ACOSS Reports & Submissions
Community Services
March 2010
ACOSS has developed a glossary of terms that encompass the breadth of sector development work currently underway. This is a resource for the sector and an effort to clarify some of the language and terms used variously in social and community services across the country. For example, the following terms are used in different parts of the country and are often interchangeable: individualised service agreements; direct service delivery; consumer-directed purchasing; personalised social care; self-directed funding; individualised funding; individualised care packages; personalised budgets; individualised support packages; self managed care; direct funding; and consumer choice.
March 2010
ACOSS analysis and priorities for advocacy
This analysis has been prepared for the benefit of national, affiliate and associate members of ACOSS; for the Councils of Social Service in each state and territory; and for their members. It provides an overview of the Productivity Commission's recent report on the not-for-profit sector and sets out ACOSS priorities for future advocacy in this area. ACOSS invites comments and input on these priorities from our colleagues and members in the sector.
February 2010
In February 2010 ACOSS was invited to consult on the national standard chart of accounts (SCoA). The deadline for consultation was 10 March which did not leave much time for detailed engagement with our members. This document is intended as a resource both for the consultation process and for the sector more generally to understand the SCoA and its implementation. We provide basic information to our members about the SCoA's contents and purposes; its implementation; and we invite input into the consultation through a set of questions about the design, implementation and usefulness of the SCoA. Comments for the formal consultation with government must be received at ACOSS by 5 March. However we will continue to welcome feedback from our membership and to engage with government on the SCoA beyond this timeframe.
December 2009
This submission focuses on several areas that are key to the relationship between the Australian government and the not-for-profit community sector. These include:
- the interaction between government departments and policy and program areas;
- appropriate and effective consultation processes;
- awareness of the broader context in which services are delivered and the implications of administrative decisions on those services; and
- bureaucratic processes (reducing ‘red tape').
The submission discusses some of the key issues facing ACOSS members and their clients in these respects. It is written from the perspective of the not-for-profit community and social service sectors and is based on our extensive experience working with Australian government administration.
December 2009
The Councils of Social Service (COSS) across Australia has made recommendations according to chapter headings within the Productivity Commission Draft Report on Gambling. We provide comment based on the effect the Productivity Commission‟s recommendations will have on our constituents and provide joint COSS recommendations that detail additional areas of need.
November 2009
In this submission to the Australian Workforce Development Strategy underway by Skills Australia, ACOSS argues that social policy is a vital context for workforce development and sustainability and must not be ignored within strategies to address future issues.
November 2009
This submission addresses the ongoing discrimination faced by migrants under the Migration Act and in relation to social security policy.
The submission argues for the application of human rights to the Migration Act and for reform of the tax and transfer system to ensure that migrants with a disability are able to access the same social security entitlements as all Australians.
October 2009
This submission draws on our experience with Compacts and related processes in states and territories across the country; and from our ongoing involvement in the process towards a national Compact including dialogue with our members, the broader community services sector (the sector) and the Australian Government.
July 2009
This is a joint submission by the Councils of Social Service across Australia to the Australian Industrial Relation Commission’s Award Modernisation process. The submission highlights the significant pay inequity faced by workers in the not-for-profit social and community sector and argues that the sector must be given time and support to ensure that award modernisation achieves improved outcomes for its workforce.
June 2009
This submission is based on widespread consultation with ACOSS membership about the scope and scale of issues facing the community service and welfare sectors engaged in non-profit work. Like the Not for Profit sector generally, the community services and welfare sector is heterogeneous, ranging from small unincorporated groups with no paid staff and minimal income to large organisations with multi-million dollar budgets and hundreds of employees. Yet some key issues stand out. We need better balance and understanding in the relationships between community and welfare organisations and government to ensure that the needs of low income and disadvantaged communities are best met through the research, policy and service delivery of the sector. We also need reform of the regulation, contracting, performance monitoring and research in the sector to enhance the effectiveness of current service provision; and to create innovation and capacity building to develop our responsiveness to future increased need.
