Page 3157 - Week 10 - Thursday, 15 August 2013
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already successful parents as teachers program. This program provides parents with the knowledge and skills to deal with complex and challenging parenting. It is an early intervention approach that aims to reduce the need for more intense support in later years.
An amount of $1.9 million has been committed over two years to continue funding the Bendora transition unit at Bimberi. This unit provides intensive programs targeted at the young people involved to aid in managing the transition from custody back to the community. There has been a noticeable improvement in outcomes for the young people transitioning through Bendora. This funding will allow this good work to develop. Right across Australia and the world, the out-of-home care sector is under stress. The government will be providing $200,000 to further develop a five-year out-of-home care strategy. The result will be a streamlined, efficient, quality service for children in care.
I turn to disability and therapy. The budget for 2013-14 will prepare people with a disability, their families and service providers to get ready for DisabilityCare Australia. It is well recognised that DisabilityCare is the biggest shake up in the provision of human services in a generation. The ACT Labor government is making the necessary investments to ensure that the objectives of DisabilityCare are realised, that the views of people with a disability and their families are heard and that all people have the support and information they require. There has been a significant increase in funding from $41 million in 2002-03 to $96 million in 2013-14, an increase of approximately 132 per cent in ACT government funding for disability services.
The ACT Labor government is investing $5.5 million to prepare eligible Canberrans for choice and control under DisabilityCare. This funding will be combined with $10.6 million of commonwealth government funding over three years for a total investment of $16.15 million. Of this, $7.7 million will be provided as one-off grants to eligible people in the ACT, including our commitment to young people leaving school to access supports which will improve their quality of life and independence while also providing a break for their families.
An amount of $360,000 will be made available to establish a mobile attendant care and evening service and $245,000 will be allocated in 2013 to continue to support young people to engage in meaningful work and community engagement as they leave school. The balance of this investment will go to support families and people with a disability to plan and manage their grants and programs to support people with disability, their families and providers to prepare for DisabilityCare.
I know that Mr Wall has raised the enhanced service offer here. I think that with over 1,300 applications in the first round, and there is a second round opening up on 30 September, there has been a very, very good response. There was comment about completion of applications. I would draw everyone’s attention to the number of workshops and information sessions that went along with that and also the employment of individual planners that were there to work with individuals and families. There were also assistants, particularly at sites such as Nature Conservation House, to assist applicants go through the forms. With all the rounds of applications
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