Young People with Disability Leaving care in NSW Ilan Katz, Beth Goldblatt, Robyn Edwards, Marilyn McHugh ACWA Conference, Sydney, August 2010 DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre Will cover  Issues related to young people with disability leaving care  The NSW ADHC leaving care program  Evaluation methods  Selected findings

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre Issues  YP leaving care and YP with disability approaching adulthood both create challenges.  Issues are compounded for YP with disability transitioning out of OOHC  Anecdotal evidence that these YP are particularly vulnerable to homelessness and contact with the criminal justice system  Addressing the issue requires a multi-agency response which includes adequate housing, support, advice and participation

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre Leaving care  Most YP do not leave home at 18 and are not expected to manage on their own at this age, but YP leaving OOHC are expected to do so.  This is even more problematic because of their experiences in care and pre care  OOHC benefits most children but YP leaving care are vulnerable to a range of challenges creating poor outcomes including: –Substance abuse, homelessness, isolation, debt, unemployment, crime.  In order to address this YP need to be supported in their transition.

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre People with disability  YP with disability face particular challenges moving to adulthood. –Can become very socially excluded as their options for participation are narrowed –Need support to sustain an ‘adult’ life, eg maintaining tenancy, working, socialising etc –Suffer discrimination and exclusion in a number of settings – education, employment and social –Vulnerable to dislocation of services as they move from child to adult service sectors.

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre Principles for YP with disabilities transitioning to adulthood  comprehensive multi-agency engagement;  full participation of young people and their families;  provision of high quality information;  effective transition planning;  opportunities for living life.  (Council for Disabled Children, 2007).

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre YP with disability in OOHC  Very little information on how many children in OOHC have a disability –No specific data is kept  1,299 children in care in NSW aged between 15 and 17 years at 30 September 2003 –198 young people (15%) had a disability. (NSW Children’s Guardian, 2004)  However proportion could be as high as 25% depending on definition

EVALUATION OF NSW ADHC LEAVING CARE PROGRAM

The Leaving Care Program  Multi agency program consisting of:  Transition planning  Case management  Access to support  Accommodation  Vocational opportunities and skills development,  A mentoring service  Social and community participation  Began in 2007

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre The ADHC LCP cont  ADHC notified two years before a young person’s exit date from care, in order to facilitate referral to the LCP and enable transition planning to occur  YP are assessed and a leaving care case plan put in place.  Housing and other support agencies are engaged  Program managed on a regional basis throughout NSW

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre Evaluation Questions  How many young people with a disability have been referred to the Program –what are the characteristics and circumstances of the eligible young people who have not been referred or taken up support?  What have been the outcomes of the Program for those young people with a disability participating in the Program?  To what extent has the Program been implemented as intended?  What improvements could be made to the Program to improve client outcomes?

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre Methods  Literature review and program document analysis;  Administrative data analysis;  Client survey (61 out of 187 responded = 32.6% response rate)  Fifteen case studies (clients, family/carers, case worker);  Stakeholder consultations with government, service providers and NGOs (28 consultations with 39 individuals).

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre Client characteristics  193 program participants  38% women and 62% men  A fifth were aboriginal  Range of disability types, most with more than one disability.  Regional variability regarding numbers of clients

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre Findings and Recommendations Key finding: “the Leaving Care Program is functioning well and the services are appropriate”

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre Some issues raised by participants  Self definition of disability –Many did not identify as being a person with disability –Some not comfortable with disability services  Importance of Identity –Family, ethnic, Aboriginal  Re-connection with family  Housing  Focus on ability not disability

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre Case study Emily is an 18 year old woman living in a group home. She is visually impaired. She lives a very full and active life, including attending a mainstream high school where she sits on the Student Representative Council (SRC) and completing a TAFE course in animal care. She is a member of a choir which performs at concerts and festivals, has done work experience at an ADHC regional office, goes to the gym, enjoys bowling, has contact with her sister and cousins and participates in many social activities. Emily presented the Independent Research Project she had just completed as part of her HSC studies, which examined the gaps in disability services in a regional centre. She was born with some disabilities and health problems (vision impairment and diabetes), however ‘with all these problems I had I was going to enjoy life to the full, nothing was going to stop me’.

DSRC Disability Studies and Research Centre Contact details Ilan Katz Beth Goldblatt Acknowledgments Thank you to the people who contributed to the research including the clients of the Leaving Care Program, family members and carers, the people who work with them, stakeholders and the Evaluation Steering Committee members.