new disability plan providing better value, access and results

Since becoming Minister I have met and listened to many people with a disability, parents and carers and heard a common message - our current approach helps many people, but is unsuitable for some and not flexible enough for others.

'Stronger Together' is a once in a generation increase in funding.

Equally important, it is a new direction in policy to provide support based on need not diagnosis.

'Stronger Together' is the NSW Government's 10-year plan to provide greater assistance and long-term practical solutions for people with disabilities and their families. The Iemma Government has backed it with more than $1 billion in new funding over its first five years.

'Stronger Together' details our commitment to making access to services fairer and more transparent, helping people to remain in their own home, linking services to need, creating more options for people living in specialist accommodation and ensuring that the system is sustainable. 

It makes clear what we can provide and what we can't, and renews the Government's commitment to offer people with disabilities the support they need and opportunities for engagement with the community.

'Stronger Together' also has particular regard to the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders and people from other culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

One of the key elements of the new disability support system is that it will provide a better balance so that available funds assist people before they reach a crisis.

We acknowledge that the new system will not be able to meet everyone's wish, but it will provide greater predictability about the services available.

People with a disability, families and carers have told us they want a range of choices with new ideas and different ways of doing things; not just bricks and mortar. We are committed to focusing on quality of life and outcomes.

Currently our main accommodation choices are group homes and large residential centres, neither of which is able to respond adequately in all cases to people's needs. These accommodation options will expand.

'Stronger Together' begins with an immediate $154 million in 2006/07. Over the next four years there will be steady, sustainable growth as we build our capacity and implement your feedback.

Change will come about through three areas of effort:

* Strengthening families - enabling children with a disability to grow up in a family and participate in the community ($6M in 2006/07 and $83M over 5 years)

* Promoting community inclusion - supporting adults with a disability to live in and be part of the community ($87M in 2006/07 and $1,013M over 5 years)

* Improving the system's capacity and accountability - fairer and clearer ways to access services, greater accountability and more opportunities for innovation. ($61M in 2006/7 and $242M over 5 years).

I believe that 'Stronger Together' represents real progress in improving the quality of life of many people with a disability and their families. 

I wish to thank those families, advocates, providers, carers and peak council representatives, my parliamentary colleagues and most importantly the many courageous Australians who live with a disability, for their enormous patience in guiding me as Minister through the extensive consultations that have given life to this plan.

John Della Bosca

Minister for Ageing and Disability Services

a new direction for disability services

NSW Premier, Morris Iemma has unveiled a landmark ten year plan to deliver better services for people with a disability and their families.

"With more than $1 billion in additional funding over the first five years 'Stronger Together' represents a new direction for the provision of disability services in NSW," Mr Iemma said.

"This is the biggest funding increase for disability services in NSW history.

"Nine months ago in my first speech as Premier, I listed disability services as a key priority of my Government - today we back our commitment to a new direction with a massive increase in funding for disability services.

" 'Stronger Together' contains the increased resources and fundamental changes to deliver that vision," Mr Iemma said.

"While 'Stronger Together' includes a billion dollar increase in funding, it also contains fundamental changes to deliver more and better assistance," the Premier said.

"Support will be based on need - not disability type - and that's how it should be.

"Services will be measured and funded on the outcomes they deliver for people with disabilities and their families.

"We will help families avoid breakdown and the high cost of crisis by offering practical solutions earlier, including respite, day services and other flexible options.

" 'Stronger Together' also funds more options for people who require specialist accommodation and care.

"This plan is the result of extensive state-wide consultation with people with a disability, families, carers, peak bodies, advocates, academics and service providers.

"There are challenges ahead in ensuring we get the best outcomes from this increased funding.

"A regular report card will chart our progress and I welcome feedback from people with a disability, parents, carers and service providers.

"I'm proud my Government has formulated and funded this historic increase in services for people with a disability and their families."

The plan includes:

* $235 million over five years to fund a major increase to community participation programs to ensure every young person with a disability receives four days per week, and five days for those with very high support needs. This will assist nearly 2,000 people next year.

* $514 million over five years to fund 990 new supported accommodation places over the next five years with 180 new supported accommodation places this financial year.

* 200 new therapy places this financial year for children with a disability, with 2,880 additional therapy places for children and adults over five years.

* 450 additional respite places for children and young people over five years and a further 810 flexible respite places for adults.  The first 750 places will be delivered this financial year.

* Up to $80 million over five years in partnership with the Commonwealth, to prevent young people entering nursing homes, to improve the circumstances of young people in nursing homes and to develop alternative models.

* $66m over five years to fund 320 new intensive in-home support places over the next five years with the first 70 to be delivered in 2006/07.

* 100 new case managers to help 4,000 people with a disability and their families.

* $23 million over five years for the development of specialist accommodation. Older-style, large residential centres will continue to close over time, with some properties redeveloped into contemporary village-style accommodation.

* $15 million invested over five years, to expand training for disability workers in both the government and non-government sectors with and $4.5 million to research better ways of delivering disability services.

For more information, click on the following links:

Stronger Together Summary.pdf

Stronger Together.pdf

$ 2 Million to provide practical assistance

The NSW Government is working hard to direct more resources into helping children with disabilities, recently announcing extra funding that will clear the waiting list statewide for specialist equipment and aids for children under 16.

Announcing an additional $2 million this year in NSW Government funding for appliances for children with a disability, Premier Morris Iemma said the Government will provide wheelchairs, pressure care mattresses and cushions, continence assistance packages, orthotics, mobility and shower aids, as well as maintenance and safety checks to an additional 800 children with a disability.

"The NSW Government understands how vitally important specialist equipment is in allowing people with a disability to maximise their independence.

"The need for aids and appliances for people with a disability has been increasing substantially, and we have responded with real and practical assistance," Mr Iemma said

"The NSW Government is now providing a range of aids and appliances to assist more than 3,000 children with a disability this year to live in and participate in their community.

"This $2 million enhancement will be a welcome relief to hundreds of families throughout NSW."

Morris Iemma

NSW Government increases support for families with children with a disability

Families who are often stretched to the limit in their efforts to look after children with a disability are being provided with funding for new support services by the NSW Government.

The $4.16 million in funding will be used to deliver a new program called Intensive Family Support.

The services will be flexible and will give families access to:

* In-home support to assist family members develop sustainable family routines

* Family and individual counselling

* Practical and material assistance

* Parenting education and training

* Assistance with connecting family members to informal support networks

* Connecting families to other community resources (eg health care, child care, employment and educational programs).

The majority of families want to care for their loved ones at home in their own communities. These services will help families get help when they most need it.

The services would be directed to families most in need in Western Sydney, South East Sydney, South West Sydney, Central Coast, Hunter, Far North Coast, Illawarra, and the Central West of the State.

The NSW Government is recruiting eight new case workers to support people with a disability living in boarding houses.

The NSW Government said $525,000 would be committed each year for the new case workers who would:

*Assess support services required by residents

*Plan for future needs and

*Ensure equitable access to specialist and mainstream services.

The Iemma Government now spends $50 million per year improving accommodation and support services for people with a disability in boarding houses and supporting those who have moved out of this type of accommodation.

The Boarding House Reform Program supports residents with a disability and helps relocate those with high support needs to more suitable accommodation.

Since 1998, nearly 500 people have been moved to more appropriate accommodation and a further 900 people are receiving funded support services in boarding houses.

The Government has also announced that it would be reviewing the training needs of the 17 inspectors who visit boarding houses licensed to accommodate people with a disability.

This is to ensure inspection processes are robust and where people need more help this is reported as soon as possible and remedied quickly.

The Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care also investigates reports from members of the public about people with a disability living in inappropriate accommodation.

People who have concerns about people with a disability living in a boarding house should contact the Department immediately on 8270 2000.

disability groups and the iemma government working together

The Spastic Centre of NSW has received an extra $300,000 from the Iemma Government to purchase communication devices for children with cerebral palsy.

It's estimated that a child is born with cerebral palsy in Australia every 18 hours and up to 1600 children in NSW have the condition.

Of these children, 80 per cent will have little or no functional speech and will rely on alternative communication methods.

Announcing the new initiative in Nowra, Matt Brown, MP for Kiama, said the Iemma Government funding would allow the Spastic Centre to acquire a variety of speech-generating devices for its Vocalise Program Communication Technology Loan Pool.

Enabling children with little or no speech to communicate learn and be part of the community.

The range of devices to be made available through the loan pool will include single message machines and more complex pictorial language systems with a vocabulary of more than 7000 words," Mr Brown said.

The loan pool is a great example of a disability support group and the Iemma Government working together for the benefit of people with a disability, their families and carers.

In 2005/06, the Spastic Centre of NSW will receive almost $27 million from the NSW Government to fund a range of services, including accommodation support, therapy, respite, community support and post school programs.

Improving access to services for people from non-English speaking backgrounds

$300,000 in extra funding has been announced by the NSW Government to improve access to disability services for people from non-English speaking backgrounds.

The funding will enable the Multicultural Disability Advocacy Association of NSW to deliver professional training to disability workers.

It will raise their cultural awareness and understanding of how to best meet the needs of people with a disability from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

The training will be directed toward disability staff involved with accommodation, respite and community participation services in metropolitan Sydney, Hunter, Illawarra and Riverina regions with large non-English speaking backgrounds.

In addition to the new funding, the Iemma Government is providing the Multicultural Disability Advocacy Association of NSW with about $610,000 for access services this financial year.

Improving access for people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds is essential as they are a growing group in the community and sometimes find themselves isolated.

A new disability services program for Aboriginal people living in the Central West has been announced by the NSW Government.

The program will receive funding of  $600,000 a year to help Aboriginal people with a disability and their families, and will provide up to 80 flexible service packages each year for Aboriginal people with a disability living in Western NSW.

The packages will be tailored to meet the individual needs of each person, and will be provided, as much as possible, in their community of residence.

This model of flexible disability support is an exciting new approach to delivering individualised services for people in rural and regional areas who struggle to travel large distances to gain appropriate services.

The NSW Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care has worked closely with Aboriginal communities in the region to develop this model to better meet the needs of Aboriginal people with a disability and their families.

This model is consistent with the new approach to disability services which was outlined in Premier Iemma's ten-year disability plan.

NSW working with the community

13-year-old surf lifesaver Kayla Hannell who lobbied to have the new wheelchairs made available

Six additional beach accessible wheelchairs which will improve the quality of life for many people on the Central Coast, have been launched by the NSW Government.

The wheelchairs at the Ocean Beach Surf Life Saving Club at Umina Beach will provide access to the region's beautiful beaches for people with a disability.

This initiative will improve life for many people by giving them access to beach activities with their family and friends that they previously weren't able to enjoy.

The wheelchairs are jointly funded by Life Without Barriers, Gosford City Council and the NSW Government at a cost of $20,700.

The Iemma Government funds Life Without Barriers to provide various services for people with a disability on the Central Coast and provides about $11 million to 21 services to support people with a disability on the Central Coast.