Aged Care Workforce Strategy Implementation

Overview

In 2017, the then Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care, the Hon Ken Wyatt AM, MP, established an industry-led Aged Care Workforce Strategy Taskforce (Taskforce), led by Professor John Pollaers OAM. The independent Taskforce was tasked with developing a strategy for growing and sustaining the workforce providing aged care services and support for older people, to meet their care needs in a variety of settings across Australia. On 29 June 2018, the Taskforce delivered A Matter of Care: Australia’s Aged Care Workforce Strategy (Strategy) to Minister Wyatt, outlining 14 strategic action items.  On 13 September 2018, Government released the Strategy. In line with one of the strategic actions, government announced support for industry to establish leadership and governance arrangements to be stewards of the Strategy’s implementation through the establishment of the Aged Care Workforce Industry Council (Council). The Council’s role is to enhance the capability of industry to implement the strategic actions in the Strategy. The Council has developed its own Constitution and is independent of government. The objective of the grant is to enable the Council to become fully operational and able to steward responses to the strategic action items of Australia’s Workforce Strategy for the remainder of the 2019/20 financial year.