AN extra 1000 workers for the disability sector will be required in Western NSW under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) roll-out on July 1, 2017.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Minister for Disability Services John Ajaka, speaking in Bathurst, said the sector was growing in terms of budget, participants and workforce requirements.
Data provided to the Western Advocate by Mr Ajaka shows the current disability workforce is around 1350-1650 people in Western NSW, but the estimated required workforce for the NDIS will be 2150-2650.
“In addition to increased support for people with disability and their loved ones, the NDIS will help create tens of thousands of new jobs across the state, which is great news for the economy,” Mr Ajaka said.
The number of disability participants in the Western NSW Local Health District is expected to also grow by 64 per cent, from 3900 people to 6400 under the NDIS.
“This is the watershed year for the NDIS. In one year, the NDIS will expand rapidly by more than 40,000 participants [in NSW],” Mr Ajaka said.
Funding in the sector will also increase, from $2.7 billion in 2016-17 to $6.5 billion in 2018-19.
Mr Ajaka was in Bathurst recently to announce $226,500 in NSW Government’s Transition Assistance Program (TAP) funding to help seven local disability support providers prepare for the NDIS.
Bathurst MP Paul Toole said the introduction of the NDIS was a once-in-a-generation reform.
“[This] reform will transform the lives of people with a disability, particularly those living in regional and remote NSW,” he said.
Other groups to receive TAP funding included the Bathurst Seymour Centre ($34,000), Bathurst Community Transport ($16,000), Accessible Living Options ($35,000), Rylstone District Care and Transport ($16,500), Bunyarra Accommodation Services for People with a Disability ($20,000), and joint funds of $70,000 to Bathurst Early Childhood Intervention Services and the Orange and District Early Education Program.