Page 1077 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 3 May 2022
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provides them and we are committed to improving the service. In this year’s budget we invested $1.4 million to both continue the current flexible bus service and undertake an evaluation of the program, including a feasibility study into a new on-demand model of delivery, with the addition of a booking app. This will ensure that we provide a service that continues to meet the diverse needs of our community.
Earlier I mentioned that it has been two years since the Age-Friendly City Plan’s launch. Indeed, the life of this plan has coincided with and tracked the impact of COVID-19 in the ACT. In 2021 the ACT government responded to the needs of older people throughout the COVID pandemic through tailored and specific information sessions on COVID-19 measures, including vaccination for organisations representing and working with older Canberrans; emergency food relief for those in crisis and support for individuals in quarantine; close work with homelessness sector partners to continue to deliver essential services to vulnerable members of our community, including older Canberrans; free public transport for members of the public travelling to an ACT government mass vaccination clinic; and the Libraries ACT digital helpline to assist customers with online membership, e-resource access, basic computer problems and advice on the smart, safe and responsible use of digital tools.
The Age-Friendly City Plan is more than the sum of its 33 actions. This plan is a critical statement of commitments by the ACT government to older people in our community. To this end, broader work of the ACT government that has supported older people in 2021 includes funding through the Technology Upgrade Fund Grants Program and the Community Connections Grants Program to support digital skills training for older Canberrans, seniors’ exercise programs and web upgrades for community organisations to increase ease and accessibility for older people.
The Demonstration Housing Project has delivered and tested innovative housing typologies that are not possible under current planning rules. One of the main aims of the development is to better facilitate ageing in place, which is critical in preventing and reducing premature entry to residential care.
The ACT government has provided funding to Palliative Care ACT to open Leo’s Place, a proof-of-concept non-clinical facility that provides overnight and day respite for patients with a life-limiting illness in a pleasant, home-like environment. This allows carers to have a short break, reducing carer isolation and fatigue.
Waste initiatives include bulky waste collections, which make it easier for older Canberrans to remove larger waste items from their properties, and the continuation of bin assistance, an initiative to take bins to the kerbside for collection for people with chronic illness, frail age or disability.
I am grateful for the advice and feedback of key stakeholders such as COTA ACT, seniors centres, ADACAS, and Carers ACT, to name just a few, to ensure that the voices and views of older people are front and centre. I would also like to extend my gratitude to the Ministerial Advisory Council on Ageing for their considered, active and engaged representation and advice on a broad range of matters. Their follow-up and engagement in the Age-Friendly City Plan is commendable.
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