The future looks bright for Jo says her sister Donna.
Jo has been in her Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) home in a suburb of Newcastle for six weeks. Home in Place manages the property and Cerebral Palsy Alliance provides Jo with Supported Independent Living (SIL).
Donna says the difference SDA has made to Jo already is significant. Jo has lost weight (in a good way) and is now helping to cook for the first time in more than 17 years.
“Jo is having some quality one on one time with the support provider,” Donna says.
“When I visit, I find Jo folding the laundry or helping with some other household tasks. That is good for her sense of identity and self. I think it is also good for her mental wellbeing.”
Jo, who has just turned 60, has been living in an aged care facility for the past 17 years. Donna says, there, Jo had limited opportunities. She was allowed to spend days without really getting out of bed.
“When we found this SDA home, I was hopeful for Jo’s future. Now I am excited for her future. This is a positive step forward for Jo.”
A high-quality home and support
“This is a high-quality home. Importantly, the first time I walked in I felt the vibe of a home, not a house.”
“The openness is so nice. Even when other family members and I are in the lounge with Jo and other residents there is still space.”
“The outside area is gorgeous. We already have plans to put up some shelves so Jo can continue her passion of growing succulents.”
“I liked that Jo was given autonomy to make her room her own.”
The feature wall in the bedroom already happened to be painted in Jo’s favourite colour – purple. Donna saw that as a sign that this new home was meant to be.
Donna also knew of CPA’s home manager. She used to work at the home where her brother lives. She says the CPA team is excellent.
“Jo has some challenging behaviours which the CPA team is well equipped to help manage. I am very happy with the way CPA responds to any issues I raise.”
Tips for searching for SDA homes
Donna spent almost a year helping Jo to search for a suitable SDA property to call home. Not knowing where to look initially and receiving no support or guidance from the aged care facility, Donna initially fell into the path of what she describes as businesses offering places.
“Now we are working with organisations – like Cerebral Palsy Alliance and Home in Place – who are committed to providing homes and support to help people to have choice and control and live as independently as possible in the community. That’s what the NDIS is meant to be about.”
It was a chance reference to disability housing organisation Housing Hub that was the turning point for Donna. She says the free personalised support from one of its accommodation officers was outstanding.
“The Housing Hub staff member immediately understood our needs and drove up from Sydney to meet us. She then continued to communicate with me by phone.”
Donna’s other tip for family members who are supporting a sibling or loved one moving into SDA is do your research on your support team. She has meet and greets with any potential support provider for Jo.
“As well as looking at the person’s or organisation’s experience, the meeting tells me whether they put in the time with someone who has communication difficulties.”
“You know your family member well so if you have an uneasy feeling, don’t waste time by second guessing yourself.”
She also asked whether Jo could spend some time at her new home before agreeing to moving in.
“That is very important in terms of seeing if Jo and the other residents are a good fit for each other.”
Professional support and property management
Jo says she has found the SDA team at Home is Place to be very professional and easy to work with.
“They explained the running of the bricks and mortar. They also helped us with completing the Centre Pay deductions and paperwork. I had questions, which they were happy to answer.”
SDA homes don’t just help the participant
While Jo’s well-being and happiness is Donna’s focus, she admits that she feels a great sense of relief seeing Jo settling into the new home. Donna is caring for her mother who has dementia, and her brother has special needs and requires supported living assistance. Finding Jo a new forever has been a challenging and, at times, difficult process.
“Aged care is no place for younger people with special needs.”
“Carers and family members of people with disability have a lot of additional responsibility. If you don’t have experience in Government processes and specialist disability housing and other supports, or time to devote to navigating the system it can be overwhelming. I am lucky that I have experience from working in the health sector.”
Moving young people with a disability living in aged care into SDA homes
The Australian Government has a target to have no one under the age of 65 with a disability living in permanent residential aged care. In December 2023, there were still 1,470 people aged under 65 (excluding First Nations people aged 50–64) in aged care. This is a 31% decrease from the same date in 2022.
If you have a loved one with a disability that is living in aged care, Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) is one option for getting that person into more appropriate housing where they can live in a community with more independence and control.
SDA funding is for bricks and mortar and separate to care and living support. It is only available for participants with an extreme functional impairment and/or very high support needs. About 6% of NDIS participants receive this funding. You need to apply to the NDIA to have SDA funding added to a participant’s NDIS Plan which can take time. So, start the process now.
