Community Care Consortium

Background Information

As a result of the announcement of the Council of Australian Government’s (COAG) reforms to the Home and Community Care (HACC) Program, the NSW HACC Service Provider Peak organisations have formed an alliance to act as a unified single point of contact with the NSW Government, Human Services, Ageing, Disability and Home Care (ADHC) and Australian Government, the Department of Health and Ageing (DOHA), in a bid to represent the views of their members, HACC Service Providers in NSW. The alliance is called the Community Care Consortium.

Purpose of the Community Care Consortium 

The purpose of the Community Care Consortium is to provide a unified approach with ADHC and DOHA during the transition period of the COAG reforms. The Community Care Consortium believes a collective approach is necessary to represent the voice of their members and to assist Service Providers through the transition process of the COAG reforms.

Who is a part of the Community Care Consortium?

The NSW HACC Service Provider Peak organisations forming the Community Care Consortium are:

    •     NSW Meals on Wheels Association Inc

    •     NSW Community Transport Organisation Inc

    •     NSW Home Modification and Maintenance Services State Council Inc

    •     NSW Neighbour Aid and Social Support Association Inc

    •     NSW Community Options Inc

Exploration of Partnerships

The Community Care Consortium is currently exploring partnership arrangements in the development of a Community Care Training Hub in NSW.

A tender has been submitted to ADHC under the HACC Capital Funds Strategy to create a Community Care Training Hub close to the airport and on the train line. At this point in time, the tender document is under review.

If successful, the vision of the Community Care Consortium for the Community Care Training Hub might include such things as:

   •     A state of the art, cost effective, training facility where HACC Service Providers can attend training
         utilising the latest technology and Interactive Learning Displays and Bays

   •     Meeting Rooms for Peak Organisations and Service Providers to utilise

   •     A Display Room on the Type of Services a HACC Client will receive

   •     An Auditorium to view documentaries about HACC Services and a place to hold lectures

   •     Co-location of Peak Organisations to maximise business practise efficiencies 

Collaborative Autonomous Approach

It is important to note that all the Peak Organisations that are part of the Community Care Consortium will remain autonomous from each other at this point in time. All Peak organisations have extensive expertise and knowledge of their HACC service types and believe it is important not to lose these aspects of their organisations’ business. However, the Peaks also see commonalities in their business practices which, if combined, could strengthen their lobbying power as a collective and gain efficiencies. It is the Peaks’ view that co-location and partnerships have the potential to maximise our business practice efficiencies and services provided to our members. The combined unity of the NSW HACC Service Provider Peaks under the Community Care Consortium will ensure the continued views of their members are addressed during the COAG reform process and strengthen lobbying power for the HACC sector in NSW.

To Contact the secretariat of the Community Care Consortium, please email Stacey Sheppard-Smith: exec.officer@nswhmms.org

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