Global – Page 27 – Willow Court Tasmania

Draft Logo’s for Willow Court Tasmania

December 14, 2014 1 Comment

The possible logo for Willow Court Tasmania was designed by Zefiart of New Norfolk and was created from a joint idea from Cr. James Graham at a past working bee at the front gates of Willow Court and myself. James suggested a t-shirt design with the spikes of the fence that surround parts of Willow Court which was a great idea, the remaining stylised image and simple name was added and discussed at a meeting with the designer. After a couple of drafts a number of designs appeared and were presented to the Friends of Willow Court for consideration last week. The well known image of the Barrack building capitalises on the invalid heritage of the site which started in the early 1820’s in a wooden structure and paved the way for the barracks as we know it today. The fence design reminds us of the convict heritage and to the locked and enclosed nature of the site.

There are a number of options for use with the images, this t-shirt is just one and could be worn by staff at the site or sold as a locally produced item to the visiting tourist market. Marketing of goods like this will be part of the business plan that is almost finished and will be presented to the owners of the site, the Derwent Valley Council. The polo top below is another example of a garment that can be sold or for staff identification at the site. This was locally designed and printed in the valley.

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2014 report card and statistics

December 7, 2014 No Comments

We started of this year with a number of questions for the Derwent Valley Council including their lack of communication with their own committees and the public at large. This theme continued in the 2014 Local Council Elections where a number of candidates raise communication as a major issue. Media coverage for the opening of Willow Court? This remains a concern and is still an unresolved issue including the domain name owned by the Council that was reserved for Willow Court nearly three years ago.

The main part of the year was dedicated to the ongoing conservation of the Barracks and Bronte buildings, we have been getting good reports of information from the Senior Project Manager Mr Brett Noble and being informed about the many holdups and issues that would come up during the restoration and conservation of such old and important buildings.

We have been very fortunate to have been supplied reports and have loaded them on the ever expanding document page, some of these documents have never been publicly released and one has to question why that would be the case. We have also released, for the first time in 50 years, two short silent films from the ABC archives. We have added more podcasts about Willow Court. We have seen a State and Federal election and the outcomes including Willow Court being raised as a site of national importance at the Federal level by the newly elected candidate for the seat of Lions, Mr Eric Hutchinson.

We saw some artefacts that are making their way back to Willow Court through donations from interested people.

We have also seen a call for more volunteers for the Friends of Willow Court Special Committee this year leading up to the opening of the site. There has been a good response to that call with a diverse range of people with a multitude of skills to offer Willow Court.

We have seen the Mayor criticising the Tourism Tasmania promotion of the Derwent Valley and Willow Court, he thought the image was unsuitable, calling it “untasteful” however he is refusing to protect the previous residents and staff from having their image untastefully portrayed as Council considers more rate payer funds to underwrite, produce and distribute a amateur paranormal film.

We have received a copy of the History of Lachlan Park Hospital and are waiting to see if the author’s family will allow us to publish this on the website as a reference document.

We heard of an investigation into the underground tunnels in the area in 2015 by Associate Professor Heather Burke from Flinders University.

Announced openings from Willow Court Conservation Committee Members and DVC staff continues but never arrived creating frustration and confusion among the public and the Friends of Willow Court who were trying to prepare for days that never happened.

We also attended another Willow Court working bee to finalise the front gate.

A thematic interpretation workshop was attended in preparation for tours of the opened site, professionally facilitated by Phil Fitzpatrick and well attended by many interested people.

Again we saw a push for an apology from an ex-patient who reported abuse while being treated at Royal Derwent Hospital. “Politicians facing renewed calls for formal apology to Royal Derwent Hospital mental health patients”

We have seen the start of a possible ten year plus archaeology investigation as part of the tourist experience at the site.

The friends of Willow Court also have participated in three training days in the long preparation for conducting tourist, educational, historical, archaeological and architectural tours at the site.

Social Media and Website:

In the short time that we have been running we have reached fantastic statistics with members, posts, hit on the website, and posts with Willow Court information. Here are a few:

Hits to website: over 422,000 thousand

Posts on website: 268

Facebook group members: 600 (joined of their own request)

Facebook page 194 likes. (joined of their own request)

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Friends of Willow Court on another educational behind the scene tour

December 2, 2014 No Comments

Another training and information gathering day last Monday, this time at the Cascades Female Factory.

First we had a tour of the site which took over 50 minutes and explored all three yards that have been interpreted. Two further yards are in private ownership and are not accessible. The lessons learnt here are, how can you offer value for money when the only things that are still in some yards are the four walls? This has been done to amazing effect and a tour without the guide would be hard to imagine. The life that the place takes on with stories and pictures from Convict Illustrator and leading authority, Simon Barnard is factual and superb. The yards are well set out according to the archaeology and are now signed and illustrated beautifully with part walls and pathways. The importance of archaeology was clear at this site. The main difference for most of the Willow Court site is that it is still standing, all but smaller, but still standing.

We then had a catch up meeting for the behind the scenes workings of the site and the training systems that are involved for each of the guides. We also explored the education and commercial side of the tours here and the activities that the site has tied to the State curriculum for grades 5 and 9.

There has been a lot of training for this group over the last couple of weeks and a brain storming sessions and meeting of the Friends of Willow Court will be held tomorrow night. There is expected to be a considerable amount of research and further work for the volunteers, who give their time and energy to seeing the vision for the Derwent Valley to own, operate and be proud of the long history of Willow Court as an international tourist attraction fully realized.

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Tasmanian Parliament Questions asked

December 1, 2014 No Comments

A few days ago Kim Booth raised some concerns with the sale of the Royal Derwent Hospital in the Tasmanian Parliament and has asked some very serious questions about people who were involved. It has long been understood that the sale price realised was a fraction of the valuation but after the Attorney Generals report things settled down for some time. “Conclusion of collusion or corruption” questions and statements and demands for answers may see an inquiry opened into the sale and documents revealed that back these claims. We will keep an eye on this story.

Hansard Wednesday 26th November 2014

Mr BOOTH – I want to quickly raise another matter which is to do with the Royal Derwent Hospital sale, or Willow Court, as it is known. Members will recall in about 1998-99 the site was tendered out and at that time had a valuation of something like $34 million. I have seen a large amount of documentation regarding what can only be described as a tragic loss of what was possibly the most expansive and intact piece of Australia’s early colonial history. An ugly and sad history it was, but notwithstanding a very important and valuable piece of public property. The site has been stripped, buildings burnt down and other infrastructure sold off for a peppercorn sum to private individuals who have walked away with $23 million-odd, I am advised, for an investment of virtually zero. The question that must be asked or answered is: how could this possibly have happened? It is my understanding, and I have seen documentation, that two people who were intimately involved with the valuation and disposal of the Royal Derwent Hospital site, working for the government at the time and involved in the valuation of the site and recommendation to sell and who to sell to and witnesses to the minister’s signature on sale, ended up as shareholders of the company that ended up the beneficial owners of the site or part of the site. documents reveal that one of them resided at the same address as (name removed ED.), the proponent and ultimate beneficiary of this sale of the assets to the tune of $12 million that apparently was (name removed ED) taking. (Name removed) apparently took $5 million for Derwent Valley Investments, which was the council private business taking $7 million. This was a site that was valued at $45.58 million, later devalued to $23 million, I understand, on the recommendation of one of the individuals who ended up on the company that owned it after they left the Crown’s employ. The entire site was conservatively valued at $23 million and at a later point in time was sold for only $350 000 net after a $200 000 grant provided by the government. It was financed without security I understand, with a loan to (name removed ED) unsecured to a consortium made up of the above, which was not registered until four days after the loan, and I understand there was no security when that money was advanced. The whole thing has a very serious stench about it, particularly when you look at the state of that complex. Some of the buildings are in an appalling state of repair. Some have been damaged and stripped and I understand the assets contained within the property were sold for something like $1.7 million, which were the chattels containing some very historic and valuable pieces of architecture and furniture, for a property that was valued at $23 million but sold for $350 000. Ultimately the history of that needs to be detailed more fully to the House so members can understand whether there needs to be a parliamentary inquiry into this matter and whether the matter I have raised leads to the conclusion of collusion or corruption. There is certainly a very big question mark over the whole nature of the way that site was disposed of. Who were the ultimate beneficiaries and what has happened to the site now?

2012 7.30 Report ABC Click Here

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Christmas appeal

December 1, 2014 No Comments

This article in “The Examiner” news paper is appealing for donations of gifts for Patients at the Lachlan Park Mental Diseases Hospital so they can receive some of the basics at Christmas time. Calling for gifts from a sympathetic Tasmanian public was the order of the day when this article was written on the 13th November 1950 and sat well with in a Charity Model of Care which was predominant around the world at this time. This show how far we have/or haven’t come in the last 64 years as we now sit in a rights movement for people living with mental health issues or with an intellectual disability as set out by all the signatories of the World Health Organisation, part of the United Nations, which Australia is a signatory. The right to have a life that is free for someone else s benevolent actions based on sympathy is inscribed in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. While there is a difference today as there was 64 years ago this article is part of the rich history that is important to record and needs to be read in the context of the ideology of the time and the good will of the Tasmanian’s who were moved and personally effected by the States Institution designed for the care and health provision of those people with disabilities and or mental health issues. Want to read more about the rights movement, social movement, medical model and the social movement? This simply website can explain the difference is a clear one page document. RIGHT CLICK HERE and open in a new window. It could be said that Willow Court/Royal Derwent Hospital closed down because there was a different approach from an emerging Social Model as opposed to the then current Medical discourse.

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Tunnel investigation podcast

November 26, 2014 No Comments

Part of the restoration and conservation work at Willow Court is understanding the history from documentation and by the archaeology of the site. This week Associate Professor Heather Burke has visited the site to assess it’s potential as a significant convict and early Australian historic site. She was not disappointed. Along with her Assistant both Heather and Chantelle descended into the tunnel today and have described their adventure for us in the audio interview above. Click Picture above to go to podcast.

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More than tunnel investigation

November 25, 2014 No Comments

At an afternoon tea, hosted by Cr. Julie Triffitt and Mayor Martyn Evans the representatives of the Friends of Willow Court were able to discuss the Willow Court tunnel drain with Assoc Prof Heather Burke from the Flinders University (Dept Archaeology). She was invited to New Norfolk by Eric Hutchinson and networked up with the Derwent Valley Council. Since then there has been an arrangement that students from Flinders Uni will be studying the tunnel from Willow Court to the Derwent River, but today it was announced that there is at least ten years of archaeological work within Willow Court site and beyond.

Assoc Prof Heather Burke will be descending into the tunnel tomorrow and will have the geophysics results by next week for the tunnel drain. There will be a weeks work gathering preliminary data next year followed by the remaining year of analysis. Any dig will start 2016.

I will have an opportunity to catch up with Heather tomorrow and she has kindly offered to be interviewed after her tunnel drain experience.

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Friends of Willow Court Training Day at Port Arthur today.

November 24, 2014 No Comments

Today a number of volunteers from the Friends of Willow Court had a training day at Port Arthur. We looked at the booking systems that the site uses to handle the 250,000 visitors per year, website integration, staff training in tour guiding and retaining staff in regional Tasmania. There was much discussed and then we were offered to tag along with some of the Port Arthur tour guides through the thematic introduction tour and a tour of the isle of the dead. We were invited back to continue the ongoing co-relationship between Willow Court and Port Arthur. The Friends of Willow Court would like to thank the Port Arthur staff for their generous support and thank Graham McLean for offering his 12 seater bus for free (except fuel). No volunteer was paid for being at the training day. This is an ongoing part of the preparation that is going on in the background preparing for the opening of Tasmania’s newest tourist attraction.

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Willow Court Apology One Step Closer. Media release

November 20, 2014 No Comments

Willow Court Apology One Step Closer according to Tasmanian Greens Spokes person for Health and Human Services who release this media statement in late October, at the same time John Wilson from Magra wrote to the Derwent Valley Gazette with a different view point. While Cassy is asking for an apology for the previous policies of governments, John takes on a personal note as a long serving staff member of Willow Court RDH.

28th October 2014 5:26 pm

Time for Parliament to Apologise to Former Willow Court Royal Derwent Patients

The Tasmanian Greens today tabled a Notice of Motion that will allow Parliament to take a first formal step towards apologising to Tasmanians who suffered as a result of policies of governments past in the notorious Willow Court at New Norfolk, Greens’ Health and Human Services spokesperson, Cassy O’Connor MP, said today. “It is now almost 14 years since Willow Court and the Royal Derwent hospital were closed, marking the beginning of a more compassionate, rights-based approach to supporting Tasmanians living with a disability or suffering mental ill health,” Ms O’Connor said.

“We now have a rights-based Disability Services Act 2011 in place and the profoundly transformative National Disability Insurance Scheme, as well as a more inclusive, compassionate response to mental ill health in our community.” “We have come a long way as a community, it’s now time to provide a measure of closure to Tasmanians who were effectively incarcerated in the New Norfolk institution, as well as to their families who faced a terrible choice and the staff who must also live with the memories of working in that sad place.” “As a state, we need to acknowledge the wrongs of the past and government policies that isolated people living with disability and psychiatric or psychological illness in an institution such as Willow Court Royal Derwent.”

“The pain suffered in those times still endures. There have been repeated calls for a formal apology as a means of acknowledging the wrongs of the past and committing to ensuring such institutionalised suffering never happens again.” “It is the role of Parliament to acknowledge the wrongs of the past and to seek to put them right.”

“In 1997, the Parliament formally apologised to the Stolen Generations for their loss of identity, of family and belonging at the hands of the State.” “In the last term of government, we collectively and solemnly apologised to the Victims of Past Forced Adoptions for the emotional anguish caused by the State and charitable or religious institutions who took babies from their mothers on the basis of the morality of the day.” “In this term, Parliament should apologise on behalf of the people of Tasmania to those Tasmanians and their families who were told the best and only option for their disabled or mentally unwell loved ones was institutionalisation at the notorious Willow Court and Royal Derwent hospital.”

“We will have the debate on the Greens’ Motion and hopefully move on together, in the spirit of tripartisanship to formally acknowledge the pain caused by past practices and apologise to those Tasmanians who suffered at Willow Court Royal Derwent,” Ms O’Connor said.

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Southern Tasmanian Councils Authority take on Willow Court.

November 19, 2014 No Comments

Mayor Martyn Evans reported on Willow Court’s progress to the Southern Tasmanian Council Authority in the June 2014 report, which is available on the Council website, (link below) It would appear that the Mayor will be working on policy issues relating to Willow Court with the CEO of the STCA and that the CEO will be the secondary spokesperson in relation to the ongoing progress of Willow Court. It is heartening to see that the STCA Board will actively support to redevelop and restore the remaining Willow Court site. It is unclear how that help will materialize with the information available, but we can only hope it will help in obtaining funds for future works.

Southern Tasmanian Councils Authority

Quarterly Report to Members

June 2014

Portfolio Positions item 11, Item 10.4 in full on DVC website

Portfolio position: Willow Court

Background:

Willow Court was established in New Norfolk in the early 1830’s. It is a historic precinct that offers the rare opportunity to embrace Tasmania’s convict history whilst also providing a fantastic community asset.

The Derwent Valley Council bought the entire site from the State Government when it was decommissioned as a psychiatric facility. Since that time some of the newer buildings have been sold and are currently under private development. But as an extremely old and historic site it is the Council’s view that it is important that some of the site, particularly the old Royal Derwent Reserve Buildings, remain in public hands.

There has been significant work undertaken on the site in the past few years. With tourism through attractions, festivals and events playing a bigger role in the State’s economy the redeveloped historic Willow Court site provides the opportunity to harness these sectors to deliver economic and cultural benefits.

The site is starting to return to its former glory, but a significant funding injection is still required to finish the project. Recently a number of Mayor’s and the STCA CEO visited the Willow Court site and saw first hand the ongoing development works taking place on the site.

Since 2012 the Willow Court Conservation Special Committee has undertaken works totaling over $2 million. The Committee now has fundraising goals, as well as plans to lobby government for further support to undertake the work on restoration of the heritage precinct. Funding in the order of $8 million is required to complete the site’s restoration.

Position and Actions:

The STCA supports the ongoing maintenance and development of the Willow Court site
The Board undertakes to actively support the project to redevelop and restore the remainder of the historic Willow Court site
Appoints Mayor Evans to work with the CEO on policy issues relating to Willow Court and to act as the secondary spokesperson on the issue
Appoints the Lord Mayor to act as the STCA spokesperson on Willow Court

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