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FSSI LINK 01-21

Building a diverse, high-quality workforce

Welcome / Wominjeka


FSSI acknowledges the people of the Woi wurrung and Boon wurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin Nation and the other various Indigenous groups on whose unceded lands we conduct our business. We respectfully acknowledge their Ancestors and Elders, past and present.

From the Director


Welcome to the first edition of FSSI Link for 2021. With the release of the final report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety this week, the critical role of the social service workforce has never been more apparent. We speak to Professor Stephen Duckett about the report and its implications for the future. The Commissions findings which come hot on the heels of a tumultuous 2020, highlight the need to take urgent steps to ensure that the workers tasked with supporting our most vulnerable communities have the skills, capabilities, mindsets and values to provide high-quality, person-centred care.

FSSI is committed to supporting the growth, quality and adaptation of the social service workforce. And we have learned a lot about the challenges facing the social service sector and types of workforce development initiatives that deliver real and lasting change. We need new educational models and approaches like the Higher Apprenticeships. We need data, evidence and insights that can help to transform the design and delivery of high-quality education programs. This is what the team at FSSI is focused on in 2021 as we will continue to work with our partners to support the growth and transformation of this vital sector.        
What are we hearing?

Workforce is critical to the transformation of Australian Aged Care: Insights from the 2021 Royal  Commission Report 

In our first vlog of the year, FSSI Director Micaela speaks with Professor Stephen Duckett about the newly released Aged Care Royal Commission report. Stephen is a health economist, and currently the Health Program Director at the Grattan Institute, and has held senior operational and policy leadership positions in health care in Australia and Canada, notably as Secretary of what is now the Commonwealth Department of Health.

Stephen emphasises the need for a rights based aged care framework, and to support the transformational change needed, a competent, empowered and adequate workforce. Workforce training and development of clear career pathways across the aged care workforce will be central to aged care quality improvement, as will developing and supporting leadership across the sector to embed rights to access decent care and dignity.

Stephen has written extensively on the need for reform in the aged care sector. Click the links below to access two key reports co-authored by Stephen.  
Click here to view the vlog featuring Professor Stephen Duckett
What are we seeing?
 
Insights to inform recovery

A joint project by VCOSS and FSSI to understand the changes to “felt demand”, the nature of service delivery adaptations and the effects of these adaptations – both intended and unintended – on people who access services was completed in late 2020. The “Stories into Evidence Project” documented the Victorian community services sector’s response to the first six months of the Covid-19 crisis. As part of this project, FSSI and VCOSS held interviews and focus groups with over 100 representatives from more than 50 community sector organisations across Victoria.
 
The Stories into Evidence Project identified significant workforce adaptations including the introduction of a range of digital services which provided greater flexibility and access for some cohorts and increased take up of online training options. The Project Team found that while organisations reported that virtual service delivery has increased access and convenience for some clients, particularly women with caring duties who may have struggled to attend face-to-face programs, it was not without issues. Some learners require more scaffolding than digital training can provide and some organisations have also raised concerns about security risks associated with the technology, especially in relation to children and young people. The evidence and insights developed as part of this project have been shared with Government and the sector and are being used to inform planning for the recovery phase and beyond.
 
To view a copy of the final report click the button below.
Stories Into Evidence Report
What are we doing?
 
Keeping Our Sector Strong

FSSI was established nearly five years ago as part of Keeping Our Sector Strong: Victoria’s Workforce Plan for the NDIS (KOSS). As we approach our five-year anniversary, it is timely to reflect on what FSSI has achieved so far. Our latest Progress Report details our activities between July and December 2020. During this period, FSSI continued to co-design, deliver and evaluate education and training programs to diverse learners. Having adapted its suite of programs for the 2020 operating environment, FSSI supported Victoria’s first higher apprentices in the social service sector and successfully delivered the Leadership Intensive Program online to 70+ leaders from the family violence sector. FSSI’s first PhD candidate – Liz Hudson – whose research was support by KOSS funding submitted her thesis in August. To view the vlog featuring Liz Hudson talking about her project findings including implications for the disability workforce go to https://www.futuresocial.org/vlogseries-elizabeth-hudson/.
 
To view FSSI’s latest Progress Report click the button below. 
FSSI Progress Report - July - December 2020
Join the FSSI Team! 

FSSI has several new projects commencing in 2021 and we are looking for experienced, enthusiastic people to join our growing team! 

Are you passionate about supporting the growth, quality and adaptation of the social service sector? 

Are you committed to FSSI’s values – curiosity, respect, humility and synergy?

If so, click on the links below to find out more about joining the FSSI team.

FSSI Project Manager Role
FSSI Project Officer Role

Applications Now Open for the 2021 Leadership Intensive Program 

Develop the advanced leadership skills you need in the evolving fields of family violence prevention and response. 

About the Program
A co-design approach ensures that the program suits the interests and needs of the participants so you will be able to confidently tackle the issues that you and your organisation face. Past topics have included:
  • Trauma-informed leadership;
  • Feminist leadership;
  • Collaboration and partnerships;
  • Connecting with Government; 
  • Leading in a time of crisis; and
  • Wellbeing for leaders.
Previous inspiring speakers from government, academic and the social service sector have included former Victoria Police Commissioner Christine Nixon, renowned feminist scholar Emeritus Professor Pavla Miller, Victoria's first Gender and Sexuality Commissioner Ro Allen, global wellbeing keynote speaker Dr Michelle McQuaid and former CEO of Women with Disabilities Victoria Keran Howe. 

In 2021 the Program will continued to be delivered in digital format.

FSSI is now seeking applications for the 2021 Leadership Intensive Program. Please note that if you have applied in previous years but not yet participated in the program, you will need to apply again in 2021.

 
Click here to apply for the 2021 Leadership Intensive Program

RMIT Social & Global Studies Centre Seminar for World Day of Social Justice 2021 

Thursday 4th March

12 PM to 2 PM

Registration via Eventbrite: https://wdsj21-sgsc.eventbrite.com.au 


Can the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System delivered on its promise to “enable Victorians to experience their best mental health now and into the future”?

Following the conclusion of the Royal Commission, consumers, carers and academics will debate and discuss the vital next steps for advocacy, activism, research, policy and practice. Our esteemed speakers will explore the Royal Commission’s recommendations, highlight gaps and barriers to implementation, and identify areas where further work is required.

Will these recommendations fix our broken mental health system, or is this just the latest in a series of failed reform attempts? Is a socially just mental health system in our future?

This is seminar is hosted by RMIT University’s Social and Global Studies Centre, in partnership with the VMIAC, the peak body for mental health consumers, and Tandem, the peak body for mental health carers.

 To find out more about this event and the expert discussants, chaired by Dr Chris Maylea, visit https://wdsj21-sgsc.eventbrite.com.au

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Workforce Innovation and Development Institute · Building 98, RMIT University, 102-104 Victoria Street · Carlton, Victoria 3053 · Australia