Issue 146
25 January 2010
In January 2009, both State and the Australian Government Disabilities Ministers signed up to a new National Disability Agreement (NDA), providing a national framework and key areas of reform for the provision of government support to services for people with disability.
One of the key focus areas in the NDA is to provide a nationally consistent approach to Quality Assurance. In response, all jurisdictions have agreed to develop a National Quality Framework (NQF) for Disability Services in Australia, the aim of which is to promote and drive quality of services and outcomes for those who use them.
To support the implementation of the NQF, a review of the National Standards for Disability Services (introduced in 1993) has been announced. From the review it is expected that gaps in the current National Standards will be addressed, and contemporary language and concepts will be included. As part of the development and implementation of a NQF, investigation will also be undertaken of opportunities to introduce, where appropriate, generic or common quality requirements across the country.
From March to July 2010, consultations will be held in every state and territory to enable all key stakeholders the opportunity to provide input into the National Standards. Participation by people with disability who access disability services, their family members and carers, as well as disability service providers funded under the NDA, advocacy organisations and relevant disability sector peak bodies, is strongly encouraged. Details of the consultations will be provided in a future edition of disAbility e-news.
More information about the review of the Standards and the National Quality Framework can be found on the project website (www.dhs.vic.gov.au).
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FaHCSIA and National Disability Services, Australia's peak industry body for disability services, are working together in 2010 to improve the take-up by government of purchasing opportunities from Australian Disability Enterprises.
Louise Gray has been appointed to the position of Disability Procurement Manager and will be working closely with government agencies to identify business opportunities for Australian Disability Enterprises. With a strong background in the Australian Public Service and recent experience as the ACT Manager of National Disability Services, Louise is well placed to drive reform in government procurement from Australian Disability Enterprises.
"Fundamental to the ongoing growth of the Australian Disability Enterprise sector is building demand for the goods and services which they provide," Louise says of the project, "This means educating key public sector staff as to what Australian Disability Enterprises have to offer. With the decision to remove the requirement to tender when purchasing from Australian Disability Enterprises, the time is right to act."
The project will focus on both identifying opportunities in the public sector and supporting Australian Disability Enterprises to be competitive in bidding for government business. This will include working with Australian Disability Enterprises to identify potential partnerships and consortia, as well as developing tools and processes to support pricing, bidding, contract development and meeting government reporting requirements.
Please contact Louise (louise.gray@nds.org.au) by email or phone 02 6283 3213.
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What is award modernisation? How will my business be affected?
Award modernisation is the process of reviewing and rationalising awards in the national workplace relations system to create a system of modern awards.
The Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) began the process in March 2008 following a formal request from the Australian Government and has now released the new award for Australian Disability Enterprises, the Supported Employment Services Award 2010. The new award is effective from 1 January 2010 and a copy is available on the AIRC website (www.airc.gov.au).
FaHCSIA's State and Territory Office will be in contact with all Australian Disability Enterprises soon to ask questions about your current industrial arrangements so that we can determine more accurately the effect of the modern award on the sector.
The new award is now in effect. It is important that all Australian Disability Enterprises seek industrial relations advice on how the new award impacts your organisation. Fair Work Australia provide free information and advice on all modern awards and you can contact them on 13 13 94 or visit the Fair Work Australia website for live online help.
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Federal Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities, Bill Shorten MP and Victorian Parliamentary Secretary for Human Services, Mr Telmo Languiller MP launched the National Companion Card in Melbourne on 3 December 2009.
The National Companion Card enables eligible Australians with disabilities to attend sporting and cultural events without incurring cost of an extra ticket for their carer.
"People with disability have the same right to get out and enjoy a concert or a football game as the rest of the community, and this scheme removes one of the obstacles in their way," Parliamentary Secretary Shorten said.
More than 2,700 businesses support the Companion Card Scheme. Big name businesses which have recently joined include the AFL, Basketball Australia, Tennis Australia, the Australian Chamber Orchestra, Reading Cinemas, Circus OZ, Fitness First Australia, Circus Royale, Event Cinemas, Greater Union Cinemas, Birch Carrol and Coyle Cinemas, the Australian Ballet, Musica Viva and the Australian Rugby Union.
Visit the Companion Card website for more information.
To add a link from your website to the Companion Card website, please contact companioncard (companioncard@fahcsia.gov.au).
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2010 is the 'Year of the Girl Guide' when Girl Guides Australia celebrates a Centenary of Guiding. The department would like to acknowledge the contributions the Girl Guides have made towards the development of confidence and leadership in young Australian girls and women over the past one hundred years.
As part of their celebrations the Girl Guides will be participating in the Australian service challenge "Heads Held High", which aims to help guides to gain a practical insight into the every day challenges facing people with disability and the organisations that support them.
As part of the Australian service challenge, which will commence in January 2010, Girl Guide units all over Australia will be involved with:
If your organisation would like to be involved in this initiative, or you would like more information, please contact Ms Fiona Krautil, National Executive Officer, Girl Guides Australia, on 02 9319 7206 or email centenary (centenary@girlguides.org.au).
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It is important that the weekly wages and hours of all new supported employees are entered into FOFMS when the supported employee obtains an employment outcome and just prior to completing and authorising the first DMI Assessment.
For all other clients, who have already had a DMI Assessment, you must ensure that you have up-to-date weekly wages and hours data recorded in FOFMS.
Updates should be made when a change in the supported employee's wages or standard hours of work occurs. For example, after a new wage assessment is completed or there is an increase or reduction to the supported employee's weekly hours.
If your supported employee's hours vary from week to week because of seasonal or other fluctuations then an average should be applied, based on a quarter year.
If a supported employee has a casual work arrangement then an average can also be applied, based on either a fortnightly/monthly period, for example:
You should make a note on the client's file indicating which of these averaging processes you have used to determine the weekly wage and hours data contained in FOFMS.
FaHCSIA has developed a series of short FOFMS training movies which are now available to all Disability Employment Assistance (DEA) FOFMS users. Instructions and information about creating and updating weekly wages and hours information in case records can be found in the Australian Disability Enterprises Creating and Managing a Case Record in FOFMS training video on the Australian Disability Enterprises FOFMS Training Resource Centre website.
Please contact the Case Based Funding Helpdesk on 1800 034 887 if you have any questions regarding entering weekly wages and hours data.
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The Case Based Funding Helpdesk has recently become aware that in some instances observations recorded for DMI evidence may not reflect the actual support provided to a supported employee.
It is essential to note that all observations of support provided to employees are observations of the actual support that the employee was provided, and not an account of assistance that an Australian Disability Enterprises could, would or should provide.
The Disability Maintenance Instrument (DMI) Guidelines in the Additional Procedures and Information of the Funding Agreement states that "The DMI does not, and is not intended to assess a supported employee's general level of disability or health status or their capacity to participate in work. As such the DMI does not assess what an individual can and cannot do at work or in other parts of their life. Rather, the DMI assesses how much support a supported employee needs to enable them to work at your Disability Enterprise". It is important that DMI evidence is based on objective observations of employees support needs at your Australian Disability Enterprises and not estimations of the support that may be provided to them in open employment or other work setting.
If you have any questions about the DMI process please contact the Case Based Funding Helpdesk on 1800 034 887.
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Huntley Berry Farm near Orange in Central West NSW is an OCTEC Incorporated owned and operated Australian Disability Enterprise that provides supported employment for people with an intellectual disability. The farm is a major tourist attraction as it offers visitors the opportunity to 'pick your own' berries from a wide range, including strawberries, raspberries, youngberries and brambleberries. The berries are also used to make ice blocks, milk shakes, jams and other products that sell direct from the farm and at Orange's monthly Farmer's Markets.
The Huntley Berry Farm can be found on Huntley Road, Huntley, 10 minutes south-east of Orange. Its close proximity to Orange and the attractive surrounds make the farm a great place to work. Employees receive nationally-recognised training and perform a diversity of duties, all of which contribute to high levels of job satisfaction and the development of a range of transferrable skills.
For more information about the Huntley Berry Farm check out their listing on the Australian Disability Enterprises website.
William Good (foreground) and David Mein working at Huntley Berry Farm
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