The various community support programs for vulnerable people in Australia support them in daily activities. With such community support, they can find the help they need to restart their lives. They can also lead productive lives and reach their goals despite those challenges.
Community Support: A Bridge to Independence and Dignity
Community support programs operate with the participation of community participation workers. They support vulnerable people who may be experiencing various hardships in life. Such hardships include domestic and gender violence, poverty, discrimination, disability, etc.
Because of those hardships, people receive community service support to live independent and dignified lives. Even so, the most significant participation of community support programs remains in helping those with humanitarian needs. They provide the people with the assistance they need to start a new life in Australia.
The people who need help receive support and advice. The partner organisations also engage in advocacy on behalf of their vulnerable members.
The areas of focus for community support in Australia are:
- Emergency relief
- Disability support services
- Mental health, including counselling
- Emergency relief
- Child protection
- Multicultural and indigenous support
- Asylum seekers
- Refugee services
- Support for the aged
- Youth support and justice
Community support programs enlist partners who are individuals, community organisations, or businesses and are the approved proposing organisations. These offer financial and practical aid. Additionally, partners provide the support needed by vulnerable individuals and their families.
Those in need of support make an application to be considered to receive community support. The individuals and organisations that wish to support the vulnerable start by identifying a needy person. They also seek to match with someone in need through the community support umbrella.
Supporting immigrants and refugees remains critical to the role played by community support programs. These are the people who move to Australia to start a new life. They need financial support for visa processing and other related costs. They also require employment or a pathway to employment. That means they also need support to acquire relevant training and skills for employment.
The roles of a participant coming on board as an approved proposing organisation include:
- Identifying eligible community support beneficiaries
- Undertaking protocols to receive matching with the eligible applicants
- Working with Australian families, employers, and businesses to help the applicant receive employment
- Assisting in the form of services, items, and finances
- Assist the applicants in applying for a visa under subclass 202 Global and Special Humanitarian category.
- They provide the applicant with advice and support throughout the resettlement period.
The financial aid and support required to process the visa are classified under the fees demanded for community support. They include airfares, accommodation, and medical screening. They also cater to visa application and settlement services.
Some approved proposing organisations charge for their services. Others operate as voluntary or humanitarian charitable organisations. Where the deal requires payment of fees, the applicant should perform due diligence. They should identify what the organisation offers and how much it charges.
The community support programs also involve assurers who offer Assurance of support. The assurer is bound by a legal document on their commitment to provide support in need. The assurer agrees to compensate the Australian government any social security funds it renders to the community support applicant. Such payments remain limited to the financial support during the first year of settlement in Australia.
Conclusion
Vulnerable members of society, local and foreign, need support to restart their lives. Various organisations and individuals provide financial and practical support at a fee or as humanitarian support. The support helps the recipient find a soft landing when working through challenges. Due to that, they turn their lives around and become productive members of society.