Disability Insurance Scheme on

the NDIS National Workforce Plan: 2021-2025

September 2021

Overview

This submission responds to the NNDIS National Workforce Plan: 2021-2025. It aims to contribute evidence on the role of volunteers in the disability services workforce, and on the importance of including volunteer-supported programs in the initiatives outlined in the Workforce Plan.

Volunteers make a unique contribution to disability services, facilitating a degree of social connection and cultural inclusion that paid workers alone cannot. They are a distinct, but essential, component of the disability services landscape, and must be considered as part of a comprehensive workforce strategy. The current Workforce Plan makes no reference to volunteers working in disability services. Volunteering Australia would like to highlight the following:

 -   Volunteers add unique value to a range of NDIS programs. The Workforce Plan should acknowledge and plan to support the contributions of volunteers as demand for volunteer-supported services grows.
 -   Volunteers do not operate independently, and need to be recruited, screened, trained, and supported continually by managers and coordinators of volunteers. Measures to facilitate appropriate support for volunteer involving organisations, including the promotion and resourcing of paid roles which support volunteer involvement in disability care and support, should also be included in the Workforce Plan.
 -   The priority actions outlined in the Workforce Plan have relevance to volunteer-supported programs. Volunteering can improve perceptions of the disability sector and facilitate pathways to employment within it. The administrative requirements of the NDIS, particularly worker screening processes, are also challenging for volunteer-supported programs. Volunteers needs to be explicitly considered in the proposed re-evaluation of administrative requirements under the NDIS.

About this submission

Volunteering Australia welcomes the opportunity to provide a submission to the Joint Standing Committee on the National Disability Insurance Scheme. The aim of this submission is to contribute evidence on the role of volunteers in the disability services workforce, and to highlight the potential of volunteering to contribute to the broader aims of the NDIS National Workforce Plan.

This submission was drafted by Volunteering Australia in collaboration with the State and Territory peak volunteering bodies. The peak volunteering bodies reached out to member organisations operating in disability services to seek their views on the role of volunteers. These views have been drawn upon in this submission.

Volunteers in the disability services workforce

Volunteers and the organisations that engage them contribute extensively to the disability services landscape. In a recent study of disability service organisations in Victoria, 78 per cent of respondents reported that their organisation had run some type of volunteer supported service within the past

The unique value of volunteering in the disability sector

Volunteers perform a broad range of roles across the disability services landscape. A study of volunteer-supported disability services in Victoria revealed seven program models operating in the sector. These programs facilitate social support and community participation, supported activities, skills development, out of home support, practical support, organisational support, and advocacy. Many of these functions complement and support the work of paid staff.

Volunteers are often considered by service users and providers as separate from paid workers. Volunteer roles add unique value to programs and services in the disability space, and they are often integral to achieving the desired outcomes for participants. When asked about the value of volunteers, organisations often emphasise aspects of their programs that could not be achieved by paid staff alone. These include, among others, promoting genuine friendship, providing personalised

Supporting Volunteer Involvement in the Disability Sector

Supporting volunteering is essential within the disability services landscape as it provides critical social connection opportunities that paid staff alone may not achieve.

Benefits of Volunteers

Volunteers contribute significantly to program delivery through:

Providing real connections for individuals with disabilities and their families
Offering non-paid but meaningful engagement
Attending school functions, birthday parties, and providing extra support when needed
Building self-esteem and confidence through genuine friendships rather than professional relationships

According to a staff member from one organisation,

“Volunteers provide real connections…they are not paid to be there; they want to [be] there. Some parents tell us that it is important and that the volunteer is the only person in their lives who is not a paid professional…Volunteers can integrate in the life of the person with a disability and their family - they attend the school function, come to birthday parties and step in when extra support is needed. The person with the disability knows them as a friend and support, not a worker, building self-esteem and class=”“>confidence.“8

Similar statements have been made by other service providers engaging volunteers. According to Cerebral Palsy Alliance,

“Volunteers are an integral part of Cerebral Palsy Alliance, adding value to the client- facing programs we run, assisting families directly in the home (pre-COVID-19) and assisting our staff with administration, consulting, and training. Many of our services would not be sustainable without the support of volunteers, especially under the NDIS.”

strengthening pathways to employment in the sector

(Priority 1). The priorities and experiences of volunteers and volunteer involving organisations should also be considered in efforts to reduce red tape, including the reassessment of worker screening procedures (Priority 3).

Priority 1: Perceptions of the sector and pathways to employment

Volunteering offers avenues to the delivery side of disability care and support, which facilitates greater awareness of the career opportunities available in the sector. Volunteering also equips applicants with work-relevant skills and experience.

Research undertaken by employment company SEEK found that 95 per cent of employers identify that volunteering is just as credible as paid work.10 Further, 92 per cent of employers identified that relevant volunteering experience gave a candidate an advantage in job interviews.11 The potential of volunteer work to facilitate exposure to the sector and to address community misunderstandings is not explored in the Workforce Plan.

Volunteer experience with people with disability also greatly improves attitudes towards and confidence working with people with disability.12 Further, because volunteers often work directly with the service recipients, volunteering may be more influential in breaking down prejudice than other activities, such as professional interning or work placement.13

Volunteering creates opportunities for people to gain exposure to the sector, and to develop the skills and attributes necessary to provide quality care. This potential should be acknowledged and utilised in the Workforce Plan.

Priority 3: Volunteers and worker screening

The administrative burdens of the NDIS identified in the Workforce Plan also create challenges for volunteer involvement. For example, the recent introduction of new national NDIS Worker Screening requirements has caused complications for volunteers.

Although NDIS Worker Screening is a national requirement, the process is implemented by state and territory governments. Volunteering Australia has heard that the handling of the process in some states and territories has created issues for volunteer engagement with disability service providers.

In Victoria, for example, the screening of volunteers in risk assessed roles with NDIS providers is a manual two-step process. Volunteers must first apply for a volunteer fee waiver and, once that is confirmed, apply for the NDIS screening check. Organisations have reported that this is often a disincentive for new volunteers to continue with the process. They have also expressed frustrations

Inclusion of Volunteering in Workforce Planning

Volunteers facilitate programs that are unique in the disability services landscape, and which support the participation of people with disability in all aspects of community life. They are crucial to achieving the NDIS’ aim to ensure the independence, mainstream community involvement, and social and economic participation of people with disability. Broader planning for the sector, including workforce planning, must therefore include provisions to promote, maintain, and develop volunteering in disability services. As outlined above, volunteer involvement in disability care and support faces similar challenges to the engagement of paid workers and demands similar consideration. Priorities 1 and 3 are particularly relevant to volunteering.

In addition, volunteering faces distinct challenges. Of particular concern for the future of volunteering in the disability sector is the decline in volunteering rates, and the challenge of restarting volunteering amid the ongoing risks of COVID-19. The proportion of Australians doing

Voluntary Workfall During Pandemic

Voluntary work fell from 36 per cent in late 2019 to 24.2 per cent in April 2021, amounting to an estimated loss of 2.3 million from Australia’s volunteer force. Troublingly, almost half of those who stopped volunteering during COVID-19 had not resumed by April 2021, despite the easing of lockdown and physical distancing restrictions at that time in many jurisdictions since 2020.

The decline in volunteering has profound implications for disability services, and research indicates that the sector has already been affected by this trend. In National Disability Services’ annual survey of disability service providers, one in three organisations reported that they had fewer volunteers in 2020, compared to the rate of 14 per cent in 2019. The Workforce Plan should therefore ensure measures are taken to re-invigorate volunteering in the sector. This will require the design of appropriate supports for volunteer involving organisations to attract and engage volunteers, and revisions to policies on the funding and administrative requirements for volunteering programs.

Submission to the Joint Standing Committee on the National Volunteering

AUSTRALIA Authorisation

This submission has been authorised by the Chief Executive Officer of Volunteering Australia.

Mr Mark Pearce Chief Executive Officer

Endorsements

This position statement has been endorsed by the seven State and Territory volunteering peak bodies.

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About Volunteering Australia

Volunteering Australia is the national peak body for volunteering, working to advance volunteering in the Australian community. The seven State and Territory volunteering peak bodies work to advance and promote volunteering in their respective jurisdictions and are Foundation Members of Volunteering Australia.

Volunteering Australia’s vision is strong, connected communities through volunteering. Our mission is to lead, strengthen, promote and celebrate volunteering in Australia.

Contacts

Mark Pearce Sue Regan Chief Executive Officer Policy Director ceo @volunteeringaustralia.org policy@volunteeringaustralia.org

State and Territory Volunteering Peak Bodies

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