Yooralla’s ‘Aspire to Be’ project team nominated for HESTA Excellence Award
We are proud to announce that Yooralla’s ‘Aspire to Be’ Project Team are finalists for the HESTA Excellence Awards!
We are proud to announce that Yooralla’s ‘Aspire to Be’ Project Team are finalists for the HESTA Excellence Awards! The HESTA Excellence Awards recognise exceptional achievements in a range of settings across aged care, allied health, community, and disability services.
About the finalists
Yooralla’s project team is comprised of Kylie Bowden, Michelle Williamson, Katrina Aabryn and Tanya Matthews.
“It’s an honour to be recognised for the Excellence award, given we work with so many people in the disability sector who provide amazing services to our clients,” the project team said.
Since ‘Aspire to Be’, a partnership between Anglicare Victoria (AV), was established in February 2022, the team have supported more than 100 children and young people with disability in Out of Home Care (OoHC) to receive a diagnosis and access to the NDIS and the disability supports they need – for stability and the best possible developmental outcomes. The project has also been able to provide assessment, therapeutic interventions, training and support to OoHC staff and carers, to assist them in better understanding the needs of the children and young people in their care.
“We love knowing that the work we do with young people in this space has the capacity to change the trajectory of their life.”
“By assisting those who need access to funding to get the supports they require to live their best lives, giving others a better understanding of their disability, but also helping them to understand their strengths, not only their difficulties,” the team said.
Improving outcomes for children and young people in OoHC
Since the establishment of the program in February 2022, under ‘Aspire to Be’, Yooralla has supported 102 children and young people with disability in OoHC (as of 10 April 2024).
Program evaluations determined that the partnership is an overwhelming success, with:
- 33% of young people with suspected disability diagnosed/diagnosis pending
- $3,608,542 in NDIS funds approved for participants (an increase of $1,726,721, including funding for 8 young people with no previous NDIS support)
- 52% of participants were assisted to obtain/change Support Coordinator
- 37% of participants had a BSP developed/reviewed
- 44 AV staff were trained to better understand and respond to disability needs of children in OoHC
This increase in plan funding, and substantial efforts to arrange/coordinate disability and positive behavioural supports, has led to tangible increases to young people’s quality of life and developmental outcomes.
How did ‘Aspire to Be’ happen?
Data from AV’s 2016 Children in Care Report Card showed that there continues to be a disproportionately high number of children and young people with disability in care (19%), compared to much lower rates in the general community (8.3%).
Access to the NDIS can be inadequate or non-existent for children and young people in OoHC with disability, especially as many may have missed a formal diagnosis of their disability.
This evidence, and the experience of AV as the largest provider of residential care and foster care in Victoria, clearly identified the need to support children and young people with disability in OoHC.
Yooralla and AV joined forces to address this need and combine AV’s expertise in residential and foster care, with Yooralla’s deep knowledge and experience in disability and the NDIS – to address the challenges of supporting children and young people with disability in OoHC.
Michelle Williamson, Group Manager – Support Coordination, and Kylie Bowden, Director – Allied Health were responsible for working with Anglicare Victoria to create the framework and establish the scope of the program.
Using Yooralla’s knowledge and expertise
Katrina Aabryn (registered Psychologist and Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) Practitioner) and Tanya Matthews (Senior Support Coordinator) were appointed to the program, to improve the outcomes for children and young people with disability in OoHC.
Through her expertise as a Senior Support Coordination, Tanya supported participants to navigate the NDIS through confirming their eligibility, recommending assessments, supporting pre-planning, providing guidance on finding skilled NDIS providers and attending NDIA planning meetings.
As a registered psychologist and Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) Practitioner, Katrina used her skills and knowledge to support the development of BSPs, providing training/implementation of plans to staff, carers and existing practitioners.
Katrina also provided access to Yooralla’s Psychology clinic for psychological assessment, intervention/therapy and the ability to consult with Yooralla’s wider Allied Health team, providing case reviews, clinical consultations and recommendations to assist with NDIS planning for behaviour support requirements.
The combined work of the team has led to an increase of positive outcomes and improved NDIS and support access for children and young people in OoHC with disability.