NDS in WA (is pleased to announce the commencement of the exciting projects that received grants from the Disability Workforce Development and Retention Fund. These projects will contribute to growing the disability workforce and retaining workers with the right skills, values and attributes in our sector.  

Funding for these projects was provided by the Department of Communities (DoC), Sector Transition Fund.  

NDS received over ninety applications to the Fund with requests of over $17M.  The primary focus areas of the applications were:  

Workforce

The categorisation is based on the primary workforce target area, but note that many applications proposed projects addressing workforce issues across more than one area: 

• Front line staff (53 per cent) 
• Leadership staff (32 per cent) 
• Allied Health (29 per cent). 

Focus area 

The categorisation is based on the primary focus area, but note that many applications proposed projects addressing more than one focus area 

• Recruitment (47 per cent) 
• Staff supervision/mentoring programs (28 per cent) 
• Professional development pathways (26 per cent) 
• Training and upskilling with Registered Training Organisation or Recognition of Prior Learning (21 per cent).

The projects 

The projects that received grants are: 

Concentric Rehab
Allied Health Upskilling and Expansion Program 
Location:  Perth metro and South West 
Purpose: Attract allied health therapists looking to transition from the aged care sector and enhance their skill levels to allow for effective therapy delivery in the complex NDIS environment. 

Crosslinks 
Fast-tracking a Skilled Workforce 
Location:  Perth metro, Goldfields and Esperance, and Mid West and Gascoyne 
Purpose: Improve employee job satisfaction and retention by supporting disability support workers to achieve a formal qualification through the Recognition of Prior Learning process. 

East Kimberley Job Pathways 
Aboriginal Workforce Mentorship and Skills Development Program 
Location:  Kimberley 
Purpose: Increase the employment of Aboriginal disability support workers and enhance delivery of culturally appropriate NDIS services by providing place-based skills training and workplace mentoring. 

Inclusion WA  
The Social Inclusion Series 
Location:  Statewide 
Purpose: Increase retention of disability sector workers delivering NDIS services by developing and launching a series of social inclusion learning modules. 

Karratha Central Healthcare 
Disability Workforce Remote Readiness Program 
Location:  Pilbara 
Purpose: Increase the retention of the disability workforce with the necessary skills to deliver culturally appropriate services by developing professional education resources and training and establishing a mentorship program.  

Kimberley Aboriginal Medical Services 
Allied Health Assistant Project 
Location:  Kimberley 
Purpose: Increase the retention of the Aboriginal workforce by offering entry level training pathways in allied health. 

Midway Community Care 
Recognition of Prior Learning for Support Workers 
Location: Peel 
Purpose: Improve employee job satisfaction and retention by supporting disability support workers to achieve a formal qualification through the Recognition of Prior Learning process. 

Optimal Living Therapy 
Allied in the Regions 
Location:  Great Southern 
Purpose: Increase in the numbers of allied health assistants by establishing and operationalising a training framework supported by a fly-in-fly-out allied health service delivery model, including training pilots.  

Patches Therapy Services 
Workforce Development and Retention Program 
Location:  Perth metro, Peel, Goldfields and Esperance, Kimberley, Mid West and Gascoyne, Pilbara, South West and Wheatbelt 
Purpose: Expand the allied health workforce and support more effective ways of delivering therapies by developing learning material and professional development opportunities to support the current and future workforce to have a solid understanding of the NDIS and competence in telehealth.   

South West Allied Therapies 
Project THRiVE 
Location:  South West 
Purpose: Increase the retention of allied health workers through the implementation of a professional development program to support therapists in identifying professional development and mentorship opportunities and clinical supervision pathways. 

Valued Lives Foundation 
Leadership Transformation and People and Culture Strategy 
Location:  Perth metro, Peel, South West 
Purpose: Increase workforce retention by developing and implementing a Leadership Transformation Program. 

WA Blue Sky 
From Little Things, Big Things Grow 
Location:  Perth metro 
Purpose: Increased retention of the disability workforce by developing an Employee Value Proposition and implementing a Learning Management System supported by practical face to face in-house demonstration training. 

WA Disabled Sports Association 
Innovate-Retain-Develop People 
Location:  Perth metro, Peel, Goldfields and Esperance, Great Southern, South West, Wheatbelt 
Purpose: Increase the retention of the regional disability workforce by developing and delivering a series of community recreation e-learning modules. 

NDS congratulates the successful applicants and thanks everyone who applied. 

Read the press release from the minister’s office and more about the grants.