CHS Training in Grafton have a number of courses starting in October. Through professional and accredited training their vision is to help people and organisations achieve their full potential.
To see which courses are beginning soon, visit their website.
CHS Training can be contacted on 02 6642 5559 or email [email protected]
The Residential Tenancy Support Package applies to eligible COVID-19 impacted tenants and landlords. It includes a freeze on evictions and assistance for landlords who reduce rent.
Please note, the online application process for claims up to $4,500 will be available from 24 September 2021.
To be eligible for the new measures, a tenant needs to demonstrate that they are a member of a household impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. A “household” means any tenants or other persons living together in the same residential premises.
A household is impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic if:
*A “rent-paying member” of a household is any person who regularly contributes towards the rent payable under a residential tenancy agreement. This includes a member of a household who regularly contributes to the rent but is not named on the rental agreement (e.g. an adult child who contributes to the rental payments of their parent/s).
**household’s weekly income is the net income earned (after tax and/or business-related expenses). It includes any government assistance that is received – either before and/or since COVID support payments were introduced by the NSW and Commonwealth Governments. Savings and superannuation are not included in weekly income.
Eligible COVID-19 impacted tenants who cannot meet their residential rent payments will be protected from eviction during the moratorium period starting on 14 July 2021 and ending at the end of 11 November 2021.
The protection against eviction for rental arrears applies to all residential tenancy agreements within the meaning of the Residential Tenancies Act 2010 (the Act), including oral agreements.
To be protected from eviction during the moratorium period, the impacted tenant must:
A landlord or agent may continue to seek termination in other circumstances including:
The usual notice periods apply in these circumstances.
Following the end of the freeze on evictions, a transitional period will run from 12 November 2021 until the end of 12 February 2022.
During this time, COVID-19 impacted tenants who accrued arrears during the moratorium period (14 July 2021 and 11 November 2021) are exempt from provisions that would allow them to be evicted for those arrears unless:
OR
In considering whether it is fair and reasonable in the circumstances for the tenant not to be evicted, the Tribunal must have regard to:
The freeze on evictions does not apply to social housing tenancies as these have their own processes for dealing with arrears.
A landlord can claim either this payment or the COVID-19 land tax benefit (which is an offset of the land tax liability equal to the rent reduction granted), but not both.
The Residential Tenancy Support Payment has been increased from $1,500 and now provides up to $4,500 per tenancy agreement. Landlords who have already claimed up to $1,500 or $3,000 can make a further claim for reduced rent up to a total of $4,500.
Important: Applications will open from Friday, 24 September 2021 for additional payments of up to $4,500. If you have already lodged an application for $4,500 it will be held and processed from 27 September.
This payment will be available for landlords who agree to reduce the rent for COVID-19 impacted tenants from 14 July 2021.
The amount for each landlord will be capped at the rent reduction that is passed onto the tenants, or $4,500, whichever is the lower.
Landlords can make separate claims for each premise they own.
Landlords cannot ask tenants to repay the reduced amount of rent that has been paid to them under the residential tenancy support payment or land tax benefit.
A landlord is eligible for this payment where:
Social and community housing tenancies, share-housing, boarding, lodging or sub-leasing arrangements are not eligible for the support payment.
A landlord can agree to vary the rent for a period that goes beyond 11 November 2021. Rent reductions beyond 11 November 2021 may be claimed as part of the payment.
A landlord can also:
but these arrangements cannot be claimed as part of the payment.
There is also a range of other financial supports available. See nsw.gov.au.
In March 2021, the Government put in place the following measures to assist COVID-19 impacted tenants who accrued rent arrears between 15 April 2020 and 26 March 2021 (the previous moratorium period):
These measures end on 26 September 2021.
Under the freeze on evictions, if a tenant is currently COVID-19 impacted, the landlord is unable to take action to terminate the tenancy for arrears accrued during the previous moratorium period until after 11 November 2021.
For more information, visit this webpage – https://www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/resource-library/publications/coronavirus-covid-19/property/moratorium#60days
Healing Pathways is a 10-week group program for female survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Due to COVID restrictions this program will be online, held on ZOOM.
The next program starts on Friday, October 8. Due to high demand for this online group, another group is scheduled to start on the October 8 and will run through till December 10.
Cabcharge are giving away 400 $50 travel vouchers until October 30 to assist people in New South Wales get to and from their scheduled COVID19 vaccination appointments. Anyone can apply for the Cabcharge voucher until October 9 or until vouchers run out.
Go to this link: https://www.cabcharge.com.au/voucher fill in the details and you’ll receive a $50 travel voucher with a link to add it to your smartphone within 24 hours.
Follow this link for further information, T&Cs etc: https://www.cabcharge.com.au/covid19-resources
We’re offering $200,000 in travel vouchers
Lockdown restrictions on states has been challenging for many people, and it’s taken a financial toll on families and workers. That’s why we’re offering $200,000 in travel vouchers. Anyone can apply for the voucher to get to their vaccination appointment. If you’re based in NSW and need assistance to get to your appointment, fill in your details here and you’ll receive a $50 travel voucher with a link to add it to your smartphone within 24 hours.
Not just a taxi solution
Cabcharge products also support non-taxi travel initiatives, and can be used for services including 13things – a delivery service run by 13cabs. For those most vulnerable in the community, and areas experiencing higher rates of infection, we integrate with 13things to ensure you can pay for deliveries with your Digital Fastcard or Digital Pass.
Recently Social Futures Community Aged Care Sector Support staff completed the online learning modules. Glenn Bailey shares his thoughts …
To support my role in facilitating reflective practice on wellness and reablement implementation by CHSP providers I recently completed the eLearning reablement modules provided by the My Aged Care Learning Environment (MACLE). The three modules took around 10 hours to complete. The self-paced learning approach gave me the flexibility to engage in the content with convenience. Highlights for me centred on further developing my language on wellness and re-ablement, appreciating practical re-ablement strategies, negotiating goal setting in practice and broader awareness of diversity, complexity and vulnerability themes in aged care.
It is highly recommend all CHSP funded services and staff register for the MACLE eLearning reablement modules while there are still available places. A resource that explains more details and has a summary of training content can be found here (courtesy of the Eastern Sector Development Team – Victoria).
Anyone interested in registering in the online training needs to complete this spreadsheet and return it to email: [email protected]
Please note, our Social Futures team will definitely be sharing the many resources and great information we accessed through the above training in our future reflective practice workshops for Northern Rivers (contact [email protected] or 0408-132-838 for bookings).
General practitioners play a vital role in supporting local communities to face all sorts of health challenges – they see and hear a lot. So, have you ever wondered what GPs have to say about dementia, one of the key health issues of our time?
In Dementia in Practice, a new podcast series by Dementia Training Australia (DTA), general practitioners Hilton Koppe, Marita Long and Steph Daly share their professional and personal experiences with dementia.
Your podcast hosts are all GPs who are members of DTA’s GP Clinical Education Group.
This new resource will help you better understand what dementia is, how to prevent it, diagnose it, manage it and live with it.
The five episodes released now are:
Introducing Dementia in Practice: Drs Hilton Koppe, Marita Long and Steph Daly introduce the series and begin by sharing their professional and personal experiences with dementia.
Life with dementia: a first-hand account: Ann Pietsch talks to Dr Steph Daly about her experience of living with Lewy Body Dementia.
Healthy ageing and dementia: how to recognise the difference: Dr Marita Long chats to neurologist Dr Matthew Kirkcaldie from the Wicking Dementia Research and Education Centre about mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and the GP team discuss the different causes of MCI.
Diagnosing dementia in general practice (part 1): The team discuss the challenges for GPs of diagnosing dementia and offer some simple diagnostic frameworks to help overcome those challenges.
Diagnosing dementia in general practice (part 2): The team talk about their experiences and the process of diagnosing dementia in general practice, including how to detect signs of dementia, taking a collaborative history and keeping the patient central to the process.
The podcast has been produced by Kim Lester and studio engineering is by Derek Myers from Castaway Studios.
During the COVID restrictions it’s difficult to keep up with more structured exercise. Yet exercise, and especially strength training, will help keep us mobile and may also help improve our mood and make it a bit easier to tolerate the restrictions.
It’s well established that staying active is good for our health and wellbeing. It is recommended that older adults accumulate at least 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity on most, preferably all days. Our Living Longer Living Stronger can keep you active with exercise that maintains and improves your strength and balance. The more muscle mass you lose, the harder it is to get it back!
So don’t forget that a number of our Living Longer Living Stronger instructors are providing online classes which can be accessed by anyone aged over 50 throughout NSW. Because Living Longer Living Stronger is individually tailored to your own goals and conditions, you’ll need to have an assessment before you join the class, but this can be done online too. (If you are already in a Living Longer living Stronger class we may be able to transfer your program.)
COTA NSW also has a number of videos showing simple exercises you can do at home, so there’s another way you can keep moving. So there’s really no reason not to get started!
The Energy and Water Ombudsman NSW (EWON) is free, fair and independent. It is the complaints – handling service for all electricity and gas customers in NSW, and some water customers.
The NSW Energy and Water Ombudsman offers free consumer advice, for example have you received an estimated energy bill? You might receive an estimated bill if your actual meter can’t be accessed easily, but it’s important to understand your rights and responsibilities if you receive an estimated bill.
You may have received an estimated bill if your meter couldn’t be safely accessed, for example locked gates, a dog on the property, or overgrown bushes blocking the meter can prevent it being read. Retailers try to read meters every quarter however, if there are unsafe weather conditions estimated bills can be issued up to three times a year.
Estimated bills are usually based on the amount of electricity or gas used in the past, and your bill will be adjusted depending on whether you use more or less than what was estimated. Your bill should clearly state that your meter reading has been estimated, either with the word Estimated or with the letter E next to the readings.
What can you do about an estimated bill? Can you read your own meter? If you have an old meter you can provide your own readings to your retailer so that your bill can be adjusted. If you send a picture of the meter to your retailer before the due date, the retailer can adjust your bill.
However, this isn’t an option if you have a time – of -use meter or smart meter. If you are worried that your estimated read is too high , you can ask your retailer for a special meter read however there may be a cost for this service.
If you are worried about your bills, or are receiving a number of estimated bills contact your provider as soon as possible. The earlier you reach out, the more likely it is you can get help. If you are not happy with the response, you can call our team at EWON. We can investigate your bill, talk to your provider, help negotiate a payment plan, or refer you to agencies who can offer additional support.
You can find out more in our fact sheet here.
How to get in touch with us
Freecall: 1800 246 545* Mon-Fri, 9am – 5pm
Freepost: Reply Paid 86550 Sydney South NSW 1234
Interpreter: 131 450
TTY/Voice: 133 677
Online: ewon.com.au
* If you are calling from a mobile phone, let us know and we will call you back.
COVID-19 has impacted many people living and working in aged care.
It’s okay to seek help. The Australian Government has funded mental health, grief, trauma and education experts to produce online resources and training and support you either in-person or on the phone.
Support for grief, loss, and bereavement
The Australian Centre for Grief and Bereavement provides support, advice and counselling in a one-to-one or group setting through video calls and in person.
Call 1800 222 200, 9 am to 5 pm, Monday to Friday or visit www.aged.grief.org.au
Resources about the impacts of trauma
Phoenix Australia offers information and resources for older people impacted by trauma and their families, loved ones and aged care staff. Visit www.phoenixaustralia.org/aged-care
Help for people living with dementia where behaviours are impacting their care
Dementia Support Australia has a free national service providing 24-hour help, 365 days a year. Their dementia consultants provide support to people who care for someone living with dementia. Call 1800 699 799, 24-hours, seven days a week. Visit www.dementia.com.au
Advocacy and support
The Older Persons Advocacy Network (OPAN) is a free, confidential, and independent service supporting people receiving or applying for Government-subsidised aged care. OPAN helps you resolve any aged care issues and understand your aged care rights. Call 1800 700 600, 6 am – 10 pm, 7 days a week. Visit www.opan.org.au
Free, confidential, and accessible
All services and resources are free, confidential and respect your culture, religion, identity, and lifestyles. Translated brochures in 64 languages and an Indigenous design, and posters are available for download and to order in print on the program resources page.
Interpreting is also available, call 131 450 for Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS), ask for your language to connect. Or call 1300 010 877 for Auslan Connections, email [email protected], fax 07 3892 8511 or SMS 0407 647 591.
For more information, visit the Australian Government Department of Health website or contact: [email protected]
The Council on the Ageing (COTA) NSW is continuing to support the Building Better Homes campaign. Unfortunately NSW is one of two states that will not implement the new minimum accessibility standards that will be included in the next National Construction Code.
These are not extreme changes, in practical terms it would mean that all new homes will be built in such a way that they are suitable for people whose mobility is impaired or can easily be adapted to be so. For example, doorways that are wide enough for wheelchairs, suitable turning zones for wheelchairs and walkers, staircases that could take a chairlift and reinforcement in bathroom walls so that support bars could be added.
We need your help! The campaign is looking for people to share their stories – specifically we are looking for people who:
• have had difficulty staying in their home because their home no longer meets their physical needs, or
• have had to move into aged care prematurely because their home was no longer appropriate for their physical needs.
If this sounds like you, or someone you know, and you’re willing to share your story, please email us at [email protected] us by September 30.
The COVID-19 check-in card is a hard-copy (printed) card with a unique QR code that contains your registered contact details.
When you enter a COVID Safe business, a staff member scans your card and your visit to the premises is electronically recorded. If the business device is unable to read your QR code, the staff member will enter your details manually into the Service NSW business online webform.
This information, along with the details of the premises you are attending and the time and date of your visit, will comprise the record of your attendance at the venue. Service NSW will hold the record of your attendance for a period of 28 days from the date it was collected. The record of your attendance will only be disclosed to NSW Health for contact tracing purposes.
The card provides an alternative check-in method for customers who don’t have smart phones and/or those who are not comfortable using the Service NSW business online webform.
Once you’ve created your card you can have it posted to you, or you can download a printable version immediately.
If you lose the card, or your contact details change, you simply create a new card.
Note: This check-in method is only available at businesses that have a QR compatible device. It is not mandatory for businesses to accept COVID-19 check-in cards.
More details can be found in this link:
https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/transaction/create-covid-19-check-card
The 1-2-3 Magic Parenting Group is for parents and carers of children aged two to 12 years.
1-2-3 Magic and Emotion Coaching is a free three-session parenting course, designed to provide parents and carers with skills to prevent or manage common behaviour problems.
The program also helps parents/carers to build positive relationships with their children and explores ways to make parenting more enjoyable.
It will be run over three Mondays, on October 11, 18 and 25 from 10am to 12.30pm.
Come and meet other parents and carers and share your experiences in a supportive and non judgemental environment!
It will be held at 41 Wilson Street, South Lismore.
Places are limited, so please phone 6621 2489 to reserve your place.
Family Support Network, Lismore
The ‘No Scaredy Cats’ Parenting Program is for children aged two to 12 years.
The program runs over three sessions and is based on three underlying perspectives:-
The program will be delivered over three Tuesdays on November 9, 16 and 23, from 10.00am to 12.30pm
The venue will be 41 Wilson Street, South Lismore.
Bookings are essential. Phone the Family Support Network on 6621 2489.
To stand in solidarity with health care workers and the communities they serve, and to recognise the impact of COVID in our communities, Karabena Coaching has developed a FREE self-care course which is available now. It is a self-paced course containing 11 lessons outlining key health and wellbeing messages across physical, mental, social and emotional health and wellbeing. Learn more by visiting Karabena Coaching courses.
If you live on the North Coast of New South Wales, now is the time to ‘Speak Up’ on the Healthy North Coast’s community survey. This survey is held once every three years and is designed to help health planners understand what’s working and what’s not when it comes to health and health services on the North Coast.
More than ever, it’s essential that we have a strong community voice at the centre of our planning and decision making. Feedback received through Speak Up can help shine a light on what and where health services and supports are needed, and how to prioritise available funding to drive better health outcomes.
The Speak Up survey is open until 16 September 2021. Survey findings will be combined with other health data sources to form a comprehensive local health needs assessment for the North Coast NSW region.
You can find out more by visiting the Healthy North Coast webpage. You can also check out our previous fact sheets (produced after the 2018 Speak Up survey).