HOMELESSNESS services in the Riverland will soon be delivered by a new provider, following significant State Government reforms to the system.
Anglican Community Care Incorporated, commonly known as ac.care, will take over local services from current providers Life Without Barriers (LWB) from July 1, 2021.
ac.care will partner with Junction Australia, the Pangula Mannamurna Aboriginal Corporation and Moorundi Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service to form a regional alliance, covering the Riverland, Limestone Coast Murraylands, Fleurieu Peninsula and Kangaroo Island.
ac.care chief executive officer Shane Maddocks said clients and communities should see “little change to service delivery” in the short term, but improved co-operation and co-ordination in the future with the new alliance approach.
“Sadly, rent stress, a shortage of affordable and emergency accommodation, unemployment and a JobSeeker rate that has not kept up with increasing costs of living continue to push an increasing number of country people to the brink of homelessness and in need of the support of organisations such as ours,” Mr Maddocks said.
“We welcome the Government’s new funding package as a step towards securing the sustainability of vital services in our communities and the jobs of staff dedicated to supporting vulnerable people.”
In a statement, LWB said it would finalise the delivery of services from its Berri office on June 30.
“Life Without Barriers will support the Southern Country Alliance, led by ac.care, to ensure that continuity of service delivery to current clients is maintained throughout the transition process,” the organisation said.
LWB confirmed that current clients would be transitioned to ac.care, but did not respond to questions regarding the future of current LWB staff.
State Human Services Minister, Michelle Lensink, said the reforms would make accessing services easier for vulnerable regional South Australians.
“Ultimately, we’re undertaking this reform because we want better outcomes for our most vulnerable,” she said.
“Organisations in our regions already work collaboratively together to get positive outcomes for South Australians experiencing homelessness and it’s really exciting this reform formalises this approach to ensure everyone is working together.
“Importantly, South Australians using these services will only have to tell their story once and services can be even more responsive to supporting clients across our regions.”