Inquiry into the provision and regulation of supported accommodation in Queensland
Submission No: 132
Submitted by: Christine Court Assisted Living
Publication:
Attachments:
Submitter Comments:
Mermaid Beach QLD 4218
-2nd February 2024
Commi2ee Secretary
CSSC Parliament House
George Street
Brisbane
Qld 4000 CC: cssc@parliament.qld.gov.au
RE: INQUIRY INTO THE PROVISION AND REGULATION OF SUPPORTED
ACCOMMODATION IN QUEENSLAND
Dear Commi*ee Secretary `
The following is a summary of the presenta:on made to the SAPA Conference in 2023
by Grant Kelly, CEO of Chris:ne Court Assisted Living and Secretary of Industry Peak
Body - The Supported Accommoda:on Providers Associa:on. The purpose of the presenta:on was to highlight the benefits that Supported Accommoda:on (Level 3 is the subject case study) offers. The issues raised show that the offering that Level 3 Supported Accommoda:on represents is for many people an op:mal service at a affordable price but it needs funding. If we agree that Supported Accommoda:on has relevancy then its value needs to be considered against costly alterna:ves and the efficiency of the Free Enterprise Market must be considered over its more cumbersome and costly Chari:es or Government organisa:ons Many Level 3 Supported Accommoda:on Homes are self-contained … ci:zen communi:es The second point I’d like to raise relates to funding … supported accommoda:on needs facility based funding. You may be aware … our family owns and runs Chris:ne Court Assisted Living (CCAL) aZer several years of improvement
- building renova:ons …
- Our move away from shared rooms to single rooms …
- And programs we run. The result … last year Chris:ne Court lost $146,000 … if CCAL loses money … I don’t get paid. Our family business does not get rewarded for the effort and the risk of supplying the services. Details below.
Rehab Centre succeeds as Rehab Community
To demonstrate the point, that Supported Accommoda:on is more than a building focused accommoda:on supply we offer two living examples of self-suppor:ng kindred community. The Bu2ery is drug rehab centre near Byron Bay it had its 50th birthday the other day … HOOD DOO GURU BASS GUITARIST … Rick Grossman … gave credit for his recovery to the suppor:ve community … to everyone not just the staff or the programme or the live-in therapeu:c building … the suppor:ve community is the building, the programs, the esprit de corp.
Mermaid Beach QLD 4218
-This highlights the first part of my message today.
- That supported accommoda:on provides a home environment … a ci:zen community that looks out for one another. The benefit is highlighted during crisis. Crises do not occur on schedule and can’t be scheduled into a :metable …
Family Example
I grew up in a big family … As kids we never knew why Grandpa would get lost, we just knew if he seemed at 6’s and 7’s we should shadow him … At CCAL we have the same dynamic … Staff … clients … residents looking out for one another. For many years PG disabled through intellectual and schizophrenia would knock on neighbours door IW, brain injury, and shadow him to the dining room if he had forgo*en. To further support this point last night …
ABC Four Corners Report (2023)
MENTIONS … The man, who had a history of severe mental health issues, … had been coerced to move from a boarding house with support services to a house in outer Melbourne, away from everyone he knew. This is the key issue … away from everyone he knew. “He was … frightened of staying, but he was also frightened of leaving because, in his words, he was like, ‘I’m too old to be homeless. If I leave here … I have nowhere else to go.’ So he was really trapped.” Opportunists had promised him great food and caring support workers but instead, residents were some:mes leZ alone and told to defrost frozen sandwiches for their meals. The opportunists see the client as a source of income. We deal with these situa:ons daily. Care or support services are separate, and the Level 3 service offer provides support or a*en:on where the gaps exist, and there are always gaps. It highlights the core issue … Our clients are local they are part of the local community, and they are part of our ci:zen community. And to move them from that environment is deplorable even where the move is to a lovely house isolated in the back of an estate. This story highlighted social conflicts that arise when people are offered small group home share accommoda:on, where there is nowhere to hide when they just don’t get on. Larger ci:zen communi:es are socially dynamic allowing connec:ons to grow and wain.
Sustainability Issues
-
The most common objec:ons I come across speaking to colleagues is … ‘We do unpaid work … work we are not responsible for … hun:ng the streets late at night.
-
We fill the gaps in care …
-
Take clients to appointments.’ And to balance the books
-
shared rooms are a necessity.
Grant Kelly -
Christine Court Assisted Living
PO Box324
Mermaid Beach QLD 4218
Maintenance is overlooked. Importantly …
Properties are accounted for at historic cost AND to survive … owners inject capital … borrow money … or sell assets. When I first came into this business my vision was to create
efficient systems cost effective work practices. I found that staffing costs were inflated by 30% given the nature of the work we do. I separated the building fit-out and cleaning and maintenance … and staff scheduling from the people. While up to a point this planning was very successful, the overall feel of the building and the community suffered. It felt more like a shutdown swimming pool in the middle of winter than a home. That was many years ago and we’ve changed significantly. Today we’ve nurtured a citizen community, one which looks out for itself … … a kind of a kindred family or entourage.
Actual Trading Figures
The figures are real and to make them relevant to everyone they’re presented in percentage terms. The figures show a decline from an acceptable profit to a significant loss.
Actual Financial Results
60.00%
40.00% ,
20.00% /
0.00%
-20.00%
■ADMINISTRATION ■ EMPLOYMENT ■ OPERATIONAL ■ PROPERTY ■ PROFIT
In 2011 We had efficient building management … 60% of the rooms were shared. In 2016 … TWO factors impact performance …
- by Reducing the number of Shared, Rooms we reduced our income.
- Property costs fall … property costs fell because they are based on historic value and falling interest rates.
By 2023 we are losing money … again for 2 reasons
- The transition to single rooms is complete.
Grant Kelly -
Christine Court Assisted Living
PO Box324
Mermaid Beach QLD 4218
- 2. Property Costed at Market Value
To maintain Christine Court as a viable service it needs $23.62 per day per resident. The alternative to funding Supported Accommodation is the fall in supply and increase in demand for housing. If we shut Christine Court today our position does not change .. . that’s right … we lose money either way, but we as a community lose Christine Court .. . we as a family are in the same position without the stress and worry. One more set of numbers to highlight or give context to Christine Court
fSAPA
14 group homes …
- $7.7m capital
- $3.2m per year
- $264.24 per day
Detailed Financials
Christine PER ANNUM Group Home Group Home Court
per person 4 8/R rental per person
LEVEL2 & 3 700
ADMINISTRATION 2,354 3,876 1,292
EMPLOYMENT 6,992 230,732 76,911
OPERATIONAL 3,210 14,444 4,815
PROPERTY 11 ,538 52,832 17,611
MANAGEMENT 2,273 6,818 2,273
Rsk RETURN 7,232 55,566 18,522
TOTAL 33,598 364,269 121,423
Res dent payments 80% of the 24,977 74,930 24,977
DSP nc ud ng rent ass st
Sustainability Funding per 8,621 96,446
person 284,508 3,182,731 Recurring expenditure to
replace Christine Court
Public Advocates Report
While many Level 3’s meet or exceed suggested benchmarks This report highlights the case for funding . … the report recommends raising standards …
Mermaid Beach QLD 4218
-we all agree with the goal … but who pays the bill?? We agree that the NDIS has injected dignity and equity into disability care however its individual focus clouds the need for facility-based funding. On the surface, individualized funding is ideal but it is based on :metables and care plans. Providing Scheduled Care in an unpredictable world is difficult. The NDIS funding does not cope with crisis … but we do … we fill the gaps … and we fill them without pay So, I leave you with this: let’s look beyond buildings and food safety and fire safety and compliance … lets look at the value of humanity the value of our ci:zen community, our kindred family … Let’s recognize its value and work together to make it financially sustainable. Together, let’s commit to building a future where supported accommoda:on isn’t just an op:on, but a long-las:ng, sustainable solu:on for those who need it most. Thank you.
A Final Word
The financials presented reveal a market driven environment that partly explains the contrac:on in supply of Supported Accommoda:on and the change in the standards and reduc:on in compe::on. The required subsidy will create higher standards and greater compe::on while at the same :me relieving the pressure on the Health System, Policing, QAS etc. The important but overlooked dimension in this debate is the intrinsic value of the self suppor:ng community, a pseudo family that engenders in congregate living environments. Chris:ne Court Assisted Living does not suit everyone, but it is a worthwhile contributor to the community. We offer both staff and clients an extremely stable work / living environment. While many will argue that when given the op:on of a service delivery to a client or an addi:onal profit, private and free enterprise will take the profit, but history shows us that is not the case. Our economy, our wealth and our standard of living in Australia is built on a model of capitalism that champions moral produc:vity. That is not to say that our corporates can self-regulate but it does underline a default posi:on of integrity across the economy where a market is compe::ve. This submission iden:fies the need for a $25.00 per day per resident based on our trading figures and risk / return parameters. Compe::ve markets across Australia suggest that the required subsidy across the industry that will a*ract new players and standards is somewhere between $25.00 and $50.00 per resident per day.