2a Placebo-controlled Study of ENV-101 in Subjects With Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Abstract Session: C23 – On The Horizon: Imaging and Molecular Biomarkers in Fibrotic ILD Presenter: Simon Walsh, M.D., Ph.D., Thoracic Radiologist, Qureight Ltd. Date and Time: Location: Room 2002/2004 (West Building, Level 2), Moscone Center Title: WHISTLE-PF: Study Design of A Phase 2b, Multi-center, Randomized, Double-blind, Controlled Trial of ENV-101 (Taladegib) In Patients With Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Abstract Session: A74 – Fibrotic Lung Disease Revisited Presenter: Toby M. Maher, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Medicine and Director of Interstitial Lung Disease at Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles Date and Time: May 18, 2025, 9:15-4:15 p.m. PT Location: Area G, Hall F, (North Building, Exhibition Level), Moscone Center For more information about Endeavor BioMedicines and the company's activities at ATS 2025, visit About Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis IPF is a chronic, progressive lung disease that affects more than 150,000 adults in the United States. Although the exact cause of IPF is unknown, various environmental factors can deliver repeated injuries to lung cells that trigger abnormal wound-healing processes and life-threatening lung scarring. IPF is a chronic disease with limited treatment options and a very poor prognosis: the average life expectancy is only three to five years after diagnosis. About ENV-101 Endeavor BioMedicines' investigational medicine ENV-101 is a Hedgehog signaling pathway inhibitor. By binding to and inhibiting a key receptor in the Hedgehog pathway, ENV-101 stops the abnormal accumulation of the myofibroblasts that cause fibrosis. This may resolve the excessive wound-healing process seen in pulmonary fibrosis, improving lung volume and function. About Endeavor BioMedicines Endeavor BioMedicines is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing medicines with the potential to deliver transformational clinical benefits to patients with life-threatening diseases. Endeavor's lead candidate, ENV-101 (taladegib), is an inhibitor of the Hedgehog signaling pathway in development for fibrotic lung diseases, including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). The company's second candidate, ENV-501, is a HER3 antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) in development for the treatment of HER3-positive solid tumors. More information is available at and on LinkedIn or X.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Endeavor BioMedicines Announces Upcoming Presentations at the 2025 American Thoracic Society International Conference
SAN DIEGO, May 01, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Endeavor BioMedicines ("Endeavor"), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing medicines with the potential to deliver transformational clinical benefits to patients with life-threatening diseases, announced that two posters have been accepted for presentation at the American Thoracic Society 2025 (ATS 2025) International Conference. ATS 2025 will take place May 16-21, 2025, in San Francisco. Following are details about the Endeavor poster presentations at ATS 2025: Title: Deep Learning-based Disease Severity Biomarkers on CT; Posthoc Analysis in a Phase 2a Placebo-controlled Study of ENV-101 in Subjects With Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Abstract Session: C23 – On The Horizon: Imaging and Molecular Biomarkers in Fibrotic ILD Presenter: Simon Walsh, M.D., Ph.D., Thoracic Radiologist, Qureight Ltd. Date and Time: May 20, 2025, 9:15-11:15 a.m. PT Location: Room 2002/2004 (West Building, Level 2), Moscone Center Title: WHISTLE-PF: Study Design of A Phase 2b, Multi-center, Randomized, Double-blind, Controlled Trial of ENV-101 (Taladegib) In Patients With Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Abstract Session: A74 – Fibrotic Lung Disease Revisited Presenter: Toby M. Maher, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Medicine and Director of Interstitial Lung Disease at Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles Date and Time: May 18, 2025, 9:15-4:15 p.m. PT Location: Area G, Hall F, (North Building, Exhibition Level), Moscone Center For more information about Endeavor BioMedicines and the company's activities at ATS 2025, visit About Idiopathic Pulmonary FibrosisIPF is a chronic, progressive lung disease that affects more than 150,000 adults in the United States. Although the exact cause of IPF is unknown, various environmental factors can deliver repeated injuries to lung cells that trigger abnormal wound-healing processes and life-threatening lung scarring. IPF is a chronic disease with limited treatment options and a very poor prognosis: the average life expectancy is only three to five years after diagnosis. About ENV-101Endeavor BioMedicines' investigational medicine ENV-101 is a Hedgehog signaling pathway inhibitor. By binding to and inhibiting a key receptor in the Hedgehog pathway, ENV-101 stops the abnormal accumulation of the myofibroblasts that cause fibrosis. This may resolve the excessive wound-healing process seen in pulmonary fibrosis, improving lung volume and function. About Endeavor BioMedicinesEndeavor BioMedicines is a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing medicines with the potential to deliver transformational clinical benefits to patients with life-threatening diseases. Endeavor's lead candidate, ENV-101 (taladegib), is an inhibitor of the Hedgehog signaling pathway in development for fibrotic lung diseases, including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). The company's second candidate, ENV-501, is a HER3 antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) in development for the treatment of HER3-positive solid tumors. More information is available at and on LinkedIn or X. View source version on Contacts Media: Audra Friis Sam Brown, Inc.917-519-9577audrafriis@
