Appendix A

Carers Tasmania funding

The Department of Communities Tasmania fund Carers Tasmania annually as the peak body for the sector. The core functions of Carers Tasmania as the peak body are:

• Undertake consultation and research
• Support policy development and provide advice
• Maintain effective partnerships and collaboration to achieve outcomes
• Proactively engage with the sector and the population priority group
• Advocate on behalf of and build capacity within the sector and the population priority group.

DoH has a service delivery arrangement with Care2Serve and provides annual funding.

Mental Health Families and Friends Tasmania funding

DoH provides core funding to Mental Health Families and Friends to:

• promote the rights and responsibilities of family members and carers of mental health consumers;
• develop the capacity of mental health family members and carers to participate as carer representatives through the development and facilitation of capacity building activities, including training and mentoring;
• develop relationships with other stakeholders to achieve the best possible outcomes for families and carers of people with mental illness;
• provide independent family and carer perspectives to policy development, planning and evaluation of mental health services when appropriate through representative engagements; and
• provide support to family members and carers through provision of information, advice on referral sources, and one on one support as appropriate.

Carers Week Activities

• Organise annual Department sponsored events during Carers Week to recognise employees who have caring responsibilities and celebrate carers in the community
• Promote Carers Week on the Communities Tasmania website
• Encourage other departments to also promote Carers Week.

Promotion of carer related supports

The Department of Communities Tasmania promotes on its website and publications useful links for carers including, but not limited to, Carers Tasmania, Mental Health Families and Friends Tasmania, National Carer Gateway, NDIS, My Aged Care and Young Carers Network (Young Carer Bursary). For more information visit the 'Carers - useful links' webpage.

Premier’s Disability Advisory Council (PDAC)

The Premier's Disability Advisory Council (PDAC) was established in 2007. Its primary purpose is to assist the Premier and Government to implement Accessible Island: Tasmania's Disability Framework for Action 2018-2021.

PDAC works with Government and the broader community to promote the inclusion and participation of people with disability and their carers in community life.

Tasmanian Home and Community Care (HACC) Program

The Tasmanian HACC Program funds a range of basic core support services targeted at younger people who live in the Tasmanian community and whose capacity for independent living is at risk due to an acute health event, moderate or mild functional impairment or deterioration of an ongoing condition, and their carers. ‘Younger persons’ are people aged less than 65 years and Aboriginal people aged less than 50 years.

Although not a generalised carer support program, it provides some specific services for carers of eligible clients of the HACC Program. Support for carers includes carer counselling, support, information and advocacy; and small levels of respite care, including in home and centre-based care.

Peer and Carer Workers, Statewide Mental Health Services

Peer and carer workers are part of the Adult Mental Health Services professional care teams across the state. The peer and carer workers draw upon their own personal lived experience of mental illness and recovery (or caring for someone through this process) to provide authentic engagement and support for people accessing Adult Mental Health Services.

Rethink Mental Health 2020

Rethink Mental Health 2020 is Tasmania’s mental health plan, representing a shared approach to improving mental health outcomes for all Tasmanians. The plan addresses carer needs in several ways, including increasing the capacity of consumers and carers to participate in their own care and the development of services through information and training; increasing advocacy for carers; and monitoring and improving the carer experience through the Carer Experience of Service survey.

Additionally, as part of Rethink, a review will be undertaken of the Tasmanian Consumer and Carer Participation Framework (See also Action 2.6). The review will update the Framework to be more contemporary and evidence based, which will support improved engagement with consumers and carers.

Social Work Services

Social workers are allied health professionals who are available to provide psychosocial support to individuals, families and community groups including carers.

Social workers are available in all public hospitals as well as THS primary health sites including rural hospitals and community health centres and may provide home visiting where required.

Social Work interventions are offered alongside existing support clients have from other services as well as from informal and formal carers (e.g. friends, family members, neighbours etc). Involving other services and/or carers in the development and implementation of social work care plans for
clients is conditional on client consent.

THS Consumer and Community Engagement Principles

Providing patient-centred care that is respectful of and responsive to the preferences, needs and values of patients, carers and consumers is a core priority of the THS, as articulated in the THS Consumer and Community Engagement Principles.

The THS has Consumer Community Engagement Councils (CCEC) in each region whose role is to ensure that health consumers participate and contribute to operational and clinical functions of service design, redesign and delivery through consultation and involvement with the THS. Members contribute specialist knowledge and expertise by providing consumer, carer and community perspectives.

The THS has also formed a statewide Consumer Advisory Panel which convenes quarterly with the DoH Secretary and the CCEC Chairs.

Neighbourhood Houses

Neighbourhood Houses (Houses) are organisations offering accessible, locally-driven programs which respond to community needs and provide a soft-entry point to community and service systems.

An integrated network of 35 Houses supports Tasmanian communities. They are strategically located to lead and coordinate community development in areas of most need. Houses provide a range of community development programs based on identified community needs and resources.

Care2Serve has partnered with 13 regional Neighbourhood Houses to offer Carer Gateway Carer Kiosks where carers can access information or have phone or video meetings or counselling sessions with Care2Serve specialist Carer Support Officers, coaches and counsellors.

State Service Diversity and Inclusion Policy and Framework

The Tasmanian State Service (TSS) is committed to building inclusive workplaces and having a workforce that reflects the diversity of the Tasmanian community. Many Tasmanian State Servants are also carers. This commitment is informed by the following principles, which are embedded in the State Service Diversity and Inclusion Policy:

• Our employment opportunities are accessible to everyone.
• Our employees are valued and respected.
• We support our employees to be the best they can be.

The Policy is supported by the State Service Diversity and Inclusion Framework 2017-2020.

The Framework sets out the priorities and activities that the TSS will focus on to ensure our management policies and practices are supportive of everyone working, or wishing to work, in the TSS.

TSS Carers Toolkit

The Carers Toolkit resource provides information on ‘who are carers’ and the supports available to carers both within the Tasmanian State Service and externally. Additional information is also provided in stand-alone documents specifically for:

• Employees with caring responsibilities on accessing the support available;
• Managers and team leaders on supporting carers and fostering an inclusive work environment; and
• Work colleagues on supporting peers with caring responsibilities.

The Carers Toolkit will be updated to reflect the proposed Workplace Flexibility Policy (action 2.4).

Staff Wellbeing Framework

As a large employer, many DoE staff are likely to have caring responsibilities.
A staff wellbeing framework is being developed to better support, promote and communicate about staff wellbeing across DoE. The framework seeks to establish a flexible, evidence-based approach for all staff to promote, communicate about, and support staff wellbeing.

The Strategy will further support the Department’s Wellbeing Goal under the 2018– 2021 Department of Education Strategic Plan, Learners First: Every Learner Every Day.

Informal Kinship Care Review

Communities Tasmania completed the Informal Kinship Care Review and in 2021 the Tasmanian Government allocated $500,000 to immediately commence implementation of the review recommendations over the next 12 months.

Under the 2021 Election Commitment – Ensuring the Safety and Wellbeing of Children and Young People, the Government is extending supports for Informal Kinship Carers with an additional $1.75 million over four years.

Supports will include:

• A support and liaison officer in the North-West;
• Government concessions for Informal Kinship Carers;
• New training opportunities for Informal kinship carers;
• An information portal for Informal kinship carers;
• Increased brokerage for the new Informal Kinship Care Program; and
• Community based respite services for Informal kinship carers.

Companion Card

The Companion Card entitles eligible people with lifelong disability to a free ticket for their carer at participating venues and events. A photo ID card is issued to the eligible person with disability so that they can participate in community events and activities, with a carer of their choice.

Companion Card holders present their card at participating venues and events when purchasing a ticket or paying an entry fee and receive a ticket for their carer at no extra charge.

Tasmania’s Elder Abuse Prevention Strategy 2019-22

Respect and Protect Older Tasmanians: Tasmania’s Elder Abuse Prevention Strategy 2019 –2022 supports new and contemporary ways to inform and educate and provide services that respond to the issue of elder abuse. More significantly, the future focus will be on safeguarding and working across government and the community to determine the best way to protect older Tasmanians from abuse and harm.

The THS Community Social Work Service offers advice and support to clients and their families impacted by elder abuse. This advisory role may include consultation with the person’s carer and family members (unless the carer is the alleged perpetrator of elder abuse), GPs and other service providers.

Communities Tasmania

THS

Universal and targeted support for Tasmanian learners’ wellbeing, participation, engagement and learning needs, including young carers

Young carers may experience barriers to learning and might need additional assistance.
The Department of Education provides tiered student support for all learners encompassing services and functions that support engagement and wellbeing for learning.

These are provided directly to learners, and through building the capacity of schools to meet a wide range of student needs as part of inclusive practice. Student supports include school-based student support and wellbeing teams, a centralised Student Support Team, student engagement staff, school psychologists,
social workers; and targeted additional support for students affected by trauma.

2018-21 Child and Student Wellbeing Strategy and Annual Student Wellbeing Survey

The Department of Education launched the Child and Student Wellbeing Survey in 2018. The Strategy supports the Department’s Wellbeing Goal under the 2018–2021 Department of Education Strategic Plan, Learners First: Every Learner Every Day.

The Strategy guides the development of the Student Wellbeing Survey which students in years 4 – 12 undertake annually.

The Survey provides valuable data on the wellbeing of Tasmanian government school students and informs DoE’s approach to student wellbeing at a school and system level.

Throughout 2020 DoE’s focus has been supporting the wellbeing of all students, and especially vulnerable cohorts, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Students who are Carers Policy and Procedure

TasTAFE has a Students who are Carers Policy and Procedure and is committed to recognising the role of carers, providing ongoing support and continuously considering strategies to improve access and support for carers.

Adult Learning Strategy 2020-23

The Adult Learning Strategy – skills for work and life supports lifelong learning for all Tasmanians to improve the work and life skills of individuals and to help them find fulfilling careers. Implementation of the Adult Learning Strategy is new Action 3.3.

The strategy was developed with input from across government, and the community and business sectors, including carer advocacy groups, to provide a comprehensive policy framework supported by targeted investments.

The strategy will help ensure that all Tasmanians, including carers, are better supported to engage or re-engage in learning to improve their employment opportunities and build their personal confidence and mental health and wellbeing. In particular, a priority of the strategy is to increase community engagement with adult learning through continuing conversations with the community, providing new training opportunities in priority industries, and supporting people with barriers to engage in learning.

Training and Work Pathways Program

The program provides grants to eligible individuals or organisations to undertake targeted activities to address specific disadvantages that impact on the ability of a target group or groups, such as carers, to accessing and participating in training and employment.