Issue 151
6 April 2010
The National Companion Card enables eligible people with lifelong disability to participate at venues and activities without incurring the cost of a second ticket for their companion. Following the launch of the National program in December 2009, the number of national organisations who are now accepting the card has increased.
The support from industry now means there is a greater choice of sporting, cultural and recreational events, activities and venues which Companion Card holders can access without having to pay for their companion.
The most recent national affiliates to lend their support include The Football Federation of Australia, V8 Supercars, YMCA, Fitness Australia and Hoyts Cinemas. This means there are now over 20 national organisations accepting the card with these alone providing Companion Card holders access to over 1600 venues, 400 events and 15 tournaments/fixtures.
The State and Territory Companion Card programs have also added to their list of affiliates. Nationwide there are well over 2700 State/Territory based organisations accepting the card. The range of events, activities and venues is vast with recent additions including The National Museum of Australia in Canberra, Queensland rail Traveltrain Holidays and the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS).
For a full list of where the Companion Card is accepted or to obtain more information about applying for a card, please visit the Companion Card website.
To add a Companion Card link from your website please contact companioncard@fahcsia.gov.au
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Changes to the Commonwealth Procurement Guidelines in 2008 enable Australian Government buyers to purchase from Australian Disability Enterprises without the requirement to go to tender. Since 2008, the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) has been working hard to encourage Australian Government departments and agencies to consider purchasing from Australian Disability Enterprises.
This includes the development of the Australian Disability Enterprise website, which will soon include a page with advice and information specifically for Australian Government purchasers and the appointment of the National Disability Procurement Coordinator whose role is to connect Australian Government buyers with Australian Disability Enterprises, simplifying the procurement process even further.
The most recent addition to the suite of initiatives aimed at connecting Australian Government buyers with Australian Disability Enterprises is the Purchasing with Purpose Expo for Australian Government Buyers. FaHCSIA and National Disability Services (NDS) are working together to deliver this Expo which will showcase the hundreds of options available to Australian Government purchasers from the Australian Disability Enterprises sector.
The Expo will comprise Australian Disability Enterprise stalls across a wide range of industries and will give government representatives the opportunity to test products and investigate further the purchasing opportunities the sector provides.
FaHCSIA and NDS will also hold a stall to include promotional material and samples for Australian Disability Enterprises that would like to participate in the Expo but are unable to send a representative on the day.
The Parliamentary Secretary for Disabilities and Children's Services, the Hon Bill Shorten MP, will be launching the event and will also walk around to look at stalls and meet attendees.
The Expo will take place on 1 June 2010 at the National Convention Centre in Canberra. Further information about the Expo will be provided closer to the time on the NDS website. For further information about the Expo by contact NDS via email at rebecca.gardner@nds.org.au. Please also advise if you wish to send promotional material and/or samples for the FaHCSIA and NDS stall and details of where to send these products will be provided closer to the date.
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On 25 March 2010, the Minister for Employment Participation, Senator Mark Arbib, announced the successful grant recipients for the second funding round of the Jobs Fund.
A total of $39 million in funding has been approved to deliver 53 projects through the second and final round of the Jobs Fund. These projects will help support and create jobs in communities hardest hit by unemployment and the global economic downturn.
The second round of projects under the Get Communities Working stream include support for social enterprises to provide training and employment opportunities to people from disadvantaged backgrounds.
The second round of projects under the Local Jobs stream include support for repairs and improvements to community facilities and projects that will provide green skills for the future, such as energy efficient homes and community buildings.
A total of $5 million in funding has been approved to Australian Disability Enterprise organisations.
For a full list of successful organisations and their projects, and for more information about the Jobs Fund, visit the Keep Australia Working website.
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The Australian Sports Commission, in conjunction with the University of Technology (Sydney), is currently conducting a research project investigating the barriers and benefits of including people with disability in sport and active recreation.
The aim is to provide an evidenced-based position to inform government, sport and the disability sector of the factors that influence the participation of people with disability in sport and active recreation.
The study is focussed on two targeted populations:
The final report is due to be completed by June 2010.
Australians love sport and active recreation but research has shown that people with disability participate less than the rest of the community.
The Australian Sports Commission and the University of Technology (Sydney) would like to know of the sport and active recreation experiences of people with disability and whether they participate or not.
If you would like to be part of the research study, you can complete the disability participation and non-participation survey.
Participation in this study is highly valued. The researchers are interested in the reasons for non-participation and the constraints to participation that people with disability face.
The opportunity for participation in this study is available until 30 April 2010.
For further information on the equipment available, visit Modern Teaching Aids.
If you require an alternative format (large print, e-text or easy English), or would like to complete this questionnaire by phone or want further information, please contact the project manager, Ryan Sherry, on (02) 9514 5101 or by email at ryan.sherry@uts.edu.au.
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While retirement from work is a necessary and normal part of life, people with disability who work in Australian Disability Enterprises can sometimes require additional support to assist them to prepare for retirement. In order to ensure the transition to retirement is an exciting and enjoyable time for supported employees, it is important that Australian Disability Enterprises work with supported employees to start planning early before supported employees reach retirement age.
To help with this process, training officers at each Australian Disability Enterprise outlet will soon be provided with two copies of the When I'm at work: Retirement Planning - a flipchart for use with supported employees.
This flipchart is part of the broader 'When I'm at work series' developed through the Consumer Training and Support Project by Wodonga TAFE. When I'm at Work – Retirement Planning incorporates a workbook and flipchart to help supported employees plan for their retirement. They are intended for use by support staff during one-on-one training sessions. The content of the flipchart is set out as a series of six trainer-led meetings that cover topics such as:
The full range of resources in the When I'm at work series can be downloaded and printed from the Consumer Training and Support Products page on the FaHCSIA website.
You will also find a copy of the workbook which accompanies the flipchart on the Consumer Training and Support Products page. A copy of the workbook should be printed out for each supported employee who participates in retirement planning training.
All Australian Disability Enterprises are strongly encouraged to make the most of the flipcharts and use them to assist supported employees in Australian Disability Enterprises to begin planning for their retirement.
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You can temporarily exceed your outlet capacity to assist a supported employee returning from Suspension or Exit by utilising Stretch Capacity. Stretch Capacity is a 10 per cent allowance on top of your Outlet Capacity.
Stretch Capacity places are utilised when your organisation has no vacancies and a supported employee who has previously been Suspended or Exited from your Australian Disability Enterprise wishes to return to work. The case will take up a Stretch Capacity place only while there is no outlet place available. When another case is Exited or Suspended this frees up an outlet place and the case in Stretch moves over to use the outlet place.
To access Stretch Capacity your Disability Enterprise outlet must be at full capacity and you must return a supported employee's case from Suspended or Exited status within 12 months from when the supported employee was Suspended or Exited.
If the supported employee Exited your Disability Enterprise to access open employment then the period for return to your Disability Enterprise is two years. You will need to contact the Case Based Funding (CBF) Helpdesk for assistance with returning these cases.
Stretch Capacity places cannot be used for new supported employees who have not previously been supported by your Disability Enterprise.
If you have any further queries regarding your outlet's stretch capacity please contact the CBF Helpdesk on 1800 034 887.
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When Caseworkers are managing their case workload they should not rely solely on the Action reminders on their home page. Caseworkers can run regular reports and queries to better manage upcoming DMIs and other Actions.
To access the predefined queries go to the Case View screen and select one of the queries from the Queries drop down menu as shown below.
A list of the case predefined queries is provided below with a description against each to assist Caseworkers with managing their case loads.
| Name | Description of search |
|---|---|
AEI Cases |
This query does not relate to the Employment Assistance Program and should be disregarded. |
Active Cases |
Cases with a status of 'Draft', 'Started' or 'Returned from Suspension'. These are active cases and take up an Outlet Capacity place against your Activity. |
Active Cases in Employment Assistance Phase |
Cases with a status of 'Started' or 'Returned from Suspension' in Employment Assistance Phase (Pre-DMI). These are active cases that have had an Intake Assessment Completed and Authorised but have not yet had a DMI Assessment. |
Active Cases in Maintenance Phase |
Cases with a status of 'Started' or 'Returned from Suspension' in Employment Maintenance Phase. These are active cases that have had at least one DMI Completed and Authorised. |
All CBF Cases |
All CBF cases regardless of status type. |
CBF Cases Eligible for DMI Assessment |
Cases in Employment Assistance Phase with an intake completion date (start date) greater than three months previous. These are the cases that could be eligible for a DMI Assessment if the client has also reached an employment outcome over the last three months. |
DMI Assessment overdue |
Cases in Employment Assistance Phase with an intake completion date (start date) greater than 11 months previous. Most of these cases will only have one more Employment Assistance payment made and then payments will cease. The case will then be exited from FOFMS as these cases will not have reached an employment outcome. |
DMI Pending Authorisation |
Cases that have a DMI Assessment or Reassessment with a status of 'Completed' or 'In Progress'. The DMIs are not finalised on FOFMS until the status has been changed to 'Authorised'. |
DMI Reassess due in three months |
Cases that have a DMI Reassessment date of today or three months into the future. If these DMI Reassessments are not 'Authorised' on FOFMS three months after their DMI Reassessment date, payments will cease and one month later the cases will be Exited on FOFMS. |
DMI Reassess due in six months |
Cases that have a DMI Reassessment date of today or six months into the future. If these DMI Reassessments are not 'Authorised' on FOFMS three months after their DMI Reassessment date, payments will cease and one month later the cases will be Exited on FOFMS. |
DMI Reassessment due this month |
Cases that have a DMI Reassessment date of today or one month into the future. If these DMI Reassessments are not 'Authorised' on FOFMS three months after their DMI Reassessment date, payments will cease and one month later the cases will be Exited on FOFMS. |
DMI Reassessment Overdue |
Cases that have a DMI Reassessment date of yesterday or greater in the past. If these DMI Reassessments are not 'Authorised' on FOFMS three months after their DMI Reassessment date, payments will cease and one month later the cases will be Exited on FOFMS. |
Draft Cases |
Cases with a status of 'Draft'. These cases take up an Outlet Capacity place against your Activity, but you are not receiving any funding for this client. A case is not Started until the Intake Assessment is 'Authorised'. |
Exited Cases |
Cases with a Status of 'Exited'. These are inactive cases and are not taking up an Outlet Capacity place. |
Suspended Cases |
Cases with a Status of 'Suspended'. These are inactive cases and are not taking up on Outlet Capacity place. |
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 using pre-defined case queries 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.
If you have any questions regarding the predefined case queries or other general case questions, please contact the CBF Helpdesk on 1800 034 887
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When entering a new client record onto FOFMS some caseworkers are receiving an error message saying 'The CRN entered for the client is not unique' when they are entering the address details for a new client.
This is a false error message and has been reported for a technical solution.
If you are creating a client record and encounter this error message you only need to exit the client record and then go back by using the query facility. You will then be able to continue with entering the address and other client details.
If you have any questions about entering new supported employees onto FOFMS please contact the CBF Helpdesk on 1800 034 887.
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A case should be suspended if an employee is temporarily unable to maintain employment with your outlet for a minimum period of one calendar month, for reasons such as change in condition, education placement, personal reasons, seasonal work ended, time out, whereabouts unknown, etc. A suspension should be used for a temporary absence where you know or are reasonably sure that the employee will return.
A case should be exited as soon as you become aware that an employee will no longer be working for your outlet, for reasons such as consumer needs increased, consumer terminated service, EAP requirements unmet, moved out of area, moved to another ADE, moved to open employment, etc. An exit should be used for a permanent absence or an absence where an employee is considered to no longer be employed by your outlet.
In the instance of an absence where the employee is moving to another ADE or moving out of the area but you expect that they may return, the case still must be exited as they are currently not employed by your organisation. As with suspensions, cases which have been exited can still be returned within 12 months or 2 years for open employment; so exiting a case is not necessarily permanent and still allows the employee to come back if they change their mind.
If you have any questions about suspensions and exits, please email the CBF Helpdesk or phone 1800 034 887.
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