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WELCOME TO THE 2020 SPRING EDITION OF THE C&FC UPDATE

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As we navigate what’s happening in the world around us we are faced with new challenges, but also new opportunities. We have been planning a number of initiatives in recent months that we are excited to start rolling out.

You will be seeing more opportunities to get involved, including a pilot project designed to develop tools that will help people find a new home, and also inform the future of our work. We will be inviting people to contribute so stay tuned for updates.

Emma Gee is part of our new lived experience team.

“With a background as an occupational therapist and then surviving a stroke at the age of 24, I hope that I can share my experiences as a provider and recipient to further humanise the incredible work that the Summer Foundation already delivers,” Emma said.

“In my role, I hope to develop and deliver resources, services, policies and processes that are informed and shaped by people with lived experience.”

If you are a person with an acquired neurological disability, a close other with an acquired neurological disability, or a disability support worker, we want to hear your views about the factors that influence the quality of paid disability support.

We will be facilitating online focus groups and 1:1 interviews to discuss your experiences and perspectives. If you are interested in participating, please email research@summerfoundation.org.au and we will tell you more about the project.

We are running a study to investigate the role of support coordinators and how they can effectively assist people with disability and complex needs who are enrolled in the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). This research is essential because the role of the support coordinator has changed with the implementation of the NDIS, making it challenging to find skilled and experienced support coordinators.

The COVID-19 pandemic has made feeling and staying connected more important than ever before.

Our new Staying Connected web page is providing the opportunity for people with disability to share their stories.

You can visit the webpage to find out more here.

Summer Foundation storyteller Michelle has welcomed the opportunity to spend quality time with her family and to learn something new.

“COVID-19 hasn’t really impacted me in a bad way and has actually been a lovely opportunity to spend quality time with my family. I have really missed my support workers though,” Michelle said.

The Summer Foundation has worked with 2 of Australia’s largest providers of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to ensure people with disability can get PPE during COVID-19.

The 2 providers – RSEA Safety and Blackwoods – have each developed PPE online stores for NDIS participants.

SDA participants across Australia recently welcomed much-anticipated changes to the Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) Rules which will allow people with disability to share an SDA property with people not eligible for the NDIS or SDA, including their partner, children and friends.

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The Summer Foundation has decided to reconsider options for all upcoming events in response to the continuing spread of Covid-19. Watch our website for updates.

An NDIS Housing Options project is being run by the Summer Foundation for Queensland and WA this year.

This project aims to explain the housing options and supports possible under the NDIS to people with disability and housing providers.

It will also help everyone better understand the housing needs of NDIS participants including the needs of people who would be eligible for Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA).

Over the next 12 months, the Summer Foundation will be working to provide:

Information for people with disability about housing options
Information for housing providers about NDIS
supports and SDA
Events to inform and connect NDIS participants and housing providers
Special support for NDIS providers seeking to provide SDA in Indigenous communities, rural areas and for people in hospital or aged care

Although we had to suspend Housing Possibilities workshops we had scheduled for Queensland and WA, we presented some of the information and introduced our new housing and SDA related resources in webinars.

These resources are now available for download from our NDIS Housing Options project web page.

The project has been funded by the Australian Government.

Our second Specialist Disability Accommodation Supply in Australia report has just been published.

Produced with Social Ventures Australia, the latest report finds that there are more than 1,766 new SDA places in the construction pipeline as at 30 September 2019.

A new-look Housing Hub is on the way!

The revamped website will have a number of extra features, including improved search and matching functions and the ability for housing seekers to create their own profiles.

In December 2019 Tom Butler’s long journey to become his own provider of Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) ended in success, when he moved into his purpose-built unit.

A new type of transitional housing funding was announced in December. Medium Term Accommodation (MTA) funding is intended to support NDIS participants while they wait for their permanent home to be ready.

The Summer Foundation works hard to develop and regularly update resources and information for people with disabilities to get the right housing and supports when they need it. We understand finding the right information exactly when you need can be tricky, so we are making changes to our website to make this easier.

The Summer Foundation are completing a study to better understand the experiences and outcomes of young people living in aged care who are participants of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

It’s not too late for you or a family member to tell the Aged Care Royal Commission your story about being a younger person living in aged care.

The commission is accepting public submissions until the end of April.

We are running a study to investigate the role of support coordinators and how they can effectively assist people with disability and complex needs who are enrolled in the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

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We keep hearing good news about developments that are improving the lives of young people who would otherwise be forced into nursing homes because there are no alternatives.

The Summer Foundation has again partnered with Social Ventures Australia to undertake a survey of how much and what types of Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) development is being planned and built around Australia.

There has been an 11 per cent reduction in the number of people under 65 in residential aged care, the Minister for the NDIS Stuart Robert said.

The recently announced Australian Government initiatives and the Aged Care Royal Commission’s interim report highlighted the lack of data available around young people in aged care. The Summer Foundation has been working to address this for a long time.

Individual Living Options (ILO) are living arrangements that focus on the individual. They include living alone, co-residency, host arrangements and living together options. They are an alternative to group home services.

Three important new SDA documents were released in October:

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Welcome to the new format for our Consumer & Family Carer Network update. It will bring you the latest news and information to help you navigate the ever-changing world of services and supports under the NDIS.