The Summer Foundation was the proud promoter behind the Million Dollar Vax competition that received over 2.7 million entries in October. The aim was to increase the rate of vaccination nationally to reduce the burden on our healthcare systems and reduce the risk of infection to the most vulnerable in our community including people with disability. The campaign targeted regions with low vaccination rates.
Million Dollar Vax impact
The Summer Foundation is pleased to support the Australian Disability Strategy 2021-2031. The Strategy, launched today on the Disability Gateway, prioritises the commitment to improve the lives of people with disability by all governments – Australian, state, territory and local.
Today is United Nations International Day of People with Disabilities. Today promotes understanding of disability issues and supports the dignity, rights and wellbeing of people with disability now and in the future. The theme of today is, “leadership and participation of persons with disabilities towards an inclusive, accessible and sustainable post-Covid-19-world”.
Minister for Families and Social Services, Anne Ruston said ‘People with disability deserve to have the same as any other person and this ten year framework sets out our priorities as a nation for the 4.4 million Australians who live with disability’. The Australian Government is supporting the Australian Disability Strategy with an investment of $250 million.
The Strategy aims to improve the lives of people with disability across 6 priority outcome areas.
- Employment and financial security
- Inclusive homes and communities
- Safety, rights and justice
- Personal and community support
- Health and wellbeing
- Community attitudes
The Summer Foundation focuses on supporting people with disability with complex support needs and works to ensure no younger person under the age of 65 is forced to live in aged care. The Australian Disability Strategy aims to increase the availability of affordable housing, ensure housing is accessible and that people with disability have choice and control about where they live, who they live with and how they live. Additionally, that people with disability can access the supports they need to live well, delivered in a way which best meets their individual needs.
The rights of people with disability must be promoted upheld and protected. We are pleased to see this as a central principal of the Australian Disability Strategy.
The Strategy re-establishes Australia’s commitment to people with disability and provides the vision for an inclusive Australian society that ensures people with disability can fulfil their potential, as equal members of the community.
The Summer Foundation would like to see the implementation of the Strategy drive opportunities for people with disability, to lead and direct the achievement of outcomes, and play a significant role in shaping the success of the Strategy. The Strategy endeavours to facilitate greater community participation for people with disability and provide the opportunity to ensure they can decide how they live their lives. It is important that adequate funding continues to be provided to support the achievement of the Strategy over the next 10 years.
More than 330 people logged in to our 10th Annual Public Forum on 4 November. Reaching Towards Success – Closing the door to aged care for young people discussed the progress being made to end the need for younger people to live in aged care, as well as the barriers that remain.
The Summer Foundation’s board renewal process continued with new appointments and planned resignations at the AGM and Board meeting.
After many years’ service, both Professor Jacinta Douglas and Jason Chequer have stepped down from the board. Jacinta and Jason have both made enormous contributions to the work of the Summer Foundation.
Welcome to our spring update. It has been a particularly busy and satisfying few months for us.
Not-for-profit organisation, the Summer Foundation, has today launched the UpSkill Provider Directory, a searchable online directory of support coordinators and allied health professionals with the skills and experience to assist people with complex support needs to live well in the community.
The platform, made possible by funding partner Gandel Philanthropy, also provides eligible professionals with a way of showcasing their services to potential clients free of charge.
People with disability, families and others who assist them will be able to search the directory for National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) support coordinators and allied health professionals in their area.
Summer Foundation Head of Government Relations and Policy, Amelia Condi, said the UpSkill Provider Directory will enable NDIS participants with complex support needs to connect with a network of experienced support coordinators with the right skills to support participants to navigate the NDIS service system.
“Our focus for the UpSkill Provider Directory over the coming months is to build listings – it will continue to grow and evolve as more support coordinators and health professionals come on board,” Ms Condi said.
The directory is the newest tool in the Summer Foundation’s UpSkill program, which delivers training, capacity building and professional development to support coordinators and NDIS allied health professionals across the country. These professionals are integral in supporting people with complex support needs to achieve good outcomes and live well in the community.
Support coordinators and NDIS allied health professionals who have completed UpSkill training are eligible to create a profile on the directory. They are also eligible to join the UpSkill Community of Practice, a networking platform for members to troubleshoot barriers and inspire each other to think innovatively and share information, ideas and practices.
Gandel Philanthropy Chief Executive Officer, Vedran Drakulic OAM said: “From alternative housing demonstration projects to building workforce capability through UpSkill, the Summer Foundation has been at the forefront of innovative strategies to prevent younger people with disability from languishing in aged care.
“The UpSkill Provider Directory will offer vital online connections and supports so that every young person with disability can choose where they live and who they live with.”
Click here to access the UpSkill Provider Directory.
Source: Pro Bono | Author: Sabina Curatolo and Di Winkler
A new industry report on investment funds in the specialist disability accommodation market highlights the need for greater government oversight to increase investor confidence, write Di Winkler and Sabina Curatolo.
Representatives from the Summer Foundation and investment industry leaders – all members of a recently established Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) Investor Think Tank – have welcomed the Federal Government’s supportive response to their collective views about the future of the Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) market.
A group of investment fund managers, philanthropic investors and supporting organisations met with the Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), Linda Reynolds, and National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) representatives as part of Minister Reynolds’ SDA Roundtable last Friday to discuss what needs to be done to drive the next phase of the SDA market’s development.
Minister Reynolds described the Think Tank report as a “great piece of work” with sensible recommendations. After reviewing and discussing the report at the Roundtable, Minister Reynolds outlined a plan to get further input prior to getting endorsement to implement solutions.
The Summer Foundation appreciates Minister Reynolds’ commitment to listening and working with Think Tank members and SDA Roundtable to develop and implement joint solutions.
SDA is the most significant impact investment opportunity in Australia today and represents a solution to a disability accommodation problem the government cannot solve on its own. However, the rapid growth of the SDA market has outstripped the evolution of government infrastructure causing some instability in the market.
The Summer Foundation established the SDA Investor Think Tank in mid 2021, in collaboration with a group of investment fund managers, to consider how the market could best be supported through the next growth stage. This work built on the SDA Explainer for Investors which included a survey of investors.
The SDA Think Tank, which includes investment fund managers, who have collectively invested nearly $650 million in the SDA market produced the Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) Investor Think Tank Findings and Recommendations report which identifies issues and opportunities that require collective attention to help achieve market maturity.
Recommendations outlined in the report centre around improving market engagement and signalling as well as optimising the demand and supply pipeline.
Think Tank contributors hope the findings and recommendations in the report will support NDIA stewardship of the SDA market, provide a platform for collaboration and help build confidence among market players.
The meeting comes at a time when the sustainability of the NDIS is the focus of conversation. requiring review by the government as rising costs are placing significant pressure on the Scheme. The SDA market has the potential to leverage $5-$12 billion of private capital to address the unmet demand for housing and the redevelopment of old stock that is reaching the end of its useful life. An estimated two thirds of disability housing stock built before 2016 needs to be rebuilt or completely refurbished because it does not meet contemporary standards.
SDA funding is intended for 28,000 NDIS participants, up to 30,000 by 2025, with extreme functional impairment for whom mainstream housing is not an option. It is anticipated an additional 12,000 SDA homes will be required in the near future.
The commitment to working towards a sophisticated SDA market is welcome news for NDIS participants who qualify for SDA funding and those waiting to have their applications considered. Emerging evidence from research by the Summer Foundation and La Trobe University has found significant improvements in wellbeing and community participation for people living in SDA.
The commitment from Minister Reynolds also reaffirms that effective collaboration is essential in an emerging market in order to meet the needs of the government, the NDIA, participants, providers and investors. Everyone benefits if the SDA market reaches its full potential – participants access appropriate housing, investors and providers are able to offer housing which enables positive outcomes, and the government leverages private capital that helps to achieve NDIS sustainability.
You can access the full Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) Investor Think Tank Findings and Recommendations report below.
A shortened version of the recommendations outlined in the report are provided below:
SDA Investor Think Tank Recommendations
Think Tank members are hopeful that the findings and recommendations in the SDA Investor Think Tank Findings and Recommendations report will support NDIA stewardship of the SDA market, provide a platform for collaboration, and help build confidence among market players.
Members have recommended that the NDIA should take the following actions:
1. Work with SDA stakeholders to develop a Stakeholder Engagement Framework that articulates a platform for open communication.
2. Make a senior appointment with primary responsibility for SDA market stewardship, which would be the key point of engagement between the Agency and market players.
3. Release a quarterly SDA Market Statement to provide guidance that supports informed decision-making by market players.
4. Develop the capability and systems needed to routinely release detailed and timely demand data that includes:
- A forecast of the total expected demand for SDA, including design categories
- The number of participants seeking SDA determinations and what types of SDA match their needs
- Assumptions behind the modelling for the annual budget for SDA
5. Undertake a demand activation campaign to support awareness among SDA-eligible participants, including by:
- Identifying SDA-eligible people on the NDIS database
- Contacting SDA-eligible people and providing capacity building on housing options so participants can outline their housing needs and preferences
6. Implement a plan to eliminate the backlog of decisions under review and appeals. Resolving this issue will lead to a decrease in financial pressures for some SDA providers, and increased market confidence.
7. Increase the transparency and consistency of SDA eligibility determinations by:
- Publishing plain language guides on SDA eligibility
- Defining the decision-making processes for SDA and associated supports, including details of decision-makers and timeframes
- Committing to decision timeframes and releasing performance reports on adherence to timeframes
8. Commission an independent review of the costs of SDA and associated supports to ensure assumptions about relationships between Supported Independent Living (SIL) and SDA are evidence-based.
Source: Australian Financial Review | Author: Michael Bleby
Specialist housing for disabled people, which has grown from nothing into a $2.5 billion asset class in just five years, is poised to expand a further fivefold in response to demand for housing that meets the needs of an estimated 28,000 young people, a new industry report shows.
The Summer Foundation welcomes the announcements made by Minister Reynolds on Friday 9 July 2021 advising the outcomes of the Disability Ministers’ Meeting.
Access to appropriate housing for people with disability can be challenging. This challenge is more so in thin markets, including rural and remote areas, where there are often fewer housing options generally.
National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) CEO Martin Hoffman has opened up about where the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is heading in an exclusive interview with Summer Foundation Policy Manager and disability advocate, Dr George Taleporos.
Welcome to our winter update. It comes at a time of greater public focus on the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), particularly around new independent assessments, personalised budgets and challenges within the specialist disability accommodation (SDA) sector.
Summer Foundation is pleased with the recent announcement from the Minister for NDIS, Senator the Hon Minister Reynolds CSC and National Cabinet to expand eligibility for COVID-19 vaccination to all NDIS participants and carers.
Dates have been set for the first webinars accompanying the Welcome Home education package for SDA providers.
The Summer Foundation has welcomed Cain Beckett as an Independent Non-Executive Director to the Summer Foundation Board.
Source: The Urban Developer | Author: Di Winkler
Australia’s building ministers at their meeting on April 30 decided to include minimum accessibility standards in the 2022 National Construction Code (NCC).
This is a significant decision that will shape our housing for generations to come.
The new standards will come into effect in September 2022 and reflect the fact that our housing needs are changing as our population ages.
Source: Probono Australia | Author: Di Winkler & Peter Mulherin
Australia’s building ministers have decided to include accessible design features in the National Construction Code. Di Winkler and Peter Mulherin look at what that means.
From September 2022, new homes in Australia will include accessible design features, after a meeting on 30 April saw building ministers decide to include minimum accessibility standards in the National Construction Code (NCC).
Source: Probono Australia | Author: Di Winkler & Peter Mulherin
This Friday, Australia’s Building Ministers will choose whether accessibility standards will be voluntary or mandatory in the 2022 National Construction Code. Di Winkler and Peter Mulherin explain why mandatory standards will future-proof Australia’s housing for coming generations.
The recently released findings of the Aged Care Royal Commission represent an opportunity to achieve generational reform for older Australians, as the provision of aged care services shift from institutionalised care, to care at home.
The Summer Foundation will launch Welcome Home, our compliance education package for registered providers of specialist disability accommodation (SDA) on 10 May 2021.
Our SDA Quality & Safeguards Project Manager Rosie Beaumont, said the package was designed to help SDA providers understand their obligations under the SDA Practice Standards and explore a rights-based approach to service delivery.
The free package of compliance education resources provides a comprehensive explanation of the SDA Practice Standards and includes 6 training modules, management tools, factsheets, policy guides, videos and podcasts.
The topics covered include:
- Rights and Responsibilities
- Conflict of interest
- Service agreements
- Enrolment of SDA properties
- Tenancy management
The Welcome Home package will be available for self-paced learning on the Summer Foundation’s soon-to-be launched online training platform, Summer Learning.
Rosie said a series of Welcome Home webinars will be rolled out from June this year, giving SDA providers the opportunity to discuss a rights-based approach to service delivery and how well common management practices align with the SDA Practice Standards.
To register to access the Welcome Home education package, please click here
This project is funded by the Support for NDIS Providers Program, administered by the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission.
A new Summer Foundation resource is the first step in finding housing and moving patients with disability along the hospital discharge pathway more efficiently.
The Housing Needs and Preferences to Support Discharge Guide and Template are for health professionals to support a person with disability to describe the housing and support they want and need so that they can be discharged to suitable housing.
The Summer Foundation believes that the proposed midyear rollout of independent assessments should be postponed and an evidence based pilot, co-designed with people with disability, disability organisations and other experts in the field implemented.
Source: ABC Radio National with Fran Kelly | Reporter: Eleni Psaltis | Image: James Hancock
Currently there are more than 4,300 younger Australians living in an aged care facility; most of them are with disability.
But the Aged Care Royal Commission says by 2025, no one under the age of 65 should be in these facilities.
Featured:
Carol Littley, mother of Kirby Littley who lived in an aged care facility in her twenties
Dr Bronwyn Morkham, National Director of the Young People in Nursing Homes National Alliance
Stuart Robert, Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme
Richard Colbeck, Aged Care Services Minister
Dr Di Winkler, Summer Foundation CEO
Lisa Corcoran, former aged care resident
The key recommendations relating to younger people with disability, outlined in the newly released final report of the Aged Care Royal Commission, have been warmly welcomed by the Summer Foundation, Youngcare and Synapse.
Source: Australian Ageing Agenda | Author: Di Winkler
Our ageing population demands more accessible housing, writes Dr Di Winkler.
The final report from the royal commission into aged care will be released this week. This report will show that institutional housing for the elderly is not working and include a range of measures to address the neglect they have found.