Valmar manages Group Homes in Tumut, Gundagai, Yass, Goulburn, & Queanbeyan. The service is funded by the Department of Human Services – Aging, Disability & Home Care and selection criteria for Accommodation support is ultimately determined by the department.
Valmar’s Accommodation services are divided into 2 main streams consisting of Group Home support and Drop-in Community Living support. Clients of these services are assisted to exercise choice through the development of Individual Plans and Health Care plans to ensure each person has a service that is best designed to meet their needs within funding guidelines.
Future planning is integral to ensuring adequate accommodation services are available for people with a disability and to that end, older people who care for someone with a disability are encouraged to talk to us, so we can help them work through their options when they are no longer in a position to be a carer for the person with the disability.
Group Home Support – are a means for people who need support in all their activities of daily living. The homes have support staff working whenever there are residents at home to assist them to live in and be a part of their community. Such support always allows people choices through the development of Individual plans that includes nutritional support to ensure a healthy diet, assistance with personal hygiene care, social considerations as well as budgeting.
Community Living Support – is sometimes referred to as Drop-in support. People who are supported in a Community Living service live independently alone or in shared accommodation, and have a support person call in on them once or twice a day. It is a service that helps people with a disability with some of those everyday living tasks such as budgeting, shopping, paying bills and social planning.
Through their Individual Plans, the service user is able to make choices about where they will live and who, if anyone, they will share accommodation with. Often people in our Community Living service elect to share accommodation with another service client rather than live alone because it cuts the costs of living. However, it is an individuals choice should they decide that they want to live alone.
What are the criteria and how do I apply for an Accommodation service?
To be eligible for placement in a group home or drop-in support, the person with a disability must be at risk of having nowhere to live with support and have needs that require regular support on a daily basis.
If you think you have a family member or someone you know who is at risk of not having somewhere to live with support in the future, you can speak to a Valmar representative, who will assist you in determining the best service model for the person with the disability and provide you with contact details and assistance for liaising with the Department.
Even where the risk of this happening is not in the immediate future, now is the time to act. By notifying the Department of future needs, it helps the government to ensure that sufficient funding is available to ensure that community needs are met.
Contact with the Department does not mean that you have to access a service. It is just a means of letting them know that this person with a disability may need support at a later date. What this does is cut a lot of “red tape” at that later date.
How much does it cost?
The only costs borne by the service user is rent and contribution towards everyday household running costs as well as spending money, just as it is for anyone else in the community. Costs are minimised because they are usually shared with other service users where shared accommodation is utilised.
Budgets and money management is addressed in service user Individual Plans that are developed when the person with a disability first enters the service. This ensures that the person with a disability can live comfortably whilst still saving some money. The Individual Plans are reviewed each year.
How do I find out more about an Accommodation option for a family member or someone I care for?
The Department of Human Services – Aging, Disability & Home Care determines eligibility for supported accommodation. If you would like further information you may contact a Valmar representative who will assist you in your enquiry and in making contact with the Department.
