{"id":39475,"date":"2026-06-16T17:22:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T07:22:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/?p=39475"},"modified":"2026-06-16T17:22:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T07:22:09","slug":"building-a-more-connected-nsw-for-seniors-and-carers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/2026\/06\/16\/building-a-more-connected-nsw-for-seniors-and-carers\/","title":{"rendered":"Building a more connected NSW for seniors and carers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Minns Labor Government has unveiled a new $3.6 million pilot program over three years to better integrate social and wellbeing support for older people and their unpaid carers in New South Wales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Connecting Seniors and Carers Program builds on the foundations of the Connecting Seniors Grant Program with broader support to cover carers of older people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Service features include linking older people and their carers&nbsp;to local services designed to support wellbeing, independence, and community connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Under the new program, four local organisations will operate as \u2018community connectors\u2019 linking older people and their carers to vital services and community groups across 16 Local Government Areas in regional NSW.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The organisations are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Maari Ma Health Aboriginal Corporation\u00a0<strong>(servicing Balranald, Broken Hill, Central Darling and Wentworth LGAs)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>CareWays Community\u00a0<strong>(servicing Kiama, Shellharbour, Shoalhaven and Wollongong LGAs)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Springwood Neighbourhood Centre Cooperative<strong>\u00a0(servicing Blue Mountains and Lithgow LGAs)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Northern Rivers Community Gateway Incorporated\u00a0<strong>(servicing Ballina, Clarence Valley, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Tweed LGAs)<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Carers and Seniors will benefit from access to wraparound support including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Information, education and advice<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Needs assessment<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Outreach and engagement<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Short-term case planning and coordination<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Outbound referrals to My Aged Care, Carers Gateway or NDIS.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Seniors and carers may be linked to additional support including financial wellbeing, legal, family and relationship or community engagement services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An independent review into the Connecting Seniors Grant program had recommended a focus on providing a clear entry point into the service system and wraparound flexible support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The new program aligns with the priorities in our Ageing Well Seniors Strategy and NSW Carers Strategy to promote social inclusion, community participation, and boost health and wellbeing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">All organisations were selected through a targeted tender process which assessed their experience and capacity to deliver on the appropriate service model.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is part of the Minns Government\u2019s ongoing efforts to support older people and carers in our state, so they can live active, healthy lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Further information on the Connecting Seniors and Carers Program can be found here:&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/dcj.nsw.gov.au\/community-inclusion\/seniors\/ageing-well-in-nsw-seniors-strategy-2021-2031\/events-and-projects\/connecting-seniors-and-carers-program.html\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" target=\"_blank\">https:\/\/dcj.nsw.gov.au\/community-inclusion\/seniors\/ageing-well-in-nsw-seniors-strategy-2021-2031\/events-and-projects\/connecting-seniors-and-carers-program.html<\/a><br><br><strong>Minister for Seniors Jodie Harrison said:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe know older people and their carers often report barriers to accessing the support they need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThat\u2019s why the Minns Labor Government is delivering the Connecting Seniors and Carers Program designed to provide simpler and clearer pathways to support for those who need it most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe four organisations funded through this new program have strong local service footprints and are well placed to empower seniors and carers to remain connected to the communities they know and love.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Minns Labor Government has unveiled a new $3.6 million pilot program over three years to better integrate social and wellbeing support for older people and their unpaid carers in New South Wales. The Connecting Seniors and Carers Program builds on the foundations of the Connecting Seniors Grant Program with broader support to cover carers &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/2026\/06\/16\/building-a-more-connected-nsw-for-seniors-and-carers\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Building a more connected NSW for seniors and carers&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39475","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-nswnews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39475","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39475"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39475\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39476,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39475\/revisions\/39476"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39475"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39475"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39475"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}