YOUNG PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES SUPPORT SERVICES Discussion on Petition Signed by 10,000 or More Persons Mr ANDREW CONSTANCE (Bega—Minister for Finance and Services) [4.31 p.m.]: I acknowledge the representatives of the Brain Injury Association who are in the gallery today and thank the association for the enormous contribution it makes to raising awareness about brain injury in our community. In particular, I recognise the organisation that collected well over 10,000 signatures on this petition. I note that the shadow Minister, Barbara Perry, is in the Chamber this afternoon. The bottom line is that some issues are well and truly above and beyond politics. This is without doubt one of those issues. For too long both sides of politics have failed. They have failed to invest in the necessary pathways for people with acquired brain injury and failed to deal with the challenge presented by the interface between the disability and health sectors. We must recognise that many people who have brain injuries are faced with accommodation options that, unfortunately, will never be acceptable for their needs. It would not matter if it involved a nursing home or a rehabilitation bed in a hospital setting; the bottom line is that it is time for change. This has a profound impact on the daily lives and rehabilitation of those individuals who are forced to live in these types of accommodation. We have to have change. The reforms in the enabling legislation that is before the New South Wales Parliament to facilitate a transition to the National Disability Insurance Scheme must be rolled out carefully, in particular, the health and disability provisions for those with a brain injury. An enormous amount of work still has to be done in relation to the Council of Australian Governments interface principles—a matter about which I am concerned. We do not want people falling through the cracks—which is what is occurring under the current system—simply because they had an argument with an official in the health department, someone providing services in a health setting, or staff working in the disability sector. With the advent of the National Disability Insurance Scheme we must ensure that there is no cost shifting in the provision of medical and clinical support to someone with brain injury. Importantly, we must make sure that we put in place the appropriate pathways. This will require an enormous amount of public policy work—something that has been clearly demonstrated in this petition. The crisis being faced by people with brain injury is unacceptable, in particular, as it relates to their accommodation needs, clinical and rehabilitation support and ongoing disability support. Under Stronger Together 2 the funding tap has been turned on. I acknowledge the work of the Australian Labor Party that was commenced in 2006 under John Della Bosca. As a new Government we continued that work but more has to be done. I implore the State and Federal governments that are doing much of this work to look closely at these issues. The advent of the National Disability Insurance Scheme is critical but these issues must not be put to one side. I am only allowed five minutes to speak in debate on this petition but I could talk for hours. This petition is testament to the great work of the Brain Injury Association. I thank those members in the public gallery today, and my mate Paul, for their advocacy and their contributions. This wonderful National Disability Insurance Scheme will result in enormous changes to individualised planning and support. I know that the member for Auburn agrees with me that the assessment process, which is based on functionality, will ensure that people's fundamental human rights are protected. I thank all those in the gallery for the work that they have done in presenting this petition. I am privileged to have been able to make a contribution to debate on the petition. Mrs BARBARA PERRY (Auburn) [4.36 p.m.]: I welcome the people in the public gallery and thank them for this petition. I acknowledge the work done by the Minister for Finance and Services, a former Minister for Ageing and Disability Services, for people with a disability in this State. The Minister referred to our strong bipartisan approach to disability. It is fair to say that we have had good leadership and that this incredible sector has passionate advocates, as demonstrated by the Brain Injury Association and the petition that has been presented in this House. Extraordinary people work in this sector. The extraordinary people that the Minister and I serve and with whom we work are some of the most vulnerable people in our community. Everyone is aware of the statistics. New South Wales has more than 2,000 young people with disabilities living in residential aged care facilities and there are more than 6,000 in the rest of Australia. We are aware of the statistics but they are not well known by the wider community, which is a disgrace. Earlier the Minister correctly said that we have a shared responsibility to provide more information. Clearly young people should not be living in residential aged care facilities, but unfortunately that is where many people with brain injuries—people with high-end needs—are placed. I agree with the Minister's statement earlier today relating to the interface between people with a disability and the health sector. We have 24760 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 24 October 2013 much to do on that count. Even with the Stronger Together 2 initiative there is a need for appropriate accommodation options for people with a disability. The Productivity Commission's report on Government Services 2012 shows that New South Wales is lagging behind other States in the provision of accommodation and support services for people with a disability. There is clear, immediate and long-term unmet need. Table 14.68 in that report contains an analysis of the Young People in Residential Aged Care Program, which is mentioned in the petition. That program is still operational but no longer reported on. I have asked a number of questions about that program at the estimates committee hearings. That analysis also shows that New South Wales is lagging behind other States in getting people with disabilities out of nursing homes. Its focus has been on improving the conditions of people in nursing homes, not finding them alternative, more appropriate accommodation. Specific programs are required to move young people with disabilities out of nursing homes and boarding houses. People in the public gallery may have read an article in today's Sydney Morning Herald by Di Winkler under the headline, "Why housing is an enormous challenge for DisabilityCare." How timely is that article? The article refers to the release of the Summer Foundation's report and indicates that even with the introduction of DisabilityCare, the National Disability Insurance Scheme will not reduce the number of young people in nursing homes because of the shortfall in accessible housing. That is the critical issue. Put simply, what people in the public gallery are on about is how we, together with partnerships, address the critical issue of a shortfall in housing. The report states: DisabilityCare alone cannot resolve that issue. Unless the community begins to act now, we may find that when the scheme is fully implemented, young people in nursing homes and tens of thousands of other people with disability will have funding for support - but no housing. That is true. Let me assure members of the public that the bipartisan approach will continue. In relation to the introduction of the National Disability Insurance Scheme, the most important things to my mind are ensuring there is a pathway forward and that the need of young people who are in inappropriate placements is resolved. Will we resolve it totally? I am not sure, but I agree that we must go a lot further than we have currently gone. I again thank our visitors in the public gallery for everything they do. I also thank them for presenting this petition to this House. It is the most important topic that we have discussed today. Ms MELANIE GIBBONS (Menai) [4.41 p.m.]: I commence my contribution to this discussion by acknowledging the visitors in the public gallery, who have come to hear this petition discussed. The disability sector and the need for greater support for people with disabilities is a cause that is very close to my heart. I know it is the same for the member for Auburn and particularly for the Minister for Finance and Services, who preceded me in this discussion and who was formerly the Minister for Disability Services. When he held the Disability Services portfolio, his sincerity came across very strongly. I am proud to be part of a Government that has made funding for the disability sector a priority and of this State for being one of the first to sign up to the National Disability Insurance Scheme. Today we are discussing the overwhelming need for appropriate accommodation and support services for young people with disability. I have worked for two different disability organisations. I have seen the challenges faced by my Uncle Bourke. He told part of his story in a book with a bit of an inappropriate title, Fantastic Spastic: The Story of Bourke Gibbons OAM. He spoke about his life as a person with cerebral palsy but for the first time he spoke about his life as someone with cerebral palsy who was put into a facility for people with mental illnesses and problems, which was totally inappropriate for a young boy of just 10 years of age. I do know where visitors in the public gallery come from, and this is a cause that is particularly close to my heart. We know that there continue to be younger members of our community who live in residential aged care facilities due to a lack of alternative options. I understand that the Brain Injury Association of NSW has gathered more than 14,000 signatures in a petition, which is why we are all here to discuss this matter today. I urge everyone in the House—and I notice the Chamber is rapidly filling up—to take a moment to consider how at any time disability could affect them, a family member of theirs or a friend of theirs, particularly how it would affect someone who is a younger person being put into inappropriate care. Through the Younger People in Residential Aged Care Program, New South Wales is providing more age-appropriate support accommodation to 121 younger people, who are either in or at risk of entry to residential aged care. It is still not enough: We understand that. We are working on it as I speak. I have met with representatives of Youngcare, who have developed an innovative solution to supported accommodation for young people to keep them out of aged care facilities. I know Youngcare's solution is established in Queensland but a similar apartment development in Sydney is still in the planning stages.24 October 2013 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 24761 Mrs Barbara Perry: In Auburn, actually. Ms MELANIE GIBBONS: It is in Auburn. That is right. It is hoped that residents will be able to move into their new homes in 2014. It is definitely encouraging to see that steps are being taken to address this issue with real housing alternatives being provided for young people with disabilities. Ultimately the fact that their loved one is in a safe and secure home gives family, friends and carers peace of mind, but how good is it that we can offer a future for people with disability in which they exercise their own options of coming and going; and have their own opportunities to contribute to and benefit from community life and be valued as equal members of society. As I stated in my inaugural speech, I hope that if we leave government, we leave people with disability with a better standard of living than they had when we began. I believe this will all come to fruition with not only the full availability of the National Disability Insurance Scheme but also our attention and support as well. I thank visitors in the public gallery for their efforts. Ms SONIA HORNERY (Wallsend) [4.44 p.m.]: I also pay my respects to the Brain Injury Association. I worked at the coalface as a community support worker with Hunter Brain Injury Respite Options before I was elected to Parliament, so I am quite familiar with the Brain Injury Association and its good deeds, for which I thank our visitors in the public gallery. Today I lend my voice to the chorus calling for action on the issue of young people with disabilities who are living in aged care facilities. I urge the Government to develop a sustainable and integrated approach to achieving the best possible outcomes for young people with disabilities and to recommit to the Younger People in Residential Care Program. That includes employing highly qualified permanent and dedicated staff. Across the State there are more than 2,000 permanent residents in aged care facilities who are under the age of 65 years, 128 of whom live in facilities in the Hunter. Of those people, 27 are under 50 years of age. There are 10 people with disabilities under the age of 50 at a place that is very close to my heart, the Wallsend Aged Care Facility. As pointed out by Angelena Fixter, who is the chief executive officer of the Brain Injury Association of NSW, the current system is not ideal for those 10 residents or the Eveleigh residents, as I know. Other people with disabilities are living in hospital wards awaiting placement, and thousands who require a great deal of care are at home, being cared for by families who are understandably struggling, as I also know, to meet the needs of their loved one. One of the residents at the Wallsend Aged Care Facility, young Ben Brodie, was critically injured in a car accident when he was 29 years of age and he remains totally dependent. He has been at the Wallsend Aged Care Facility for five years. Ben's father, Colin Brodie, was instrumental in bringing this important issue to my attention, for which I thank him. I applaud him for his hard work. He is a really decent man. Mr Brodie wrote to me about his belief that the Government's current solution to this issue is "all about accommodation and nothing about care—there is a great need for re-direction of this issue". He writes also that the current situation is a "travesty". That is something that we really worry about. I conclude my remarks by saying that we must keep in mind that there is no one-size-fits- all solution to this issue. I do not believe that privatising well-run public facilities, such as the Wallsend Aged Care Facility which offers high-quality care to people with disabilities, is the solution. There is no easy fix for this problem. I call on the Government to make all the necessary commitments to provide a variety of solutions and to meet the needs of the State's disabled citizens and all young people in care. Mr JAMIE PARKER (Balmain) [4.47 p.m.], by leave: My contribution to this discussion on behalf of The Greens will be brief. I firstly acknowledge the incredible work that has produced more than 14,000 signatures from members of the community and has resulted in this petition being brought to this House. That is testament to all those involved in the sector of the fantastic work of the Brain Injury Association of NSW in particular. I acknowledge the work of the former Minister, Mr Andrew Constance, and the former Government for their collaborative work in relation to the National Disability Insurance Scheme. I recognise the important role that scheme will play in the future of support for young people in residential aged care. However, it is important to recognise that the National Disability Insurance Scheme is not the total solution and that very important measures must be implemented to ensure that everyone has a right to live in his or her own home and, whenever possible, everyone has the opportunity to exercise choice and control over his or her life. It is important to acknowledge the commitment that the Government and the Federal Government have made. The Younger People in Residential Care Program is a very positive and commendable program. Obviously no- one is claiming that that program will solve all the problems and deal with all the young people who are in inappropriate housing. Of course it is important to recognise that this is not just a disability issue but actually a housing issue, a disability issue, a young people's issue, and an issue that requires bringing various parts of government together to try to address it. Members would be aware that housing is a major problem in 24762 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 24 October 2013 my electorate; prices are incredibly high. Many parents of children with disability look forward to the National Disability Insurance Scheme. They fear for their children's future and are concerned about the situation facing young people. Their concerns make this petition even more pressing. I take this opportunity to encourage the Government to work with the Department of Housing and other providers to address, positively and constructively, this matter to ensure that in future no young people are housed inappropriately in residential aged care facilities and they can live fulfilled lives in their own homes. I conclude by thanking all those present in the Chamber today. I acknowledge the support across the political spectrum for this issue. I encourage more decisive and continuing action to address this matter. ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Lee Evans): I thank the member for Balmain and all participants in the 10,000 signature petition for their work on the petition. Discussion concluded.