Whole of Strategy Evaluation of the pss final report

77.2Improving delivery of the PSS

78A needs-based approach

Proposed New Direction : Project funding be directed primarily to those regions currently or planned to receive LAF and reflect the needs of the region.

The major concern with abolishing the PSS Zones is that an alternative mechanism or set of criteria is required to guide investments. In many ways the role that DoHA has had in determining which communities should get LAF is a prototype for determining which communities should be encompassed by the PSS. They have developed a needs assessment and consultation process that determines a community’s need and willingness to stock LAF in order to address their sniffing issues. We propose that this currently informal process becomes formalised.

Implementing a needs-based approach will require the following be done:

disband the Zones as they are currently described and accept the current ‘footprint’ area as a working definition of the areas in which remote area sniffing issues are in need of a response

develop a mechanism for collecting accurate data at sites that report sniffing to see if they need to be included in PSS activity, and also assess the extent of services in any given community, and

include as a principle that funding of complementary services (such as youth or community support services) under the PSS will be limited to communities that are either receiving LAF (or not receiving it for purely mechanical reasons such as supply issues) or planned to receive LAF.

Within these broad parameters, investments into particular priorities should be prioritised according to factors such as:

severity of sniffing

extent of other service provision (is there a relatively high level of unmet need)

support from the relevant state/territory government, and

support for the services from the relevant community.

79Engagement with state/territories

Proposed New Direction : The role and composition of the Cross-Jurisdictional Forum be revised to focus it on discussions of strategic directions.

Recent changes such as establishment of the CJF are seen as a positive and should continue, but are not sufficiently engaging state/territories on overall priorities and directions. There is a need to establish mechanisms that are more likely to engage governments and clarify the different roles and stakeholders for:

setting priorities

information exchange about developments ‘on the ground’, and

broader planning and engagement.

However, the level of interest and engagement by jurisdictions will vary.

80New project funding arrangements

Proposed New Direction : AGD’s funding for petrol sniffing projects be transferred to FaHCSIA and managed through its programs, in conjunction with the Targeted Funding Scheme (TFS).

As noted in Chapter 4, the current separation of funding programs reflects agency arrangements but makes it difficult to coordinate action to address regions of high need. In particular, the AGD funding of youth services, while it addressed real needs, is delivering benefits primarily to one region although there are greater needs and higher rates of sniffing elsewhere. A more effective approach would be to combine as much funding as possible into FaHCSIA so it could utilise its ICC and RC network to deliver and support funding where needed and apply a consistent needs and priority framework assessment across all funding programs. This could also reduce the need for services to address narrow justice outcomes and instead focus on broader strategies tackling the underlying factors leading to young people take up sniffing.

81Improved strategy definition and communication

Proposed New Direction : A Strategic Plan be prepared to guide the PSS.

One of the recurring themes in evaluations of the PSS has been the need for more clarity on the goals, strategies and priorities of the PSS. This would provide a ready source of information and priorities to staff and stakeholders on the content of the PSS and hopefully, reduce uncertainty about its approach. We envisage a document similar to, though smaller than those documents describing the National Drug Strategy or the National Drug Strategy Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples Complementary Action Plan. Stakeholders should be consulted on its content and priorities. The document should articulate the PSS’s strategic approach including its:

goals

focus of the components

scope

role of Zones

short and medium-term priorities

funding opportunities

organisation (such as the role of the PSSU and RCs)

responsibilities, and

focus of effort in the next period.

82Improved governance and management

Proposed New Direction : The PSSU be given additional resources to allow it to undertake the leadership of the PSS and implement the changes proposed by this evaluation. Proposed New Direction : Clarify leadership arrangements for the PSS.

Notwithstanding that one of the strengths of the PSS is its multi-agency composition, it also requires strong leadership which is best done by one agency. A number of reviews have identified the need for clearer leadership on issues such as priorities, data collection and analysis, definition of elements, cross-jurisdictional relationships and communication. Implementing the proposals of this evaluation will also require substantial effort.

These roles have recently been assigned to the PSSU in addition to its operational responsibilities, however the PSSU’s current staffing numbers and profile are probably insufficient to exercise the leadership required. Some small additional senior staffing is required to support the strategic leadership role. This could be based in Alice Springs, but we suspect it would be more effective located in Canberra where it can liaise with other agencies and with the FaHCSIA senior staff.

Also, as noted at page 89 there is uncertainty over which agency(s) has formal leadership of the strategy. This should be clarified as part of implementing new arrangements.