Personal Support Programme

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Personal Support Programme
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Personal Support Programme (PSP)

• Commenced on 1 July 2002
• Administered by Department of Employment and
  Workplace Relations
• Employment preparation programme

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Objective of PSP
To assist participants overcome multiple
non-vocational barriers and achieve economic and
/ or social outcomes.
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Some of the barriers faced by PSP participants

• Homelessness
• Drug/alcohol issues
• Psychological conditions or mental illness
• Mood disorders, incl. severe depression
• Torture/trauma or other stress disorders
• Domestic Violence

• Gambling addictions
• Financial management problems
• Physical or intellectual disability
• Acquired brain injury
• Social isolation / alienation
• Poor communication / language skills.

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PSP is open to

• people of workforce age receiving income support
  and
• people aged 15-20 who do not receive any payment
  but are registered as job seekers.

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PSP participant objectives are

• To help tackle their multiple non-vocational
  barriers
• To improve their capacity to participate in
  employment activities or employment assistance
  programmes or education
• To improve their capacity to participate in the
  social life of their community.

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Each participant is entitled to up to two years
of support and assistance.
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PSP Participant Suspensions

• Participants can be suspended from PSP for a
  range of reasons
• Economic Activity
• Changes in participant circumstances
• Not complying with programme requirements

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Currently 142 organisations funded to deliver PSP
covering 593 sites across Australia.
A mix of community, welfare and private
organisation local, regional and national.
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The 2005-06 Budget increased PSP funding.
Places for more than 25,000 people will be
available over four years to support the Welfare
to Work target groups.
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PSP participants
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Referral of participants to PSP providers

• Comprehensive Work Capacity Assessments (CWCA).

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New Priority levels for referral to PSP

• Reconnecting current PSP participants
• High and urgent needs
• Those with activity test requirements
• Those that have no activity test requirements

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PSP Providers are expected to provide core
services

• Assessment
• Counselling, personal support
• Referral, coordination, advocacy
• Practical support

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Core services Assessment

• Assess participants and identify their
  non-vocational barriers
• Develop an initial Action Plan
• Review each participants circumstances
• Determine when participants are ready to move on
  to an economic outcome.

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Core services Counselling, personal support

• Guidance
• Assistance
• Encouragement
• Building self-esteem and confidence
• Regular contact

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Core services Referral, coordination, advocacy

• Refer participants to appropriate services
• Coordinate their activities with other
  organisations and
• Provide advocacy with other agencies where
  necessary.

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Core services Practical Support

• Assistance to attend interviews and/or
  appointments.

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Reporting requirements for PSP providers

• Action Plan
• Progress reports at 8 and 16 months of PSP
• Outcome report for Interim Economic Outcome
  (13 weeks) and Final Economic Outcome (26 weeks)
• Exit Report

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PSP Payment Model

• Three standard payments
• Administration payments
• Milestone payments
• Outcome and associated payments

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PSP General Payment Structure
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For example Amys story
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For example Kevins story
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PSP Outcomes

• Economic outcomes have trebled in the three years
  of the programme.
• 27 of participants achieve economic outcomes.
• Social outcomes
• 43 of participants achieved a social outcome.

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PSP delivers employment outcomes for long-term
income support recipients.

• Of those people who achieved a sustained
  employment outcome
• 62 had been on income support for more than 3
  years
• 38 had been on income support for 5 years or
  more and
• 4.4 had been on income support for 10 years or
  more.

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Assessing performance of PSP Providers

• Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
• High Performance Indicator Framework
• Code of Practice and PSP Service Guarantee
• Contractual compliance checks

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Three Key Performance Indicators

• 1. Efficiency
• 2. Effectiveness
• 3. Quality

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Performance Framework - High Performance
Indicator Framework (HPIF)

• Designed to complement the
• KPIs in the PSP Funding Agreement and
• performance management under the Departments
  contract management framework.

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Performance Framework - HPIF

• The HPIF will be used
• By providers to track and manage their
  performance
• By the Department to monitor performance and
• To underpin business allocation and reallocation
  decisions.

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Performance Framework - HPIF

• Referral to Commencement Ratio
• Retention Rate
• Outcomes Rate
• Timeliness of Exit Reports

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Performance Framework

• Code of Practice
• Service Guarantee
• Contractual compliance checks
• Monitoring visits

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A two step purchasing process for the provision
of PSP services

• An Invitation to Treat (ITT) process
• A Request for Tender (RFT) process

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Invitation to Treat (ITT)may be sent to current
high performing PSP providers who meet
eligibility criteria

• Complying with Funding Agreement
• Meeting benchmarks set out in the High
  Performance Indicator Framework

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Request for Tender (RFT)In distributing places
for tender DEWR will take into account

• The needs of the community
• Diversity of services
• Coverage within ESAs
• Relative quality of the tenders
• Viability of service provision

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Current data on PSP is available relating to

• Referrals
• Commencements
• Interim (13 week Economic Outcomes)
• Social Outcomes

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Selection Criteria

• Demonstrated performance in delivering PSP or
  similar services
• Proposed strategies to achieve outcomes for PSP
• Local strategies to promote, sustain and enhance
  the delivery of PSP at an ESA level.

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Specialist Services
Demonstrate a need for particular specialist
service
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Conditionality

• Location
• Service Type

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Rural and Remote PSP Services
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• Next Steps
• Exposure Draft is a working document comments
  and questions encouraged
• All updates to information about Exposure Draft
  and RFT is on Employment Services Purchasing
  website www.workplace.gov.au/ESpurchasing

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• Next Steps (continued)
• Email comments toespurchasing_at_dewr.gov.au
• Phone comments to 1300 733 514Employment
  Services Purchasing HotlineMon-Fri 9am-5pm
  EST/EDT (not public hols)
• Post comments toJodie Sexton-BockCommunication
  s ManagerEmployment Services Purchasing
  TeamDepartment of Employment and Workplace  
  RelationsPO Box 9879Canberra   ACT   2600

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• Purchasing Process
• Draft Contract released week commencing 5
  September 2005
• Comments - Exposure Draft due 16 September 2005
• RFT released early October 2005 (Free
  download from www.tenders.gov.au Austender
  website)
• Tender submissions close early November 2005
• Contract offers released March 2006
• Contracts commence 1 July 2006