Annual Report 2002–03 Volume I


Performance information Administered items



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Performance information

Administered items

Community Business Partnership

Effectiveness—Capacity


Increased awareness and take-up of corporate social responsibility by business

The PMCBP has participated in a number of forums to raise awareness of corporate social responsibility and innovative partnerships by:

conducting and promoting the Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Community Business Partnerships

providing information to business and community organisations through presentations, seminars and distribution of 2000 information packs including to local government

tendering for a brokerage service that will provide statistical reporting on the number of community-business partnerships established

developing a benchmark evaluation on a communications strategy

developing a Triple Bottom Line database to record current industry trends

contracting to upgrade the PMCBP web site www.partnerships.zip.com.au/, an information resource for people and organisations interested in community business engagement to enable monitoring of web site use and awareness.



Increased number of nominations for awards that recognise excellence in partnerships

The number of nominations received for the Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Community Business Partnerships has increased each year since its inception: 1999: 54, 2000: 217, 2001: 228 and 2002: 288. The general Business category received 221 nominations and the Special Awards category received 67 nominations. This is the highest number of nominations for any year since the awards began.


Price


$0.1 million

Compensation for extension of fringe benefits to pensioners and older long-term allowees and beneficiaries

Quality—Assurance


Certification from states and territories that they are complying with the agreement

All states and territories certified they will continue to comply with the terms of the Australian Government state and territory agreement.


Price


$178.3 million

Commentary


In 1993 the Australian Government extended the Pensioner Concession Card to all part-rate pensioners and certain older long-term allowance recipients. In response to states’ and territories’ concern that an increase in the number of eligible card holders would have an impact on their state concession programs, the Australian Government agreed to provide an annual payment as compensation for the increased costs of ‘core’ concessions—utilities, municipal and water rates, public transport and motor vehicle registration.

Concession cards

Effectiveness—Take-up/Coverage


Percentage of eligible clients with a CSHC and a low-income Health Care Card—57 per cent

Quantity


Table 39: Number of persons covered by concession cards

Concession card

Card holder numbers

Number of dependants listed on cards

Health Care Card

1 326178

897 052

Low Income Health Care Card

330 236

24 949

Pensioner Concession Card

3121600

1 092 500

Commonwealth Seniors Health Card

282 691

nil

Totala

5 060 705

2 014 501

a. Current at 13 June 2003.

Disaster Relief Payment


No major disaster was declared during 2002–03.

Emergency relief

Quality—Assurance


Funding distributed on the basis of need in accordance with formula-based funding model

In 2002–03, FaCS provided over $28 million in funding under the Emergency Relief Program to around 825 agencies for distribution through more than 1460 emergency relief outlets.

The Emergency Relief Program distributes funding based on data on the regional distribution of recipients of various Australian Government benefits and allowances. These benefits and allowances include Disability Support Pension, Newstart Allowance, Parenting Payment Single, Youth Allowance, those in receipt of maximum Family Allowance, participants in the Community Development Employment Program and those receiving the Exceptional Circumstances Relief Payment.

An additional $1 million (excluding GST) was provided to the Australian Red Cross appeal for victims of the Bali tragedy.



Training and support provided to Emergency Relief agencies

Nationally coordinated training workshops for emergency relief workers and volunteers included:

38 ‘Managing violence and potentially violent situations’ training workshops

13 ‘Communicating across diverse cultures’ and ‘Communicating with diverse clients’ training workshops

a pilot training workshop on privacy and confidentiality in service provisions to inform development of further workshops across the country.

The program funded the development of resource kits for use by emergency relief agencies, including:

4000 Managing violent and potentially violent situations—A guide for individuals and organisations training booklets

4000 Cross cultural communication workbook and CD-ROM for volunteers in emergency relief training booklets

10 000 Money for jam: budget plan training booklets.

Quantity


Number of service delivery outlets

FaCS provided funding to around 825 agencies to be distributed through more than 1460 emergency relief outlets.


Price


$28.9 million

Commentary


An emergency relief discussion paper, released in March 2003, focused on community linkages and client outcomes, accountability and effectiveness, and service delivery. The consultation period, originally scheduled to end in April 2003, was extended until May 2003 because a large number of responses were still being received. Further consultation will be held with the sector about any proposed program changes.

The funding to agencies under the Emergency Relief Program has been on a grants basis. Although many agencies have collected information about their clients and their reasons for seeking emergency relief and what happens to them afterwards, this information has not, to date, been aggregated at a national level. Through the discussion paper process a majority of agencies expressed support for the Australian Government to collect and aggregate data. Because data collection is complex and agencies’ capacity to collect data varies, there will be a phased in approach for data collection; during 2003-04 only minimal data will be collected.

The Emergency Relief Program Policy, Administration and Service Delivery Review 1998 resulted in 10 recommendations dealing with three key issues—funding, accountability and training. An Emergency Relief Review Implementation Working Group (IWG) was convened to oversee the implementation of these recommendations. In 2001 the IWG engaged Thomson Goodall Associates to report on the implementation of the 1998 recommendations and to suggest possible future directions for the program.

In 2002 the consultants finalised their Report of the implementation of reforms in the Emergency Relief Program (1998-2001) and discussion of future issues.


Family and Community Network Initiative

Effectiveness—Capacity


Percentage of projects achieving agreed objectives

Final progress reports indicate that projects funded in 2002–03 have either achieved or are on track to achieving agreed FCNI objectives.


Quantity


Number of organisations involved in community networking initiatives—100 (estimated)

This figure is difficult to quantify exactly because of the nature of capacity-building and the expansion of networks over the life of each project.



Number of new community networking projects and one-off projects—13

Price


$1.0 million

Commentary


Funding under FCNI is provided for projects that will build ongoing local and/or regional cross sector networks. The number of links predicted in the Portfolio Budget Statements (600) was much higher, based on the previous year where more than 70 projects had been funded. Out of the 13 projects funded for 2002–03, the estimate of the organisations benefiting from these projects is 100, based on feedback from project coordinators.

Indigenous Housing and Infrastructure—expand the supply of healthy housing (Fixing Houses for Better Health 2)

Effectiveness—Capacity


Improvement in the capacity of Indigenous communities participating in Fixing Houses for Better Health 2 to assess the need for housing maintenance and to maintain their houses to a safe, healthy and sustainable standard

Workers trained through ‘Maintaining houses for better health’ have been identified in all FHBH communities.


Effectiveness—Take-up/Coverage


Integration of the Fixing Houses for Better Health 2 methodology with the housing maintenance and upgrade programs of state and territory Indigenous housing authorities participating in this program through:

staff participation as trainee area managers

Officers from state and territory Indigenous housing authorities in Western Australia and the Northern Territory have been trained and supported to manage the FHBH projects in their jurisdiction. Community-based housing managers received this training in the Torres Strait FHBH projects.



supplementation of program funds with housing authority maintenance and upgrade funds

linking implementation of this program to housing maintenance and upgrade programs in communities.

The Indigenous Housing Authority of the Northern Territory has amalgamated maintenance funds to increase the pool of money available for capital upgrade on houses in FHBH communities.

The Western Australian Government’s housing maintenance and upgrade program has supported Western Australian FHBH projects for Indigenous communities.

For the 2002–03 financial year 433 houses were surveyed and initial urgent health and safety works commenced.


Quality—Assurance


Improvement in the functionality of housing health hardware between survey/fix 1 and survey/fix 2 in all communities participating in Fixing Houses for Better Health 2

Information will be available in late December 2003 when projects are completed in all jurisdictions.


Price


$2.5 million

National Reciprocal Transport Concessions for State Seniors Card Holders


Commencement is subject to agreement with each state and territory. Negotiations are continuing.

National Research on Gambling

Quality—Assurance


Research undertaken is of high standard and contributes to policy understanding and development at the national and state level

Research undertaken by the department is of a high standard and contributes to policy understanding and development at the national and state level.


Price


$0.11 million

Commentary


The National Research Agenda on Gambling will be enhanced through commitment from the Australian Government and state and territory governments to a multilateral memorandum of understanding to support the National Gambling Research Program.

Reimbursement to Great Southern Rail for concessional fares

Effectiveness—Take-up/Coverage


Percentage of eligible clients using concessional travel on Great Southern Rail—2.7 per cent

Quantity


Number of clients utilising concessional travel on Great Southern Rail45 000

Number of concessional trips taken by eligible clients—73 000

Price


$4.0 million

Stronger Families and Communities Strategy—Communities Initiatives

Effectiveness—Capacity


Communities demonstrate and apply greater understanding, skills and capacity as assessed by:

percentage of people completing courses and registering improvements in skills and knowledge

5065 people completed courses, with 91 per cent of those registering improvements in skills and knowledge



qualitative assessments of community projects to determine impact on capacity over time

An assessment to determine the impact of community projects on community capacity over time is being undertaken as part of the national evaluation. Results will be available in 2003-04



record of regular volunteer training

2880 participants were involved in volunteer training.



Participation in communities increases as indicated by:

number and range of participants in activities, for example, multicultural groups, Indigenous groups, rural and remote dwellers, and percentage of local populations that attend

There were 60 147 participants in activities under the strategy, including young people, aged, Indigenous, unemployed, disabled, multicultural, business, single and separated parents and people from rural areas.



number of new volunteers—1824

Quality—Access/Choice


Percentage of community projects undertaken in rural and regional Australia—56 per cent

Percentage of projects in disadvantaged communities—100 per cent

Quality—Client satisfaction


Percentage of participant and community satisfaction with the range, effectiveness and outcome of the projects—90 per cent of projects that reported

Percentage of project participants satisfied that projects met community need—79 per cent of projects that reported

Quantity


Number of communities involved in the leadership program and network—239

Number of participants in activities and completing training—7620

Number of participants nationally in leadership development activities/national network

4160 participants were involved in leadership development activities. A national network will be established during 2003-04. This take-up rate is much higher than expected.


Price


$12.2 million

Commentary


During 2002–03, 164 projects were approved under the Stronger Families and Communities Strategy which will enable government to work with communities to help them identify their needs and develop their own solutions.

The formal evaluation of the strategy continued, providing data to contribute to the evidence base for strengthening families and communities in Australia. Early results are demonstrating that the strategy is helping emerging leaders to develop and gain skills, supporting the work of assisting volunteers, building networks, building partnerships between business and communities, and enhancing participation opportunities in communities.

The evaluation began in 2002 and will be completed in 2005.

Volunteer Management Program

Quantity


Number of volunteers referred, retained and trained

A total of 19 399 volunteers were referred to 26 member organisations (including 17 regional agencies), with 58 per cent retained in those positions. Under the program 6701 training hours were provided.


Price


$1.5 million


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