DIMA Annual Report 2000-01

Overview of outcome two departmental outputs

Output 2.1 Settlement services

2.1.1 Settlement services

Description

This output component delivers settlement plans addressing national and local settlement priorities.

Key results

• the annual report on the progress of State and Territory settlement planning committees in addressing national and local settlement priorities and the National Settlement Project 2001 - Promoting Settlement Information on the Internet - were endorsed by the Ministerial Council for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs in April 2001
  
  
• settlement planning committees reported on initiatives taken in areas of English-language training, access to the labour market and housing, settlement information (particularly the promotion of online information), enhancing support for sponsors, translating and interpreting services, integrating services for humanitarian entrants and enhancing support for ethnic aged. Other activities included rural information campaigns, outreach sessions on post-arrival programs and services and events recognising the contribution of volunteers to settlement in this International Year of Volunteers
  
  
• new settlement information launched by the Minister in November 2000 and available from the Department's Settling in Australia website (www.immi.gov.au/living-in-australia/settle-in-australia/index.htm) includes:
  
  
  • settlement information kits in 18 languages as well as English, which contain information about services for newly-arrived migrants in each State and Territory. From 18 November 2000 to 29 June 2001 more than 42,000 hits were recorded on the site (see Fig. 13)
    
    
  • the Settlement Services Guide sponsored by the Refugee Resettlement Advisory Council (RRAC). The guide helps settlement services agencies by providing a description of Australia's settlement policy framework, the range of settlement services funded by the department and a brief history of settlement services in Australia
    
    
• RRAC continued to provide advice to the Minister on a wide range of settlement issues in 2000-01 including implementation of the new service delivery arrangements under the IHSS, a strategy to address issues concerning refugee youth and settlement-focussed research projects.

2.1.2 Direct services

Description

This output component supports the provision of services to newly-arrived refugee and humanitarian entrants admitted under the Offshore Humanitarian Program. Initial settlement services to humanitarian entrants are delivered through a range of service providers who are contracted in each State and Territory to the department to provide these services.

Key results

• 4,900 eligible humanitarian entrants were helped with information/orientation, accommodation and support services
  
  
• of the 4,900 humanitarian entrants helped, 2,240 received volunteer support
  
  
• 4,800 humanitarian entrants were provided with early health assessment including initial torture and trauma counselling where required
  
  
• implementation of the new IHSS model progressed with contracts signed to deliver services under the model in Western Australia, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, ACT and Victoria.

2.1.3 Support for community service

Description

This output component supports the administered item Grants for Migrant Community Services.

DIMA supported the provision of settlement services to the migrant community through the administration of 323 service agreements with organisations funded under the Community Settlement Services Scheme (CSSS) and through core funding of 30 Migrant Resource Centres (MRCs) and four Migrant Service Agencies (MSAs).

The MRCs/MSAs provide a base to deliver, support and attract services to help migrants in the local areas settle and participate equitably in society.

The CSSS compliments the core funded services provided through the MRC/MSA network by providing grants to community organisations to fund the delivery of settlement services which target particular communities and specific areas of settlement need. The CSSS is an application-based grants program. Funding may be awarded for one, two or three years.

DIMA supports the funded organisations in the delivery of their services through effective grants management, assistance with identifying and clarifying work programs, reporting and financial accountability requirements, and by providing training for management committees/boards and staff.

Key results

• a total of 357 work programs and service agreements were negotiated and effectively managed, resulting in a high level of outputs against contractual obligations. During the program year, 1,412 (out of a total of 1,428) work program outputs were satisfactorily delivered and instalment payments made. In 16 cases payment was withheld or delayed, requiring cautioning or counselling of funded organisations
  
  
• a total of 111 grants ceased on 30 September 2000 and 91 per cent of these have been satisfactorily acquitted. State and Territory offices are following up on outstanding requirements
  
  
• the Grants Management System (GMS), a centralised database system that supports assessment, management and reporting of CSSS grants, has been developed and deployed in DIMA Central and State/Territory offices
  
  
• an increased focus on regular performance reporting, facilitated by GMS reporting, has resulted in early identification and resolution of performance concerns
  
  
• consistent with the Government's online and more accessible government strategies, an Internet-based application form was introduced for the 2001 grants round. It allows community organisations to apply for funding online and has streamlined the application and assessment phases of the CSSS funding round.

2.1.4 AMEP administration

Description

This output component supports the administered item, the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) administered by the department through contracts with 21 service providers across Australia.

Key results

• 21 contracts provide for the delivery of tuition in teaching centres and in community venues, through distance learning and the home tutor scheme. Child-care support is provided to ensure that clients with young children can access the program
  
  
• regular meetings with service providers are the main focus of contract management, enabling issues to be dealt with as they arise
  
  
• all service providers fulfilled contractual requirements, with no breaches notified
  
  
• the contracts were awarded in 1998 for three years, with an extension to five years subject to a satisfactory evaluation in the third year. A third year evaluation of contracted services was conducted during 2000-01. The evaluation incorporated three separate streams including a DIMA management assessment, a service provider self-assessment and a national client satisfaction survey. Following evaluation outcomes, 20 out of 21 contracts have been extended for two years and the remaining contract for one year
  
  
• the Australian National Audit Office (ANAO) conducted an audit of the management of the AMEP contracts pursuant to the Auditor-General Act 1997. The ANAO report was tabled in Parliament on 31 May 2001. Issues arising from the report are being addressed in the current planning processes for the next tender round.

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