NSW 2010 State Budget reactions

..and this is what Andrew Constance thinks about the 2010 State budget.  What do you think?  Post a comment if you wish!!!

How can a Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centre help me?

One Sunnyfield Member recently was recently granted financial respite support to enable the parents to go on holiday while their disabled family member was helped at home while they were away.

There are a wide range of services to support independent living in the community, but finding out about them or accessing them can be time consuming, difficult and confusing. Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centres provide a single point of contact for the general public, service providers, general practitioners and other health professionals for information on community, aged and disability services and carer support. The Centres can also assist with information about costs for services, assessment processes and eligibility criteria.

Each Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centre has extensive regional networks and maintains a comprehensive database containing community aged care, disability and other support services. Shopfronts are operated by organisations that already provide established services within their region. Their extensive local knowledge ensures they provide a quality service. This regional focus enables each Centre to develop an awareness of the entire range of services available, to establish networks with local providers and ensure information is up to date.

The Centres can also help arrange respite, when carers need to take a break from caring. They do this by acting as a single contact point for information need by carers and by organising, purchasing, or managing respite care assistance packages for carers. Examples of respite care assistance include in-home respite care; support workers to assist you when you are taking a break away from home; and residential respite care.

The website is listed as Comonwealth Carelink Centres and can be found in this Blog's sidebar list of ...places you might wish to visit...

Disability Rocks for Mad-As-Hell

Sue O'Reilly, who is one of the movers in MAD-AS-HELL (see their web site and pledge here), is organising a "Special Concert and Political Rally" at Everest Theatre, Seymour Centre, Chippendale, Sydney on 3pm, Sunday 1 August, 2010.

Special guest speakers:-
 The Hon Bill Shorten MP, Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities
 Senator Mitch Fifield, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities & Carers
 Ian Cohen MLC, Greens Party, NSW State Parliament
 Kelly Vincent MLC, Dignity For Disability Party, SA State Parliament
 Marylou Carter, Carers’ Alliance Party
 Bill Moss AM, Chairman & Founder, FSHD Global Research Foundation; and member, Disability Investment Group
MC: James Valentine

There is a poster here and you can buy tickets (soon) here.
Come along and see if we can get disability policy onto the agenda for the next State and Federal elections.

Details of the Mad-As-Hell campaign are listed at the bottom of this Blog.

Estelle Shield's RANT

This is a tricky Posting.  The original offer of "Wellness" (have a look at this invitation) was well meant by good people who work in Disability and is intended to be a help.  But, as Estelle points out, it does not sit that well with families who are trying to solve the central problem, not the bits around the edges.
Having read the brochure, this is what Estelle said...
"Yes, isn't this just what we need!
We're all going to die on the job, that is, die caring. We will never see our sons and daughters settled in supported accommodation. We will never have any experience of retirement as our peers are now taking for granted. We are setting up our middle-aged adult children who have intellectual disability for the tsunami moment in their lives when in the same breath they will lose primary carer, only home ever known and local community. And this is for a group of people who, by definition, are less able to accommodate change and cope with the unknown. We cannot supervise their gradual transition from home to supported care, we cannot pass on the wealth of knowledge that we have gleaned over a lifetime of caring for our person and we are sick with worry at the cruelness and injustice of it all.
But hey, let's go along and do "Wellness" - have a free lunch on the disability agency that funds these diversions and let's all forget that Australia's ageing parent carers are exploited and abandoned and that its people with intellectual disability are second class citizens, unworthy of essential services.
Let's all have an ayurvedic massage and pretend all's well with the world.
The funding for all this wellness and so many other charades masquerading as "services" should have gone where it is urgently needed: into making supported accommodation for Australian citizens who have intellectual disability. Anything else is just using a bandaid when we need the major surgery.
Estelle Shields"
I would love to see LOTS of families add Comments to this Posting so we can guage what Sunnyfield Members think - do you want Wellness, long-term solutions to our central disability problems, or both?
Let's see those cards and letters folks...

Productivity Commission review of NDIS matters

Mark Clayton has asked for input from families about the NDIS proposals.

He said this: "I don’t know if you or the members and families have seen this material but I would like to encourage families to have their say on this critical work being reviewed by the Productivity Commission.  I am preparing a response for Sunnyfield which will go to the Board for its endorsement but I also think that families should have their own say.  The closing date for these submissions has been extended to Monday 16 August.  I am getting the documents loaded onto Sunnyfield's web page for public review." Mark Clayton. Manager, Strategy and Development, Tel: (02) 8977 8803, Mob: 0403 078 450, Email: m.clayton@sunnyfield.org.au

The documents are available here. First, second, third.

From the Board May 2010

Welcome to the May edition of “From the Board”.  At the May meeting the Board considered and acted on the following matters:

Members

·           Approved 47 new members, removed 4 members from the register at their request or due to incorrect admission, and one member who unfortunately has passed away.

·           Discussed and agreed on the need for a review of the voting rights of members. This item has now been referred to the Board’s Constitutional Reform Committee.

Fundraising

·           Acknowledged with gratitude the receipt of $80,000 from Ricoh Australia at the Beaches Breakfast on the 26 March, and a $50,000 grant from Newcastle Permanent Building Society Foundation that will help Sunnyfield establish a community nursery at our Charmhaven DOP site.

·           The Chair informed the Board that Sunnyfield had won second prize in the ASX Thomson Reuters Charity Foundation Art Union.  The prize was a beautiful string of pearls worth $15,000.  This item would be used for fundraising purposes in due course.

Divisional Updates

Each Division’s Business Report was considered, and the Board particularly noted the significant improvement in staff vacancies and turnover. Annual staff turnover has reduced from 35% two years ago to a current rate of 10%.  

Enterprises

·           During April, Enterprises has had a record month for Ablite sales with $500,000 invoiced as a result of the $1 million Hunter TAFE project. Despite Ablite’s success, Enterprises is facing a significant downturn of business due to the Global Financial Crisis. The Sales & Marketing department is very focussed on sourcing new business to replace this and to ensure the people we support remain in meaningful employment.

·           There was considerable discussion regarding the operating outcomes and balance sheet.  Sunnyfield remains in a relatively strong position; however Brand and Fundraising must remain a key factor to support the goal of financial independence.

·           The Modern Award continues to impact workload and employee conditions.  Continued communication with staff to explain the impact of the changes is currently being undertaken.

Community Services

·           Cathy Commins, General Manager Community Services, gave a presentation of the operational processes of this Division to the Board.  The presentation covered the scope of operations including numbers and diversity of staff, programme variety, funding and geographical spread. The achievements of the Division against the business plan for the year to date and achievements of individuals was of great interest to the Board members.  The Board congratulated Cathy and Frank Francis, Chief Executive Officer, on the comprehensive nature of the services offered.  A description of those services is available on the Sunnyfield website.

Policy Development

·           The Board reviewed the proposed new procedures for “How to Respond to Alleged Assault or Abuse Situations (for Adults)” and “How to Protect Children and Young People at Sunnyfield”.  The Board approved the revised proactive approach including the establishment of a trained Response Team.

The next meeting of the Board will be held in July 2010 and, as always, the Board welcomes submissions and receipt of any items the members would like the Board to discuss and consider. These can be forwarded through to the CEO’s Office.

Patricia McKenzie Sunnyfield Chair

Sunnyfield's POSITION PAPERS

Sunnyfield is developing key position papers in response to requests from families for specific information on a number of issues.

Below is the list of papers that have been developed and focus on:

Trusts and Wills;

Person Centred Practices;

Accomodation; and

Individualised Funding.

The papers have been developed to provide important background, up-to-date information and Sunnyfield's perspectivie on each key issue. Please watch this space as more position papers will be added.

They can all be found here.