National Carers Week

The Hon. AILEEN MacDONALD (12:25:33):

My question is addressed to the Minister for Families and Communities, and Minister for Disability Services. Will the Minister update the House on National Carers Week?

The Hon. NATASHA MACLAREN-JONES (Minister for Families and Communities, and Minister for Disability Services) (12:25:46):

I thank the honourable member for her question. This week is National Carers Week, which is an opportunity to recognise, celebrate, say thank you and raise awareness amongst all Australians about the diversity of Australia's 2.65 million carers and the role that they play. This year National Carers Week runs from Sunday 16 to Saturday 22 October. In New South Wales there are more than 854,000 carers from different backgrounds and walks of life. Almost 80,000 of them are young carers under the age of 25. The theme of the week this year is "Millions of Reasons to Care", which is testament to the endless hours of support that carers provide.

It is estimated that carers collectively provide eight million hours of support per week. If that was given a monetary value, it would amount to around $25 billion per year. Carers can be a family member or a friend who provides unpaid care and support for someone who has a disability, a chronic condition, a terminal illness, is frail, is ageing, who has a mental health illness, or who has drug- and alcohol-related issues. Anyone can be a carer, but many people do not identify as one. They see themselves more as a husband, a wife, a partner, a mother, a son, a daughter, a friend, or someone who just wants to reach out and help.

There is no clear job description for a carer, but we know that they provide support with the activities of daily living, including dressing, showering and arranging medical appointments—things that we quite often take for granted. At some stage in our lives, many of us will take on the role of carer. Members in this room might actually be doing that already. Carers Week is an opportunity for all of us to recognise that carers themselves need support and to be able to take a break from their caring role to look after their own health and wellbeing. It is an opportunity for us all to reach out and ask a carer we know if they are okay and if they need a hand.

Over this week, the Government is funding more than 440 events being run through Carers NSW to say thank you to carers for the selfless support they provide and the work they do throughout the community. For example, the Carers Day Out held yesterday at the Redfern Community Centre was a great day for carers to connect with one another and enjoy a range of entertainment, wellbeing and relaxation activities. The Government is also investing $4.9 million to support carers through the NSW Carers Strategy, Carers NSW, and other direct grants and support. The strategy is the Government's 10-year plan for a whole-of-community commitment to better recognise and support the 854,000 unpaid carers across New South Wales. This Government is committed to supporting carers and ensuring that they get the recognition and the thanks they deserve.

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