Decision on proposal

Decision update

At the Ordinary Council Meeting on Tuesday 13 August, Council decided to move forward with the proposal to transition its in-home and social support services to Bayside City Council.

The decision follows extensive consultation with clients of the service, their carers and families, our staff and the wider community on the proposal for Bayside City Council to provide in-home and social support services to Glen Eira residents. Our consultation showed a high level of support for the change, because it safeguards the option for a council-run service for Glen Eira residents into the future.

Our engagement focused on understanding the service needs of our staff, clients and community, to hear their views about the potential benefits and challenges of the proposal.

We received 742 survey responses from the community with 91 per cent saying it is important for Glen Eira residents to have the option to receive in-home and social support services from a council-run service provider. Support from our Independent Living staff was similarly strong with 91 per cent of those who participated in the survey in support of the change.

Our focus now is on seamlessly transitioning the services which will commence on 11 November 2024, while maintaining the highest quality of care for all clients. We are developing a detailed plan to make the changeover as smooth as possible. We will continue to communicate with clients, their carers and families and staff to provide support, advice and information about the transition.

For more information about the engagement, please see the Independent Living Services Engagement Summary Report below.

  • 78 per cent (540 survey respondents) who participated in the engagement were service users of Council’s independent living services.

  • 50 per cent (284 service users) told us they are able to access the services they would like to receive from our independent living services.

  • 33 per cent (184 service users) told us they are not able to access all the services they would like to receive from our independent living services.

  • 91 per cent (665 survey respondents) believe it is important for the Glen Eira community to have the option to receive independent living services from a council-run service provider.

  • There will be access to more services that are reliable, available, and affordable (n=131)
  • The proposal will keep people at home and independent (n=88)
  • Having a council-run service is preferable because it is more accountable, trusted and reliable, with better quality of care,compared to for-profit services (n=73).
  • The proposal will ensure continuity of care, coordination of services and sustainability to bridge gaps in supporting individual needs, such as home care packages (n=65).
  • The proposal will continue a local service by a provider who connects and understands the needs of the community (n=45).
  • There might be a decrease in the quality of care provided (n=96).
  • The proposal might be challenged by a lack of funding, availability of resources or increased costs (n=80).
  • There may be challenges in cooperation and cohesion across two council areas, leading to decreased prioritisation of Glen Eira residents (n=65).
  • Service users might experience a change to the services provided and changes in relationships with existing staff (n=61)
  • There may be changes to staffing, or a potential lack of staffing under the proposal (n=46)
  • Council should retain the service because it has an obligation to ratepayers and residents (n=57)
  • It is important to provide and maintain access to consistent and additional services that meet the needs of the residents to remain at home as their needs change (n=30).
  • I (the respondent) agree with the proposal and see the benefits (25).
  • Service users need more resources for gardening, home maintenance, cleaning, domestic assistance, social support, delivered meals, exercise classes, and welfare checks (25).

Engagement summary

About this engagement

Council is consulting with residents who receive independent living services, their families and carers, staff, volunteers and the community on a proposal for Bayside City Council to provide these services to our residents on our behalf.

The proposal

Glen Eira and Bayside City Councils have been working on a proposal for Bayside to provide independent living services – also known as in-home care and social support services – to Glen Eira residents.

The proposal was developed in response to the Australian Government’s aged care reforms that make it hard for councils to continue to run services. Bayside is one of the few Victorian metropolitan councils set to provide aged care services once the Australian Government reforms are in place.

What we considered

  • ​Continued quality care

    Our residents will continue to receive quality care and support from a trusted council-run service as well as additional services as their needs change.

  • ​Experience

    Our residents will benefit from Bayside City Council’s long history of delivering aged care services.

  • Greater scale

    Bayside is larger and offers more services than Glen Eira, including care to help you as your needs change and become more complex (such as home care packages).

  • ​No change to Warrawee

    This proposal does not impact Council’s residential aged care facility, Warrawee.

Background - our past engagement outcomes

In 2022 we undertook a community engagement survey on ‘Living and Ageing Well in Glen Eira’, the report with the results can be found here.

In summary respondents said they would choose an aged care provider based on: 

  1. Reasonable fees.
  2. Continuing to provide services as needs changed.
  3. Delivering services when and how they want them.

Respondents also mentioned that Council’s independent living services are important and valued, especially domestic assistance, home maintenance, personal care and delivered meals.

In late 2023, Council conducted 'Our Priorities, Our Future' community engagement program. It asked the community how Council can fund the priorities the community values most.

The results from extensive community engagement found that aged care and in-home support is Council’s seventh most valued service of 17 service areas that were put to the community.

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The Engagement and Insights Team will work closely with the Independent Living Services Team to respond to any questions around service delivery.

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