Supporting Tasmanian Carers: Tasmanian Carer Action Plan 2021-2025

Images of people being helped to prepare food; walking on a forest path and meeting a person in a wheelchair.

The Tasmanian Government recognises and celebrates the important contributions over 80,000 unpaid Tasmanian carers make to their local communities, our State and our economy.

Carers deserve respect and recognition for the significant contribution they make to the people they care for, as well as the whole community. Many of us are not aware of the enormous contribution carers make, or fully appreciate the challenges they face every day.

At the 2021 State Election the Tasmanian Government committed to introduce Tasmania’s first Carer Recognition legislation. The Carer Recognition Act 2023 (the Act) came before Parliament in June 2022. It unanimously passed through the House of Assembly in November 2022 and the Legislative Council in March 2023.

Key elements of the Act include enacting a Carers Charter, the establishment of a Minister’s Carer Advisory Council and setting out the obligations of Tasmanian Government agencies to monitor and report on the Charter and the Tasmanian Carer Action Plan.

Carers' Charter (Word, 969KB)

Carer's Charter (PDF, 222KB)

The Tasmanian Carer Recognition Act 2023 uses the following definition of a carer:

A carer is someone who provides unpaid care and support to a family member or friend who has disability, mental ill health, chronic or life-limiting condition, alcohol or other drug dependence, is frail or aged, or is a child, if the person is an informal kinship carer of the child.

To support the implementation of the Carer Recognition Act 2023, the Tasmanian Government provided funding to Carers Tasmania to undertake the Understanding the Experiences and Needs of Informal Kinship Carers Research Report 2023.

Executive Summary: Children at the Heart - Understanding the Experiences and Needs of Informal Kinship Carers (PDF, 563KB)

Executive Summary: Children at the Heart - Understanding the Experiences and Needs of Informal Kinship Carers (MS Word, 599KB)

The Supporting Tasmanian Carers: Tasmanian Carer Action Plan 2021-2025 (the Action Plan) has been refreshed to align with the Act, including amended language in the definition to be inclusive and contemporary, and to recognise informal unpaid kindship carers.

The Action Plan has also been extended from 2024 until 2025 to ensure the development of the next Tasmanian Carer Action Plan considers and aligns with the National Carer Strategy which is due to be released in December 2024.

Supporting Tasmanian Carers: Tasmanian Carer Action Plan 2021-2025 (Refreshed August 2024) (PDF, 1.65MB)

Supporting Tasmanian Carers: Tasmanian Carer Action Plan 2021-2025 (Refreshed August 2024) (MS Word, 9.32MB)

The Tasmanian Government has updated its map of services to support carers.