Carers Recognition Act: requirements for care and carer support agencies
Find out how to meet your responsibilities under the Act, including raising awareness, consulting with carers and reporting annually.
Purpose of the Act
In the ACT, more than 50,000 carers provide unpaid care to someone who has disability, a medical condition, a mental illness, or is frail and aged.
Carers often feel isolated, unseen or overwhelmed. They often provide care without breaks or support. This means they can face challenges balancing caring with their own goals, health and wellbeing, study or work.
The Carers Recognition Act 2021 (the Act) aims to improve the lives of carers in the ACT by:
- recognising their contribution to the Canberra community
- providing principles to improve support for carers and consider the care relationship between carers and the people they care for.
Care relationship principles
The care relationship principals are part of the Act. The principles say a carer should:
- be supported as an individual and as a carer, including during changes to the care relationship
- be recognised for their efforts, and for the social and economic contribution they make to the community
- have their social wellbeing and health recognised in matters of the care relationship
- have the effect of their role as a carer on their participation in employment and education considered in decisions about them.
Check if the Act applies to your organisation
Your organisation has obligations under the Act if it is either:
- an ACT Government directorate or agency
- a support agency funded by the ACT Government to deliver programs or services to people in care relationships.
ACT Government directorates and agencies
ACT Government directorates and agencies who have obligations include those that:
- develop or provide policies, programs or services for people in a care relationship
- fund other organisations to provide programs or services
- have staff who are carers.
Funded support agencies
Funded support agencies include organisations funded by the ACT Government to provide a support service or program with a direct impact on people in care relationships. This includes organisations funded to:
- provide advocacy services to carers
- manage and support foster and kinship care
- provide in-home and community-based services and support to people in care relationships.
The Act does not apply if your services or programs are:
- funded under the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)
- not specifically for people in care relationships
- not funded by the ACT Government.
What you need to do
Raise awareness
Make sure the following people are aware of, understand and uphold the care relationship principles:
- your staff
- people in a care relationship who receive support from your agency.
Consider the principles when you develop human resources policies for staff.
Consult
Consult with carers about services and programs that affect them. You should also consult with an organisation that represents carers.
To consult with people in a care relationship, you could:
- Share information about programs and services under review and invite input.
- Hold forums to discuss, assess and develop new policy.
- Have a process for involving carers as stakeholders when you develop and evaluate a service or program.
- Invite carers and their representatives to community consultation when you evaluate or develop services that may affect them.
Report
Your agency should report on what it has done to:
- include the care relationship principles in its human resources (HR) policies, for staff who are carers
- promote and uphold the care relationship principles
- consult with people in care relationships when it plans or reviews its support services and programs.
How to report
You should report annually.
ACT Government directorates and agencies must include information in their annual report to show how they complied with the Act.
Support agencies funded by the ACT Government should:
- give a copy of your report to the ACT government directorate that funded you
- make the report available to the public by putting it on your website.
For guidance on what to include, use the reporting template [PDF 134 kB].
Contact us
For help, contact the Community Services Directorate on 133 427 or CSD@act.gov.au.