CommunityWest’s Journey Comes to an End
22 March 2017 at 4:34 pm
A not-for-profit aged care consultancy that has been serving the Western Australian community for more than 20 years has announced it will shut its doors.
In a shock announcement CommunityWest revealed it is voluntarily closing its services and plans to cease operations from 28 April.
CommunityWest CEO Luisa Wing said it was a “difficult decision” but she thanked the many partners they had worked with over the years, including the Federal Department of Health and the Department of Social Services.
“As a team, we would like to take this opportunity to say goodbye and to thank some of our partners for being a part of CommunityWest’s journey,” Wing said.
“This is a time to celebrate our many achievements.”
CommunityWest has been delivering training and service planning advice to home and community care providers since 1996.
Since July 2008 the organisation has run more than 3,500 training courses with more than 20,000 participants.
Alongside the Subacute Community and Aged Care Directorate (SCACD) and the WA Home and Community Care Program (HACC), they delivered Wellness Approach, which provided both service providers and consumers with a framework for holistic support and enablement in their own homes.
The organisation also co-developed the WA Assessment Framework Interface (WAAFI), and with the Department of Social Services, led the Step Forward – Together project, trialling co-production nationwide.
Wing, who has been in the CEO role since July 2016, said the community had been “at the heart” of their journey for the past 20 years.
She thanked the community for being a part of their “rich history”.
“Whilst there are too many of you to name, know that we have been honoured to work with you all through the massive reforms taking place in the community services sector,” she said.
“We wish all of you the very brightest and best futures as you carry on with your transformation.”
Western Australian Council of Social Service CEO Louise Giolitto said CommunityWest had played a “vital role” and their closure underlined existing concerns about the future of capacity building in the sector under the National Disability Insurance Scheme.
“CommunityWest played a vital role in building up the capacity and training for the sector,” Giolitto told Pro Bono News.
“Under the new system of individualised funding it raises concerns in relation to how the capacity building will be done within the sector. Because of individualised funding and the costings associated with that, so how do we ensure that we have a trained and qualified workforce going into the future.”
CommunityWest will be hosting a special general meeting on 27 April and will officially cease operations after the closure of the meeting.
