DARU Update
23rd July
- IN THE NEWS
- EVENTS & TRAINING
- PUBLICATIONS AND RESOURCES
- SUBMISSIONS, CONSULTATIONS AND FORUMS
- FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
- PAID AND VOLUNTARY POSITIONS
IN THE NEWS
States Join Forces on NDIS
Pro-Bono News, July 18,
The NSW and Victorian Governments have joined forces in a partnership, designed to move Australia towards a full National Disability Insurance Scheme -NDIS.
A joint expression of interest from NSW and Victoria would see the NDIS launched in the NSW Hunter region and the Greater Geelong/ Barwon region of Victoria.
Under the joint proposal, about 10,000 people would be involved in a launch in the Hunter and about 5,000 in Barwon.This would give people with a disability and their carers in the two regions more power to decide what support and services they require, according to the NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell and Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu.
Ted Baillieu said the joint approach from Victoria and NSW means the two states can share expertise and information, which will maximise the chances for the success of the launch.
“The partnership between Victoria and NSW will ensure the resources of both states are used to build on the best of our current systems and share learnings during the launch stage,” Baillieu said.
In Victoria, the proposed launch area would consist of the City of Greater Geelong, the Surf Coast Shire, the Borough of Queenscliff and the Colac-Otway Shire.“Geelong and the broader Barwon area would be an ideal location to launch the NDIS,” the Minister for Community Services Mary Wooldridge said.“It meets all the criteria for launch sites. It is a geographically discrete area with a good mix of population, both metropolitan and regional locations and a highly developed service sector.“Geelong also has real expertise in implementing insurance schemes, being home to theTransport Accident Commission.”
The Federal Minister for Disability Reform Jenny Macklin says she welcomes the interest shown by Victoria and New South Wales toward the fundamental reform of disability care and support.The Minister has written to state Disability Ministers and says that officials are already meeting to discuss the launch design, governance and funding.
To read the full story visit
NFPs Respond to Social Housing Consultations
Pro-Bono News July 17
A coalition of housing and homelessness peak organisations in Victoria has responded to the Victorian Government’s consultations on social housing.
The group, led by VCOSS, is calling on other community organisations to endorse the joint statement, which sets out five key principles for progress towards a fairer housing system.
“For too long, fixing our housing problems has been put into the too-hard basket, with the result that there are too few houses, decaying public housing stock and community housing providers who are unable to meet increasing demand,” Carolyn Atkins, the Acting CEO of VCOSS said.
“As housing has become less affordable, rates of home ownership have decreased, affordable private rental properties have all but disappeared and social housing systems have been strained to breaking point.
“The failure of the private housing market is putting ordinary Victorians under strain and is catastrophic for many people experiencing disadvantage,” she said.
“The Victorian Government has recognised the scale of the problem and recently announced a public consultation as part of the development of a future social housing framework.
“We commend the Victorian Government’s commitment to developing a Social Housing Framework and invite the public to join us in supporting a better housing future in Victoria.”
Theprinciples to reinvigorate Victoria’s housing systemmakes five recommendations:
- to set strong goals and objectives for the Victorian housing system
- finance an ongoing operating contribution for long-term public housing sustainability
- develop innovative finance models to expand low-cost housing stock
- support policies to promote tenant security and participation
- establish a state-wide affordable housing taskforce
The Victorian government has said that over the past two years there have been a Parliamentary Inquiry and a report by the Victorian Auditor General into public housing in Victoria, and they both said that the future of public housing will be at risk if changes are not to the system.
The Auditor General said that the operating model for public housing is unsustainable and that this situation had developed over at least the last decade.
The public consultation period will be open until 31 July 2012.
To read the full story visit
Abuse by Carers ‘Covered Up’
Richard Baker and Nick McKenzie, The Age, July 16, 2012
More than 100 intellectually disabled people in state-funded care are alleged to have suffered sexual abuse and other harm at the hands of their carers, amid accusations that senior public servants are trying to cover up incidents.
The Department of Human Services recorded 112 cases of alleged “staff-to-client” abuse in 2011-12 in government and community managed housing for the intellectually disabled across Melbourne.
Many of the alleged abuse cases are serious, with molestation, withholding food, inappropriate use of sedatives, verbal and physical assault detailed in internal incident reports.
A carer later promoted to management has also been accused by colleagues of feeding cat food in sandwiches to an intellectually impaired resident at a state-run facility in Melbourne’s north.
The department has commissioned an external inquiry into how senior public servants responsible for managing disability accommodation in Melbourne’s east responded to recent abuse allegations.
Department whistleblowers have accused managers of trying to conceal the extent of recent alleged abuse cases by failing to properly log information, altering staff diary notes and not promptly alerting police to serious incidents.
Staff, speaking on the condition of anonymity claim they have been pressured not to send emails about abuse cases and to delete existing emails.
Data provided to The Age by the department shows 48 cases of alleged staff-to-client abuse in the Melbourne east region last financial year. The region has the highest number of disabled support beds.
In 2011-12, the department held 22 disciplinary investigations of staff in its Melbourne east disability accommodation service. Five staff have resigned or been sacked. Fourteen cases are still under review.
The government and community-managed groups employ several thousand Victorians to care for the intellectually disabled. Their work is often difficult and the rate of staff being physically attacked by those under their care is far higher than cases of alleged staff-to-client abuse.
One of the most serious unresolved Melbourne east cases involves a male carer who has been the subject of several sexual assault and misconduct allegations. The department is believed to have failed to properly investigate initial complaints against the carer – who has recently been moved away from residents.
The man’s colleagues have complained that he repeatedly pulled an intellectually disabled man’s pants down in front of others and made contact with his penis.
The department was criticised by Ombudsman George Brouwer last year for its handling of alleged abuse of disabled people. In a report to Parliament, Mr Brouwer said a senior public servant fabricated evidence to cover up an assault on an intellectually disabled man. The report triggered an overhaul of the department’s response to incidents of alleged abuse.
Victoria’s Public Advocate, Colleen Pearce, said the department’s response to alleged abuse cases had improved noticeably in the past year, but it was concerning that incidents continued to occur. “The numbers are really high … the key thing is to find out why is this happening and what are we doing to stop it happening in the first place,” she said.
Executive director of the Victorian Advocacy League for Individuals with Disability, Kevin Stone, commended the department for improvements in its handling of alleged abuse. But he said it was clear “a blind eye is still being turned” in some services to evidence of abuse.
To read the full story visit
Heavily Bruised, and in State Care
Richard Baker and Nick McKenzie, The Age, July 17
The Victorian government is under pressure to release the results of an inquiry into serious injuries sustained by an autistic Melbourne man in state care.
Documents and photographs suggesting possible repeated assaults on David Yassa were referred to an external investigator last year to determine whether he was the victim of crimesinside state-run homes in Melbourne's north-west.
His mother, Mona Yassa, has for six months unsuccessfully asked the Department of Human Services — which ordered the investigation — to provide her with a copy of its findings.
Department insiders accused senior public servants of failing to properly log reports of adverse incidents and pressuring staff into deleting emails in a bid to cover up the extent of alleged sexual and other assaults.
(Mrs Yassa) is very stressed. Her security is undermined greatly if she cannot see the evidence that has been followed in this process," Ms McLean (of the Victorian Advocacy League for Individuals with Disability) said.
It is understood Mrs Yassa will have to seek release of the report under the Freedom of Information Act because the investigation contains the names of other residents and staff who have lived and worked in close proximity to her son.
Mr Yassa, who is in his early 30s, does not speak and has inflicted injuries on himself and others in the past, has proven a difficult case for the department.A July 2011 report by forensic medicine specialist Edward Ogden found Mr Yassa had suffered extensive bruising to his back, shoulders, face and head. He found the injuries ranged from possibly self-inflicted to ''strongly suggestive of assault''.
Reviewing more than 20 photos, Dr Ogden also found he may have received cigarette burns.
''Given the number, distribution and severity of the unexplained injuries I recommend that an experienced investigator be tasked to examine the residential records, medical records and interview the appropriate personnel to exclude non-accidental causes of these injuries,'' Dr Ogden wrote.
A June 2011 confidential report found the department did not categorise extensive bruising that appeared on his body in October 2010 as a ''category 1'' serious incident. ''The poor management of this incident was a significant failure on the part of DHS,'' the report by consultant Heather Michaels & Associates concluded.''David's progress and wellbeing does not seem to have been considered holistically. The significant changes needed to his accommodation, day activities and the capacity of his carers to provide skilful interventions have not been acted upon in a timely manner.''
Mr Yassa is without a permanent residence or support staff at present due to problems associated with his care.A spokesman for the department last night said: ''We are close to finalising arrangements for supported accommodation within his community using an innovative new care model. The department takes seriously and follows up any allegations of harm to clients, and it regularly and carefully monitors David's wellbeing.''
The department has taken steps in the past year to improve its reporting of alleged assaults, with staff directed to advise police of all serious incidents and provide details to the Disability Services Commissioner.
To read the full story visit
Bean Counters
Geoff Lane, Letters to the Age, July 18
As a qualified social worker who has worked in the disability field in countries including England and New Zealand for more than 15 years, I have found that disability services in Victoria are at best fragmented and at worst underfunded, with poorly trained staff and clients treated as second-class citizens with minimal rights.
Therefore it comes as no surprise that abuse is not being investigated properly. This could change if instead of being run by accountants, disability services were run by staff who are properly trained to advocate for clients and their rights.
To read the letter on line visit
Web a Hard Read for Disabled
Fran Foo, The Australian , July 20, 2012
THE private sector has been urged to make its digital assets more accessible to elderly Australians or people with disabilities as federal agencies and departments rush to meet new web accessibility guidelines.
An estimated 98 per cent of websites in Australia don't meet global web access standards while a large number of tablet and smartphones apps hardly pass muster.
Disability Discrimination Commissioner Graeme Innes says with disability, the web becomes more vital and at the same time more difficult to access.Mr Innes fears disabled Australians would be sidelined when the National Broadband Network is built.
"As more cable is laid, everything we do online will get faster, easier and more connected.But there's no point laying the tracks if Australians with disability can't get on the train," the NBN Ambassador for Disabilities said.
Mr Innes said around 18 per cent of Australians had a disability, roughly the size of Melbourne's population.He warned that the figure was increasing, saying by 2056, a quarter of Australians are expected to be over 65 and half of them would have some form of disability.
Better access for people with disabilities can be fostered by using large font sizes and using the "right" colours to help people with partial blindness navigate better on the web.
Assistive technology in web browsers let people "hear" the text contained in web pages but the content needs to have meaningful (alternate) text descriptions. For example, an image with a descriptive rather than generic name is good practise.
Online videos should have captions so it's meaningful to people with hearing loss.
A large majority of companies don't take disabled users into consideration when developing websites or apps.
In contrast, federal agencies have until December to meet the first deadline for the Web Accessibility National Transition Strategy.The NTS will ensure all government websites are compliant with the World Wide Web Consortium’s web content accessibility guidelines.
(Mr. Innes) receives more than 1000 complaints each year, with a high proportion of people unhappy with the lack of accessibility with certain websites.
Media Access chief executive Alex Varley believes it only takes one large company to make their digital properties accessible to the disabled and others would follow.
To read the full article visit
$3 Billion for Social and Community Sector Workers
Joint Media Release, Prime Minister, The Hon Julie Collins MP, Minister for Community Services, Indigenous Employment and Economic Development, Minister for the Status of Women, The Hon Bill Shorten MP, Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Financial Services and Superannuation, 15July 2012
The Gillard Government will provide an additional $1 billion as part of our contribution to the historic pay rise awarded to Australia’s social and community sector (SACS) workers in February of this year.
This takes our total commitment for equal pay for social and community workers to around $3 billion through to June 2021, as part of the phase in period.
From 1 December 2012, 150,000 of Australia’s lowest paid workers will benefit from substantial pay rises of between 23 and 45 percent as a result of Fair Work Australia’s decision to lift the wages of some of Australia’s lowest paid workers.
Significantly, around 120,000 of these workers are women.
The Federal Government now expects state and territory governments to meet their obligations and commit their share of funds.
Employees in our social and community sectors work in some of the most challenging of jobs such as counselling families in crisis, running homeless shelters, working with people with disabilities and with victims of domestic violence or sexual assault.
These employees make a real difference to lives of some of our most vulnerable community members and they deserve to be properly rewarded for their efforts.
We also need to do everything possible to attract and retain more workers in this sector of the economy.
Up-to-date information on the Government’s commitment to pay its share of theFair Work Australia decision is available on a dedicated website www.fahcsia.gov.au/node/10776
To read the full story visithttp://ministers.deewr.gov.au/gillard/3-billion-social-and-community-sector-workers
EVENTS & TRAINING
Did you know that you can now submit an event directly to the Events Calendar on the DARU website? Events submitted will also be included in the Update. The Submit an Event form is available at:
OPEN DAY for the Diversity and Disability (DnD)Art Group
When: / Friday 27th of July 201211.00am to 12.00pm
Where: / Hunt Club - 775 Ballarat Road, Deer Park
Register: / Email:
Phone: 9367 6044
Morning tea will be provided
Please let us know if you need attendant care support.
Come meet the artists at work.